originally from my bearblog.dev site (unpublished)
Had an appointment to have my wisdom teeth removed today. (The infamous - had to look it up! Words relating to dentistry were never in my vocabulary.) It had been a while since my last teeth removal, when I was first preparing to get braces a few years back. Time kind of blew by; the monstrosity that inspired my social media handle (@/crookedchompers) became visually acceptable (at least to me).
The process did not take too long but the sensations overwhelmed me during it and afterwards. The injection and numbing of my gums, the probing of medical pliers, the feeling of something cracking as the teeth were yanked out (they were in tact though). It didn't help that the assistant doctor made his presence in the room incredibly known - it felt like he was looming over me, silently judging. I also heard the iPhone video recording sound going off from his direction. Just what purpose does a video of this particular moment serve? The thought of it made me uneasy, my limbs shaking not from pain. I don't think I'm ever going to feel calm, lying on that dental chair with him by my side. (I'll probably dedicate a separate post for this man.)
The turnaround of this removal was quite quick. My dentist had been telling me to get these teeth removed for some time, but the plan solidified about two weeks ago. He let me know of his availability just yesterday, and less than 24 hours later, said teeth were gone. I worried about the suddenness and quickness of the removal, if there were going to be any effects on my health in the future (I didn't look up anything beforehand - kind of reckless). It also brought back memories of prior consultations for my teeth, with doctors presenting options and future trade-offs. I am currently in one of those proposed timelines, living out the pros and cons. The emotions hit me all at once. I got dangerously close to shedding a tear in front of people I definitely don't want to see me crying. The alleged video was enough.
The healing process has been a lot better this time around. I only feel a tinge of pain whenever I yawn or open my mouth wider than that. A bit physically fatigued, but it will probably be fine after some sleep.