I went for my usual monthly visit to the dentist today with no feeling or expectation. The dentist told me to have a tooth extracted to end the misery of my braces episode. I’ve been enduring with the existence of this tooth for a very long time. It’s a very lengthy story and I don’t want to bore you with the details. In short, it currently disrupts the marginal alignment and with it taken out now, I can really see the difference in an instance.

As the dentist told me to have it extracted and he asked if I wanted it to do it today…I ask him if it would take long since it was a big tooth and I thought it wasn’t the normal extraction that would get this big tooth out. Mr.Dentist was so confident, he said it would only take a short while. I was given two shots and it started to get numb. While I was sitting on the chair, I was thinking if I’m not out of my mind. I have never agreed to extract a tooth immediately. Usually I would tell the dentist that I’ll get it extracted during my next visit or on another day because I’ll be thinking of all the horrible things, how to eat, what if I bleed non-stop and all imaginable things I can think of. And, I also needed time to collect courage.

But today, I think I’m drunk or I don’t know…suddenly brave? Hahahah. I agreed to have it taken out because it needs to be done sooner or later anyway and I don’t want to keep thinking about it for the coming days before my next appointment. I’m still biting on that cotton ball as I’m typing this. So far I don’t have any painful feeling yet. Extraction was painless, except you could feel the 2 tingling shots before that but it’s really nothing. Just someone pinching you very hard in a very small way.

My gum was painful after I had lunch yesterday and it is quite annoying that I didn’t feel like talking. It got worse during dinner time so I only settled for porridge. Opening my mouth and swallowing was painful too because the gum got swollen. Checked out my gum and I can see some white surface appearing above the gum….it’s my new wisdom tooth.

Of all times, it has to appear now, especially when I have my braces on so I’m not quite sure if that’s good news or bad news. If it grows out well, I think it should be fine but if it doesn’t it may have to be removed and removing wisdom tooth is more torturing than putting on braces.

Yesterday wasn’t quite my day. As I was hanging on and holding on to myself to be positive and cheerful despite the many things that I wasn’t pleased with, it finally came to a stage where I felt like crying. I woke up and I felt like crying. It got worse when I went to work, the tears were already forming and so I had to excuse myself to calm down in the toilet.

In some way, I know there are things which we don’t like to do but we are required to do it anyway. So, I’m talking myself into just doing it and see the big picture. I think I can do this.

Went to the dentist today. I was expecting a tooth extraction but HURRAY THERE WAS NONE TODAY!!

Dentist gave me a power chain. I know…sounds so canggih right? It’s just a super strong elastics to close the gap of my previous extraction. Suddenly I feel that my mouth is full of gadgets. And there’s going to be more added to the current collection next month.

Dentist suggested me to have a mini-screw. I don’t really like the sound of those 2 words. Mini-screw. Eww!

It’s going to be screw that would go through the gum. I have this very protruding molar which is giving me problems. I don’t want to lose it so I think I’m going with the mini-screw which would help to support that molar to move inwards then the dentist can extend my braces so that that molar will join the rest of the teeth. I don’t know if it hurts but I would want to think it hurts. Whether or not it hurts, I don’t really have a choice. So it’s just something I need to do next whether I like it or not.

Then, I might need a mini-implant. This one sounds scarier. Mini-screw will be taken off once the molar is corrected. Implant would mean  permanent because I’m planting a teeth. And thanks to my previous dentist who screwed up by removing my healthy molar…..now I have to do implant for my lower jaw…or else the mini-screw that supports the molar of the upper jaw will be knocking against my gum. I will be cursing my previous dentist until my braces treatment is over. It was supposed to be a much simpler process but because of that molar that was extracted when I was in secondary school, the story has changed.

Anyway, I’m seeing progress with the gap though. It’s still big but I know it’s moving inwards.

God bless Gracie and her teeth!