Ouch!

[anlockwood]

Well I had another tooth start flaring up last week. It was off and on so I waited it out. Come Tuesday of this week I got a lymph node in front of my ear on same side as tooth that swelled up and became very painful to touch. I went to the dr and dentist. Dentist said could be infection beginning and wanted to put me on antibiotics as precautionary and I said no. He has no idea what c diff is. He said my only other option would have been to do a root canal and crown. I just had a root canal done a few weeks ago and that pretty much ate all my dental benefits up so this would now cost me around $1300. I didn't have that much to spend on saving the tooth so decided probably best to just pull it. It is my farthest back molar so for cosmetic reasons it doesn't worry me. So had that done today and will never do that again! I will pay the money and keep the tooth from now on. I had my wisdom tooth done recently and that was cake compared to this thing. He literally pulled muscle in my back and neck trying to get it out. The roots on reg teeth are so long. Felt like he was taking my jaw with it. I was in so much pain when I was still numb and now the numb has worn off so it is worse. Oh the horrific things we will go through simply to avoid taking an antibiotic. It seems so severe to a normal person but it really didn't cross my mind twice until right before. Thank goodness for that amazing laughing gas....that stuff is fantastic. Well thanks for letting me vent. No one else understands why I didn't just wait it out to see if the infection got worse.

Amanda

[Bobbie]

Amanda,
We all understand and would do almost anything to avoid another bout of C. diff. I have friends who rave on about the "wonders of antibiotics and how they feel so much better after they take one." They know what I've gone through but can't understand it.

I have one friend who is concerned about taking an airplane trip because she "might" get sick. We are planning to go to the UK for two weeks to see our son and grand kids the end of August and I am mighty concerned -- recycled air in the airplane, long trip over, health problems, and my 92-yr. old mother who is declining. I want to see those kids, however.

Ask your dentist about Peridex. It's an antibiotic mouth rinse with little absorption. Should help you heal. (Check this out with a pharmacist and/or your doc.) I've used it many times since whenever I am stressed (which is often), my mouth gets sores that spread.

Feel better.