Thank you and a lengthy update

To all of you who reached out to me via email this week, THANK YOU! Your words of encouragement and prayers have been a force for healing. I really appreciate that you would take time out of your day to tell me that you're thinking of me, praying for me, or to relate your own surgical and health issues. So again, thank you.  I am sometimes surprised at how kind this group is. And I'm grateful that you sent some of that kindness my direction.

For an update -- as I told those who reached out to me, my surgery was Tuesday morning. It went well. I was awake, using what the surgeon calls conscious sedation. I took medication that made me drowsy (and clumsy, could not walk to the car by myself afterward), but I could respond to questions and ask my own questions. For some folks, this kind of medication causes memory lapses of most of the procedure. Not for me. I remember just about all of it, although at some points a little bit hazily, as if I were in a dream, but not a dream, if you know what I mean. Curiously, I was curious during the whole procedure. My doctor filled me in on everything she was doing, which was extremely interesting. I had watched online videos of the procedure in advance. So to hear about it in progress in my own mouth was fascinating to me.

So, for what I had done -- it's commonly called a sinus lift. There are a few different kinds of sinus lifts. Mine involved surgically lifting the floor of the sinus, by entering through the gums above the tooth line, cutting a window in the bone above and pushing upward, then adding donor bone to the space created. The surgery took 1 hour. They were able to increase my jawbone in that spot threefold. In order to go the dental implant route, I needed much more bone in my jaw to hold a screw. I'm very small-boned and needed a lot of new bone in that area. After the surgery was completed and sutures placed, they took 3-D images and showed me the new bone area. It was perfectly placed and in an appropriate amount. Now, I just have to wait for this donor bone to integrate with my own bone.

I brought Advil and Tylenol in the car with me that morning, along with a bottle of water. Immediately after sitting down in the car, my husband handed me the OTCs and water. By the time we were home, the carbocaine had completely worn off and the pain began to set in. Because of the sedative I took earlier, I was advised to not take the heavy-duty rx pain killer for a few more hours. I don't like the feeling of these heavy-duty pain meds, so I was okay with having some pain while using Tylenol and Advil. I also had to keep ice on my face for 2 days to reduce swelling and help a little with pain. Despite all of the icing, I still swelled up pretty badly. I'm very, very bruised as well. My husband says it looks like someone took a baseball bat to my face. The swelling will gradually go away and so will the bruises. For now, I think I look pretty scary. I'm taking pain meds and antibiotics around the clock, eating a soft diet, and trying not to talk or yawn (both pull on the stitches, causing pain). I have my first follow-up visit this coming Tuesday.

Over the past several months, I went back and forth on what to do about this dental situation. There was really no good choice, just one choice that was slightly better than the rest. However, Tuesday night when I was in so much pain I wanted to cry, but didn't because that crying would just cause more pain, I doubted my choice. I'm still in pain but improving. I pray that the choice I made was the right one for me. I'm limited to what activity I can take part in for the next several days. So I'm counting on my family to take care of the garden, the house, and shopping.

Anyway, thank you so much to those of you who reached out to me, as well as those who kept me in their thoughts and prayers privately. I know that my healing has been prayed for.

Enjoy your weekend!