Skip to main content

This Had Better Work

Image
By marydalene

My early Christmas present this year wasn’t something that I was entirely expecting.

To make a long story short, I’ve been diagnosed by my dentist with TMJ, and its probable cause is my wayward wisdom tooth that showed up a little late.

So, in order to combat this problem, my dentist first had me use a night guard (I’m a teeth-grinder when I sleep), which resulted in a small improvement, but it didn’t stop my jaw from popping with the slightest provocation.

On to step two, which includes a different kind of splint-type appliance that I have to wear virtually all the time (I take it out when eating because I can’t chew with it in). I was fitted for it in the days just before Christmas – yes, I visited the dentist on Christmas Eve. I’ll save you from the eeew factor of actually seeing the thing, but I must admit to feeling a bit like a 12-year-old when I carry around my little case.

And no, I didn’t have a choice on the color. The upside? I now speak with a little lisp (I get to learn how to talk all over again! I’m so lucky), which invariably brings on the inquiries of “What happened to you?” by people I know.

So, doc, I’m just sayin’ this now … this had better work. Thank you.

Labels:

Comments

  1. Lynda/MomDecember 30, 2009 at 2:44 PM

    I've been a teeth grinder all of my recollected life. I wear a night guard every night. But I don't have jaw pain. Good luck with your new appliance. Aunt Lynda

    ReplyDelete
  2. Laura StringhamDecember 31, 2009 at 10:46 AM

    I was actually, in real life, going to ask you if you picked the color.

    I've never had TMJ issues, but the acronym just sounds painful. Good luck.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Austin's MommyJanuary 2, 2010 at 8:56 AM

    I can relate.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Funny Things Kids Do, Part 3

By marydalene
Jared got out the camera today when we went up to Grandma and Grandpa’s house for a little Easter dinner get-together. When Timothy saw the camera, he said, “Don’t take a picture of me!” “Why would I take a picture of you?” Jared asked him. “Because I’m cute.” ______ Sarah has discovered how to open and close the drawers to my dresser, and she knows that she isn’t supposed to get in them. The other day when I checked on her, she hurried over and grabbed two of my socks that were on the floor and promptly went over to my dresser where she put the socks back in and then tried to close the drawer. She came back and tried again and was successful. And I didn’t even have to say anything to her. She just saw me and went straight to the scene of the crime and tried to clean up the evidence. ______ Timothy loves to read, and so we let him read in bed before going to sleep at night. He’s only allowed to read until 8:30, which gives him about 45 minutes if he doesn’t ...
3 comments
Read more

That Was Exciting

By marydalene
There is something terribly cute, and at the same time terribly sad, about a baby hospital gown. I now have first-hand experience with it, since Ryan spent a day in the hospital on Timothy’s birthday. (Nice timing, baby boy.) Last Sunday, I could tell that Ryan was getting sick. I had hoped, when I saw that Sarah was congested and a little ill, that Ryan wouldn’t catch it, but he did. At any rate, I wasn’t really worried because Sarah was hardly phased by it and I assumed it was just a mild virus. Well, the difference between 4 years and 4 months readily became apparent on Sunday night. Ryan slept half the night in his swing after getting really fussy about his stuffy nose. He slept comfortably once in his swing, so I didn’t really worry. On Monday, he was needy. It made working interesting, especially since he wouldn’t really play on his own. He spent a lot of time in my arms or in his swing. Monday night, I could tell that he was worse, but didn’t know that there was much I coul...
4 comments
Read more

Something Scary

By marydalene
So this year, Timothy decided that he wanted to be “something scary” for Halloween. We threw out the various options, and he settled on a vampire. (“I don’t want to be a doctor again,” he told me, “because of all the doctor jokes I got last year.” Ooooookay.) He was quite pleased with the results, and enjoyed being scary. I chose to be Hermione from “Harry Potter.” (“Hermione’s hair is long ,” a 7-year-old girl down the street told me – as if this means I can’t be her – and I explained that I cut my hair earlier this year and it hadn’t had a chance to grow back yet. She was somewhat mollified, but not quite. She’s as precocious as Timothy sometimes.) But I won some movie tickets at work for my costume, made with much effort and collaboration with Janet (Thanks, Janet! And Jared made my wand, too.) This is the first year I’ve had all the elements completed (skirt, sweater, tie, scarf, robe and wand). And this is probably what I’ll be next year too. So if it looks familiar, that’s b...
4 comments
Read more