Oral Surgery - Nothing to Smile About!

Friday May 14 2010
130 days since accident
107 days in Colorado

This morning I took dad to an oral surgeon to have his last two middle, lower teeth (canines) removed. The place operated like a well-oiled machine, with people coming and going every 20 minutes. Dad was no exception, even with one of the canines cracked near the gum line; he was done in less than 20 minutes. His bottom lip was quite swollen, the teeth were brittle, and the doctor had to take them out in pieces, leaving dad with a couple of stitches. There was no doubt in my mind that dad would, in a very short amount of time, feel indescribable pain. I filled the pain medicine (vicodin) prior to the visit so I would be prepared, and gave him one on the way home.

Once home I cleaned up dads’ face and replaced the blood-soaked gauze in his mouth. I gave him an ice pack to help reduce the swelling around his mouth, and put the television on until he fell asleep. Yesterday, I made butterscotch pudding, raspberry Jello, and two kinds of hearty soup. I also bought a variety of beverages and popsicles to keep him well hydrated.

I continued to give him a pain pill plus an anti-inflammatory pill throughout the rest of the day and into the evening.

My son was having a few friends over to celebrate his 16th birthday. Fortunately, it was a movie party, and away from the house. I left my husband home while I drove the boys to the theater and got them settled in with popcorn and then came back a couple of hours later to pick them up.

I was up for most of the night to check on dad and make sure he was resting comfortably. I knew I would be in for a long weekend.