Rockin' the Old Marley Look

I've survived Surgery #2 in the "Great Dental Implant Adventure."  Once again, I'm looking like Old Marley in Dickens' A Christmas Carol.  The good news is that the procedure is over.  Yay!  There's more good news.  I'm not in any pain.  I'm not bruised up.  I'm semi-coherent.  Although when I look at this picture, taken right after I got home, I wonder what in the world they were doing.  It looks like they attached a Lamprey fish to my cheek.  I vaguely remember the nurse also telling me that they had put a tube up one side of my nose.  That would explain why one nostril is suddenly so much bigger than the other.  You know, I slept so well last night though, that I'm thinking I should go back and ask if they'd stick a tube down the other side and get THAT side stretched out, too.  Maybe I could finally breathe easier.

The bad news is that I can't drink or eat anything hot for 3-4 days.  I miss my coffee.  I REALLY do.  I am also supposed to do this ice pack rotation at least for one more day.  Ugh!  The day of surgery we were doing it 30 minutes on and 30 minutes off.  Today I'm doing it 30 minutes on and giving myself an hour off between icing sessions.  They tell me that the peak swelling will occur 72 hours after the surgery. Hmm, my first surgery didn't follow that pattern so I'm hoping that this is as bad as it gets.

I'm also hungry.  I've been living on applesauce since yesterday after the surgery.  I branched out this morning and had some Cream of Wheat after I let it get cold.  What joy!  Yeah, right!  I'm about ready to take off the ice pack and drive a few blocks over to Dairy Queen and bring home a sundae.  I'm not on Vicodin today so I might be able to manage that much without any incidents.

Speaking of medication, I'd just like to say that I LOVE my anesthesiologist.  That man can work miracles.  It was so much easier going into this surgery knowing that I would be easily knocked out before they stuck any needles into me.  My guy was a cheery fellow and we were happily sharing stories about living overseas and cultural differences when the doctor walked in.  I almost felt like asking him if he wouldn't mind stepping out and giving us another 5 minutes to finish our conversation but then I reconsidered.  It's probably not a good idea to piss off your surgeon.

"So, are you ready for me to get this screw in your jaw," he asked.

"Sure, what's one more,?" I replied.  "I already have a few loose ones knocking around in my head."

Then it was a few deep breaths into a mask and some lively dreams and suddenly a nurse was asking me if I could slide onto a bed in the recovery room.  Her next step was to remove the IV in my arm which I didn't even feel, which just goes to show you how out of it I still was.  Before too long, the Commander was trying to keep me from playing Pinball with my body as I walked down the hall to the exit and we were on our way home.  Bless his heart.  He took down the discharge instructions and then got to play nursemaid the rest of the day and evening, keeping me on schedule with the ice packs and pills.

I had high hopes of getting lots of knitting done yesterday after the surgery while watching some TV.  Instead, I slept the rest of the morning and all afternoon and didn't rally until about 8 p.m. when So You Think You Can Dance kept me interested enough to keep my eyes open.  When I went to bed, part of my lips were still numb from the Novocaine, too.  Luckily I can feel my face this morning.

Now today the Commander is back at work and I'm in charge of my own medication.  Since I'm still in no pain, I decided to forego the Vicodin and just use Ibuprofin.  I've lowered the dose, too and am taking it at intervals that are further apart.  So far, no problems.  Thank the good Lord for competent doctors, staff, and lots of friends praying.

The last phase in all of this will be in September when I return from babysitting in Texas.  My regular dentist will be putting a tooth on the post that is now implanted in my jaw.  Boy, will I be glad when this is all finally over.  Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm off to the recliner to snooze.