First Filling Replaced!

I finally got the first of my two ancient fillings replaced today. They are about 25 years old and in rough shape... not bothering me... yet... so a good time to get them done.

Anyhow, I opted for the nitrous oxide since I was nervous and haven't had any dental work since I had braces as a teen, other than dental cleanings. That turned out to be the best thing ever! I highly recommend it to anyone that's a bit nervous at the dentist. For me, it made a big difference ... normally I lay there with every muscle in my body tense and have a headache and sore neck and shoulders after.

It was easy to get and stay relaxed with the nitrous oxide and yet you're still totally aware of what's going on and able to follow directions. It's a bit like the relaxed feeling that sets in when you have a glass of wine, that period between being sober and before you start feeling actually tipsy. The nice thing about it is it wears off quickly and you can drive right away when you're done, no problem.

It turns out that I'm kinda hard to freeze... they gave me one shot (where they stick you once and then move it all around) and then waited a few minutes... NOTHING. So they gave me another shot, again with the move it all around fun stuff that they like to do... still nothing. Then came the 3rd shot and my tongue started to tingle. We waited a few more minutes and then they started to work.

About 2 minutes after they started the drill, I jumped in the chair, I could totally feel what was going on! Yikes! So they stopped and poked around with their pokey instruments and then gave me injection #4 and we waited. My lip got a bit tingly and they poked around again to the spot that made me jump and I jumped again. On came injection #5!! This time it went right in the base of the tooth... and I felt that injection the worst!! OUCH! Actually I felt each injection, which was lovely, as that's my favourite part (NOT!!).

We waited another 15 minutes and then they poked around and I didn't jump so they got to work replacing the filling. After about 10 minutes of work, they were done! I took longer to freeze than actually get the work done! Figures!! So now they've labeled me a "hard freeze" and I have to go in early for next week's appointment so we have plenty of time to get me frozen before my appointment.

See? I don't just have a difficult personality, I'm difficult in every way!! :)

Needless to say NOW I'm good and frozen and will likely be for a few hours, half my tongue, my whole cheek from just below my eye down to about an inch above my collar bone. Pretty nice!

I looked inside my mouth when I got home and it looks nicer with a white filling than the silver one. I look forward to having the other one done too, but I dread the freezing going in... but maybe the gas helps make up for it, a bit :) I also have FIVE small bruises inside my mouth where they stuck me with the needles. Quite lovely.

I think the new filling is a bit high and might need to be shaved down a bit, but I'll have to wait until the freezing comes out to be positive. They told me I can just pop in and they can adjust it if necessary, it only takes a minute and doesn't hurt. So we'll see, right now it feels a bit high, but then again, I don't really trust what I'm feeling with being frozen up so well.

Anyhow, that's it for now.
-- L