Chinese food & toothaches

[Natasha (candygirl)]

Totally separate stories, but I figured I would throw them both into one thread. Last weekend, I went to a traditional Chinese wedding banquet and it was sooooo yummy! It was a ten course meal plus dessert and wedding cake. I thought my stomach was going to explode. We had two different duck courses, walnut shrimp, shrimp balls with crab legs, shark fin soup, lobster, roasted chicken, scallops, steamed sea bass, and fried rice. Fortunately I love seafood and I'm not a vegetarian, but I can see how some people would not enjoy three hours of food without a single vegetarian dish. I was disappointed to learn there wouldn't be dancing or any of that kind of stuff, but after the sixth course came I realized it was for everyone's safety. Imagine people trying to bust a move when their stomachs were at maximum capacity. We did pretty well for the first half or so, but after the lobster came, I was like Cartman saying, "No...more...pie..."

I "almost" caught the bouquet. The bride heaved it so hard over her shoulder that it flew over everyone's heads and landed on a table behind us, knocking over wine glasses. The second time, she overcompensated and barely threw it at all. It landed on the floor in front of everyone. We figured one of the little girls in front would pick it up, but after a full ten seconds of all of us staring at it on the ground, the girl next to me decided to bite the bullet and pick it up. She went around me, through two other people, and in front of the little girls to get it.

A few weeks ago, I had to have a wisdom tooth removed because it was so painful. I didn't have the others removed because I wasn't sure how much it would cost so I figured I could get those done later. Unfortunately, about two weeks afterward, I had an allergic reaction to the antiobiotics they prescribed. I know what happens when I am allergic to drugs because sadly I became allergic to penicillin after I had mono in high school. I know that I am also allergic to cephalasporins (there is a cross-reaction with penicillin), but I learned that now I am also allergic to clindamyacin. I'm getting to the point where I feel like I need one of those medic alert bracelets!

On the plus side, the allergic reaction wasn't as bad this time as it was when I found out I was allergic to penicillin, but it was still itchy and uncomfortable - hives from my neck to my feet. That's when you find out how comfy your comfy clothes really are. The doctor's helpful advice was "If they aren't gone in six weeks, come back. And if your tongue swells up, go to the emergency room." On a more superficial level, I was concerned that I would look like a leper at the wedding! Thankfully the hives only took about a week and a half to work through my system.

Yesterday I had my three remaining wisdom teeth removed. Two of them have already completely grown in, and the third was impacted. They tol me that they didn't need to put me under, so it was just local anesthetic. Dentist noises gross me out, so I brought along some music to listen to. Thank goodness I did - the impacted tooth had to be split into two and then removed. They didn't tell me that involved a screaming Drill of Death. Actually, I think it might have been more of a saw, but I can't say for sure - I kept my eyes closed the whole time! I don't want to see the implements of destruction before they go in, and I certainly don't want to see them coming out all covered in blood either. Ick! I had the music cranked up while that saw thing was going and I could still hear it. Gives me the heebie jeebies just thinking about it! Now my face is totally swollen - I look like I'm trying to smuggle a golf ball in my cheek.

Those three page long descriptions of side effects that come with prescription medicine simultaneously grosses me out and cracks me up. One the one hand, spare me the details. I'm going to take the medicine because the doctor told me to, so there's really no need to scare the crap out of me with stories of intestinal bleeding and explosive diarrhea. On the other hand, I find it hilarious when they warn me that Zithromax may cause vaginal irritation. You know, because I feel so sexy with a swollen face.

It was tricky trying to plan for this surgery - I wanted to make sure that I had ample time to recover so I had to take into account the week I was away at a conference, Thanksgiving, Christmas, etc. Hopefully I will be all healed up in time for turkey day. It grossed me out having a big pit in my mouth the last time around. On the plus side, they gave me a prescription for Vicodin. I haven't taken any because I'm afraid of it - my sister got sick (nauseous) when they gave her Vicodin in the hospital so I'm holding out with just ibuprofin for now. My boyfriend's excited about the prospect of selling my leftover Vike on the street corner.



The downside is that my whole day revolves around eating now because I have to take medication. I'm used to eating when I'm hungry, so it's weird for me to be watching the clock all day for the sole purpose of eating again. At least now I can eat lots of ice cream and tell myself it's all about my recovery.

[SanDeE*]

That's quite some planning there candygirl! Glad to hear you were well enough to go to the wedding and have some fun.

I planned my wisdom teeth-removal for right after my finals in January of my senior year of high school. I only needed th bottom ones removed, because there is enough room for the top ones in my mouth... or something like that. Anyway, only the bottom ones were removed. I had the full anesthesia --- I couldn't hardly deal with the idea of my teeth being pulled out. It's sort of like a phobia of mine -when I was little I had to go to the emergency room for some accident involving my mouth & teeth - so maybe it's more of a childhood trauma thing. I sometimes have these horrible nightmares about my teeth falling out or crumbling in my mouth. Oh my god they are the worst dreams ever. Anyway, after I had the surgery, my dad was so sweet - he got my medicine, bought me some milkshakes, and even brought the TV & VCR up to my bedroom! I was in pretty bad shape for about three days. I was so stoned off those drugs, and I ended up watching The Who's Tommy on TV, and it really freaked me out! About four days after the surgery I was still slightly puffy, and I had a gig that day with my band. It was pretty cool - they were all very sweet to me. I'm just happy I won't have to get another surgery for my mouth... hopefully ever.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

I only needed th bottom ones removed, because there is enough room for the top ones in my mouth... or something like that.

It's funny - when I had those full skull x-rays done before I got braces, the dentist told me that I would have to eventually have all my wisdom teeth removed since I didn't have enough room in my mouth. Contrary to that, my top wisdom teeth grew in just fine. HOWEVER, we had this weird thing at work - three of us had our wisdom teeth all removed within a few weeks of each other so we were all sharing stories. One girl is in her 30s and her dentist had told her when her wisdom teeth started coming in (we're talking her late teens, early 20s) that they didn't need to be removed because she had enough room in her mouth. Fast forward almost 20 years - what the dentist usually doesn't tell you is that even if you have room in your mouth, most people can't get back there and clean them well so they often end up with lots of cavities. She kept one of the wisdom teeth they removed so that it would serve as the cautionary tale of having your wisdom teeth removed - she had a cavity about the size of a pencil going almost all the way through that tooth.

I had the full anesthesia --- I couldn't hardly deal with the idea of my teeth being pulled out. It's sort of like a phobia of mine -when I was little I had to go to the emergency room for some accident involving my mouth & teeth - so maybe it's more of a childhood trauma thing.

I really hate going to the dentist too - it freaks me out. The weird thing is that I loved my pediatric dentist. He was so awesome. Then I moved and had to get a new dentist. This guy was OBSESSED with dentotape. If you have never seen or used dentotape, it's really thick floss and it's nearly impossible to use so of course it made my gums bleed. After a few trips to that particular nutjob, I told my mom that my sister and I had to find a new dentist. Thankfully she listened, and we found another awesome dentist who my sisters still see when they go home to visit my parents.

A few things you might want to look into are sedation dentistry and spa dentistry. Sedation dentistry, as you might have guessed, involves sedation. You take a pill and get to sleep through the whole thing. If you don't think you need to be knocked out, some sedation dentistry allows you to take a sedative like Valium so that you are conscious, but you are not anxious or freaking out while you're in the chair. Spa dentistry sounds really namby pamby, but if you are into comfort you might like it. Because they are trying to make it a relaxing experience, they have all kinds of options: aromatherapy, hand massages, movies/music for you to watch/listen to while they work on you. Another thing you might want to check out is waterlase which eliminates the need for drilling - no more nasty drill noises or that burnt smell.

I sometimes have these horrible nightmares about my teeth falling out or crumbling in my mouth. Oh my god they are the worst dreams ever. [/qutoe]

I have had those dreams too! They are so realistic - I can feel the little bits of tooth that I am trying to spit out. Some dream analysis book my friend had said it's a sign of stress.

[SanDeE*]

I'm all right when I go for the six-month cleaning. It's usually pretty quick because I have great teeth. I never needed braces or anything, and I don't smoke or drink coffee so my teeth are very white too. When I was little I had some cavaties, but when I was in middle school my dentist put this stuff on my teeth and I've never had a cavatie since. I forgot what the stuff is... it's a veneer-type stuff? I don't know. Also what helps is that the dentist I see has been my dentist my entire life. We've planned my dentist appointments around my college semesters so I get one cleaning over winter break and one in the summer. Another thing that helps is that most of his hygenists are about my age, so we talk about college and boyfriends and stuff. I just freaked out about the removal surgery. I've also never had any kind of surgery before, so that added to my anxiety.

The accident I had when I was little really traumatized me. I was about five and my cousin and I were playing in the basement rec room of my parents' old house. I had something in my mouth --- like a sash or piece of fabric. My cousin yanked it out of my mouth and one of my top two front teeth went from facing down towards my jaw to facing straight out... like | to --. Does that make sense? So my parents had to rush me to the emergency room that night (the only time I've had to go there... for me anyway, my little brother is another story!). I remember all of it vividly - the ER doctor was there and my dentist was called, and they said if my tooth turned blue that meant it died and I had to have an emergency dentist appointment to remove it. Thankfully that didn't happen - it was a baby tooth and it fell out naturally a couple of weeks later. But still, that experience really messed me up.

I have a chip on a tooth from a party... a guy knocked a glass beer bottle into my mouth. I really freaked out... I remember saying "half my freakin' tooth is gone!" I was lucky, though - it never hurt at all, so I don't think any nerve endings were damaged. There is a chip, but it's very small. I over-exaggerated with saying it was half my tooth. At the time I was kinda buzzed from the....soda I was drinking. Yeah, that's it... soda. At least, that's what I told my dentist at my next appointment.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

When I was little I had some cavaties, but when I was in middle school my dentist put this stuff on my teeth and I've never had a cavatie since. I forgot what the stuff is... it's a veneer-type stuff?

When I was in middle school, I had my back teeth sealed which prevented cavities for quite a while. For some reason, insurance covers sealing for kids but not adults.

Ugh, tooth accidents give me the heebie jeebies. One girl I knew was on the tall flags team and the pole knocked her in the mouth, chipping almost her entire tooth. She had to get a veneer put on her front tooth.

[Nostradamus]

I love how you segued straight from the wedding to the tooth extraction, very symbolic.



I too had the dental sealant applied as a child, but I started getting cavities again shortly thereafter.



I am tempted to go into some of my dental-nightmare-come-true stories, but there are too many of them. Suffice it to say I am on a first-name basis with all of my hygienists and receptionists.

[starbug]

Candygirl, I totally sympathise.... good move though, putting on the music to drown out the torture noises. I will have to do that next time. Sadly there's nothing you can do to stop that awful crunching noise inside your head when they are smashing a tooth with some pliers and wedging their foot against the chair to gain extra yanking purchase. Plus your allergic reaction sounds horrific!

So now I have to share my dentist stories. When I was 11 they realised that my adult teeth in a couple of places weren't coming through so they did a few x-rays and found out that either side of my front teeth, I just don't have any adult teeth. They aren't there, and I'm not going to suddenly grow any. Also, the two that are three out from the centre, were there but didn't fancy coming through any time. So, after the others came through except those two, they were wonky as hell, and I had two giant two-teeth-width gaps either side of my front teeth. So, into the dentist chair I go... fortunately I was at the country's leading orthodontist hospital in london, so you can pretty much be assured they've seen it all before. Basically they cut open my gums to get at the teeth embedded in there, attached a metal brace piece to each now-exposed tooth, and rigged up some complex retainer with two long arms on springs, to slowly drag my two teeth downwards and into line. The worst thing about the operation was that they are very hesitant to put children under a general anaesthetic so I was awake. The second worst thing was that since it was a teaching hospital, and I was pretty unusual, they used me as a demonstration model, so I had to listen to a running commentary. I doubt they'd be allowed to do so now, but I had 6 juniors peering at my mouth while the surgeon was saying '..and I'll just sever the gum...and now you can see the exposed tooth but we need to cut away this excess flesh...' etc. while the suction device sucked what looked like pints of blood into a jar clearly visible next to me. You know what they used to numb the pain? Ordinary novocaine. 12 shots of it. Fine, I couldn't feel a thing but it wears off about 2 hours later and then I was in agony for days.
So, after 2 years they finally had my teeth in something like the correct vertical alignment, and so begins the 3 years of traintracks. I was in the dentist chair every month from the age of 11 to nearly 17. So, the result is that after that I didn't go to the dentist for 7 years (I know, I know... ) and I have exactly this dream about crumbling teeth that Kristin has:

I sometimes have these horrible nightmares about my teeth falling out or crumbling in my mouth. Oh my god they are the worst dreams ever.

I personally think that it's because after years of braces, when they take them out, your whole mouthful of teeth feels really unstable and wobbly. there's a bunch of extra space in there that you're not used to having. That and the trauma of the whole experience.

My last trip to the dentist was about 3 years ago, seriously. Fortunately I don't have even so much as a filling (I thought for sure after the 7 year hiatus I would have a mouthful of fillings). And one of my friends is going to be fully qualified as a dentist in about a year and I'll probably trust her enough to at least let her clean them...

I am tempted to go into some of my dental-nightmare-come-true stories...

Please do. I love hearing other people's horror - it makes me realise I wasn't the world's most hard-done-by kid!

[Nostradamus]

Heheh, ok starbug; I guess it's one of those quirks of human nature that people never get tired of talking about their gory medical conditions.



Actually one of the scariest dental stories came through the grapevine from a friend. I'm not sure if it's true, it may be an urban legend but then truth is stranger than fiction, right? Anyway these guys were hiking in the mountains when they came across some wild shrooms or moonflower or peyote or whatever and one of them decided to give it a try. So he goes off on this wild hallucinogenic trip, chasing invisible animals, talking to people who aren't there, the whole nine yards. His buddies just sit back and laugh, it's hilarious, right? And it would have been all fun and games except for the part where he mistook a pile of rocks for a bowl of fresh fruit. His smile has never been the same...

[SanDeE*]

I sometimes have these horrible nightmares about my teeth falling out or crumbling in my mouth. Oh my god they are the worst dreams ever.

I personally think that it's because after years of braces, when they take them out, your whole mouthful of teeth feels really unstable and wobbly.

I never had braces though! My friends have told me they hated having braces, but never went into the gory details... except for my boyfriend: of course he's not worried about upsetting his girlfriend who is deathly afraid of losing/breaking/hurting her teeth. gotta love him. I probably have those dreams because of the story I posted earlier. I'm really tough about lots of stuff except teeth. My brother sliced open his finger when we were younger and I calmly took care of the whole thing while my dad was passing out in the bathroom (mom was out of town). I had to tell him to take my bro to the ER.

[SanDeE*]

From The Dreamer's Dictionary by Lady Stern Robinson & Tom Corbett:

Teeth.
One must, of course, correlate the action and other details of the dream, but as a general guide: false teeth signify unexpected help out of a difficult situation; broken or unusually worn-down teeth are a sign of the deterioration of an important relationship; aching teeth portend family quarrels; a dream of having teeth filled promises good news; having teeth pulled forecasts favorable business or investment opportunities; loose teeth are a warning of untrustworthy friends; if they fell out or you spit them out, it is a sign of a season of financial reverses; decayed teeth mean health problems - see your doctor; even and/or very white and beautiful teeth forecast happiness and prosperity; very long teeth predict legal action; one tooth longer than the others portends sad news; buckteeth augur unexpected travel; bridgework is a suggestion that you should be more meticulous in meeting your obligations; a dream featuring the roots of your teeth is a warning against lending money or gambling; to dream of having a nerve removed predicts a season of good luck; brushing your teeth indicated the clearance of obstacles which have been holding you back, unless one or more bristles get stuck between your teeth, in which case you will still overcome the obstacles but only after continued patient effort; picking your teeth is a warning of false friends in your close circle.

I highlighted the ones that are in my dreams. They're pretty bad forecasts... except the financial reverses one. I'm pretty poor right now, so hey - bring on the financial reverses!

[wicked]

teeth... ugh!

I just had a root canal done...which was much to my relief totally painless!
BUT I need to get all my dental done before the end of DEC...sigh. our insurance runs out then.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

My brother sliced open his finger when we were younger and I calmly took care of the whole thing while my dad was passing out in the bathroom (mom was out of town). I had to tell him to take my bro to the ER.

I had a similar thing happen to me - my sister made these microwave brownies and she was holding the flimsy plastic container in her hand, trying to cut the brownies into slices. She loves overbaking brownies so that they're a little hard, so when she pushed the knife a little harder it sliced through the brownies, through the plastic tray, and into her hand. My parents were out of town - my dad decided to take my mom to Las Vegas for the day to celebrate her birthday. I was only 15 and couldn't drive, so I had to call my boyfriend at work and ask him to drive us to the ER. Thankfully by the time he got to my house, I had stopped the bleeding by applying pressure and she didn't even need stitches.

The next time my parents went out of town, the same sister broke her neck so now they know it isn't safe for them to ever go anywhere.

[SanDeE*]

The next time my parents went out of town, the same sister broke her neck so now they know it isn't safe for them to ever go anywhere.

She's all right, right? I hope so.

The thing with my brother is actually pretty funny. He was in fifth grade and I was in eighth, and we were making holiday decorations (halloween? can't remember). Anway, we were in the kitchen & our dad was in the living room (mom was visiting her parents out of town). Everything was fine until suddenly my brother starts screaming at the top of his lungs, flailing his hand above his head and running around the kitchen. He ran into the living room, still screaming, and our dad got uspet - "Hey what the hell is going on?!" - That kind of response. When we finally got my brother to stand still, Dad saw the blood and he started to feel sick, so he went to the bathroom. I took my brother into the kitchen, rinsed off the cut, wrapped his finger in some gauze, and told him to hold his finger above his heart and sqeeze under where the cut was. He said, "you're sqeezing too tight!" I said, "Do you want to loose enough blood so you're passing out like Dad in the bathroom?" Bro: sniff "no." So then I went to the bathroom to tell Dad he had to take my brother to the hospital. I don't think he threw up, but he had his head hanging out the window to get fresh air. My dad is a darkly complected man, and I've never seen him with less color in his face in my life! Anyway, he took my brother to the hospital and asked me to clean up the blood, since the hand-flailing had sprayed blood everywhere. I was cleaning it up after they left when my mom called from out of town, crying (dad called her from the hospital to find out my brother's allergies). I told her he just cut his finger, he didn't cut it off. When Dad got home with my brother a couple hours later, my bro had a line of stitches down half his left forefinger and Dad gave me $10 for cleaning up the blood, which is a lot of money for a 14 year old.



My boyfriend said his parents couldn't believe he lived past the age of 13, since apparently he has been in so many accidents, including falling down stairs several times, escaping the house and crawling around the neighborhood when he was a baby, and burning his hands on the stovetop. One accident (involving teeth, back to the subject) had my BF doing stunts on his bike with his older bro & their friends, when my BF went flying face first off his bike onto the cement. His bro stared in horror. I mean, poor baby. Anyway, if you look really closely you can see there are still little itty bitty cracks on his teeth.

[Natasha (candygirl)]

The next time my parents went out of town, the same sister broke her neck so now they know it isn't safe for them to ever go anywhere.

She's all right, right? I hope so.

After a fun-filled summer of wearing a halo (during which she turned 21), she was good as new and didn't require a surgery. We made sure to mock her plenty. We got her a No Neck Joe shirt to wear. Her boyfriend kept asking if she was getting good radio signals. She and her best friend both turned 21 that summer but my sister didn't want to go out and celebrate because she didn't want to remember her 21st birthday that way. My boyfriend and I convinced her and her friend to go out for one drink. Luckily it was the middle of the week so the bar was not crowded at all. Her friend had just had knee surgery so it was hilarious to watch them walk in together - my sister with a halo, her friend on crutches. They made up a story about how they were in an accident together and ended up having a good time - or as good a time as you can have when you're both gimped up for the night.

We also went to the X Games that summer, and it was so funny how many people came up to her and said, "I broke my neck too!" and then told us exactly how they managed to break their necks. Being the X Games, there were some pretty amusing (but stupid in terms of common sense) stories. Lots of jumping off roofs or into swimming pools. They were all very supportive too - they all said, "This is the worst part, but you'll be okay!"

When I got the phone call from her roommate, I was totally in shock. Breaking your neck seems like a made up thing - it's what your mom says when she wants you to knock it off: "Get down from there or you'll break your neck!" I never considered that it was a real thing until it happened to my sister.

She was an exercise science major (what they call pre-Physical Therapy now at some schools) when it happened so everyone wanted to see her x-rays.



The other thing I learned from the experience was how freaking nosy people are. Total strangers would walk up and say, "What happened to you?" My ex-boyfriend was friends with Rachel from the SF Real World, and she was in a terrible car accident where the other two people in the car (one of whom was her boyfriend) were killed. Now imagine having to tell people at the grocery store about that just because they are nosy. I guess I should have already known that since I was always getting people walking up to me in public and asking, "What are you? Where are you from?"



It's amazing that people feel so entitled to know the details of a stranger's life.

[SanDeE*]

What are you? Where are you from?"



It's amazing that people feel so entitled to know the details of a stranger's life.

Do you mean like your family's country of origin? Like, "Are you Irish/Japanese/German/etc?" Yeah, that's kinda stupid to ask that. The only time I think it could be fine is if the person's accent really lets you know they are from a different country. There was a woman I worked with a couple of years ago that was an African-American with light skin (I don't remember if she was of mixed race), and she had naturally blonde hair and beautiful green eyes. The problem with her was that she was way too defensive about it... and, well, everything. Just had some attitude. Anyway, one time a customer asked her what her background was, like if she was half Irish or something because of her eyes, and it was meant to be a compliment, but she blew it was out of proportion and yelled at him as though he were harrassing her. She even had a cop come to the store one day during her shift (she should have waited until her break, at least) and described this person to the cop saying she was uncomfortable with them in the store. Nothing ended up happening with that. Whatever, grow up girlfriend.