September 26, 2019

“This sucks" are not words you want to hear from your dentist. But that's what mine told me, after conferring with the team of oral specialists who saw me. I wanted answers and I got just that: universal consensus that my dead and damaged teeth need to go ASAP. Extractions, bone grafts, implants, bridges and surgeries are in my immediate and ongoing future.

X-rays show fractured teeth separated at the root. Jaw scans reveal fragmented bones above my upper teeth. Root canal temperature tests confirm my teeth have zero vitality. I knew prospects were bleak, as I literally felt my teeth perpendicular to their normal position upon impact from the accident, but that doesn’t lessen the blow of seeing the visuals and hearing such news from the dentist in an official way, outlining formal next steps. "I can’t tell you it’s not gonna blow on you tonight." The urgency for surgery is what surprised all, though I have felt pain increasing with each passing day, as my teeth separate from the device that has kept them immobilized for nearly three weeks and sensitivity to airflow, temperature and liquids heightens around the roots. Thus, I am now on a quest to find the very best cosmetic dentist to lead my care in the Bay Area… if you happen to have top recommendations I could get appointments with ASAP.

 

After a full day of back-to-back appointments with specialists for oral surgery, root canals, cosmetic dentistry, individual x-rays of every tooth, x-rays of my lips, panoramic jaw scans with a wild quarter-million dollar machine and other top medical brains and cutting edge contraptions, I am faced with the sobering reality that I am but beginning a newly complex lifelong dental journey. Vigilance around tooth, mouth or jaw pain and discoloration is a must, not just in the days and weeks to come, but for years and decades ahead. I am incredibly fortunate, that is for sure, however the dentists said it plainly: this accident will plague me forever.