A Young Wife’s Tale

My jaw hurts. Worse than it has hurt in over a year. I had a filling replaced. It was only two years old. I guess clenching and grinding your teeth wears fillings out pretty fast.

I set up the appointment one week ago, on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. I had a little trouble with my voicemail over the holiday, but I didn’t worry about it, since it was a holiday. Today, I got my voicemail working again, and I had multiple messages from the dental office trying to confirm my appointment. The last message said that they were canceling my appointment since I hadn’t confirmed.

I’m living with an open bite. It’s not going to change any time soon. Here’s what it looks like when I bite down.

How can you help friends with chronic illnesses when you yourself have a chronic illness? David and I have lots of friends and family with very serious issues, and it’s often difficult for us to help, even though we have a pretty good idea of what our friends and family are going through. Here’s a list of ways you can help your friends with chronic illness even if you have a chronic illness or chronic pain.

* Send them a card saying you’re praying for them.
* Send them an email with a joke that made you laugh. Stress relief is always appreciated by the chronically ill.
* Call them.

Here’s a list of foods you don’t have to chew. It’s handy for people like me with TMJ Disorder, and maybe it would help someone who’s recently had oral surgery.
*Pudding
*Mashed Potatoes
*Egg Drop Soup
*Frozen Yogurt
*Protein Shakes
*Slim Fast

The next morning, I called the house and learned that he’d had an awful night. Well, he and my parents had an awful night. Brother #1 was in extreme pain and had starting swelling. They’d used lots of ice and he’d been taking the pain medicine as prescribed.

In the middle of the night, my father finally had to call the surgeon. The surgeon said that since Brother #1 is so young and athletic (He’s a personal trainer.) he was probably metabolizing the pain medicine too quickly. He instructed my parents to give Brother #1 the pain medicine every 3 hours instead of every 4-6 hours and to also give him Ibuprofen.