A Re-Root Canal

I had 3 root canals done 16 years ago. I was cheering at a college basketball game and stunting with my partner. It was pre-game and we were warming up. As I was in a liberty, a cameraman who was filming warm up for the players ran into my partner's shoulder, knocking me down onto his camera. It scraped up my left thigh and knocked my 3 front teeth out. UTA was nice enough to pay for me to get new teeth 'appliances', which also included having 3 root canals done before the new teeth could be placed.

Now, flash to a year ago. My 3 teeth really did not match and you could see the top margins. We have really good dental insurance, so I had all 3 replaced with one that are made with a different material and made with better technology. However, my bite has not seemed just right. I went to see my dentist before our insurance changed at the end of this year. He noticed my bite was off, but decided to run an x-ray of the tooth that I had mentioned. It is not good when any medical professional says, "UH-OH". I had an abscess in the root of one of the teeth that I had previously had the root canal done. Thank goodness I happen to know a fantastic endodontist (I used to personal train her, her husband and babysit her kids years ago). I left his office and went straight to her office to have them shoot an x-ray. Again I hear, "UH-Ohh!". Isn't it written somewhere that you should not scare a patient with an "UH-Ohh!"?!? I called Deborah and she talked me back into a calm state and said I could call her Monday on when to come in to fix it.

Today I go to her office (as a patient for the first time ever). We chit-chat, talk about what is going to happen and she gets down to business. Let me tell you, she is the VERY BEST at what she does. It is good to have a perfectionist as your oral surgeon when you are talking about drills and other instruments all around your gums, teeth and tongue. She cut open a flap of my upper gums, cleared out the abscess, sent off the material to biopsy it, put something in there to take up the space and stitched it right back up. Pain? No. None at all. I felt a little zippity from the topical pain reliever and the epinephrine, but otherwise I probably could have gone to work out. Instead, I went to my favorite store (Back to the Rack), Dollar Tree and CVS. By myself. Without having to hold any one's hand, put anyone in the cart or say, "No, you cannot have that!". I think I'll have another re-root canal again someday just to have 2 hours afterwards to myself...