ProfessorTomoe

The doctor has tripled my dose of gabapentin to 300mg, 3x a day. I'm still getting pain when the stuff wears off. The dentist's office called me about the situation. I explained. They checked with the dentist, who said she'd "bruised" a nerve and I'd just have to wait for it to heal. As for my appointment with her tomorrow, that's pretty obviously cancelled. They're going to call me next week and touch base with me about the pain - if it's gone, we'll reschedule.

I've had to set up a new appointment with my regular doctor. The 100mg dose of gabapentin is no longer working on the facial nerve pain from the dental appointment. I'm going to ask the doctor for a larger dose, or for something else that works better. Until then, I'm doubling the dose here at home.

I've moved away from tea for the time being. I'm acting as the board coffee experimenter for the CounterSocial web site's #CaffeineClub hashtag. Some of my recent experiments have included the Primula Burke cold brew kit with different coarse grind coffees, K-Cups with Torani syrups, and illy Extra Dark Roast K-Cups. I'm now testing Torani Chocolate Milano syrup with the illy Extra Dark Roast, and I've got more coffee coming in from Laughing Man. Might want to tune in if you're interested in coffee taste tests.

Was not able to get in to see the dentist - had to go to my doctor's physician's assistant. She consulted with my doctor on the symptoms she saw. Basically, the diagnosis is that my dentist hit and inflamed a major nerve that branches throughout the face. No infection, fortunately - just a lot of irritation and pain. Treatment consists of a steroid shot in the butt and 100mg gabapentin 3x a day for 7 days. I'll see the dentist - and probably chew her ass out - on Tuesday of next week.

Addendum - my whole left side of my face is hurting, and it's only Friday. I've got to get in to the dentist to have this looked at today ASAP.

I'm just now writing about this because I've been so pissed off about it. I went to the dentist the other day and got my permanent crown put on my lower back right tooth. No problems there - that was scheduled. The dentist then proceeded to work on the problem I mentioned above - working on the broken tooth. Or so I thought. It took 7 shots - four in my jaw, and three directly around the tooth root - to get me numb, so I couldn't tell exactly which tooth she was working on (insert tone of ominous ominousness here). After some grinding and buffing, she had her assistant put a temporary crown on it. I went home and slept off the anesthesia. When I woke up, I noticed that there was still a gap in my teeth where I'd broken my tooth. I called the dentist and discovered that they worked on the very back tooth, not the one I was told was broken. They told me that both were actually broken, and that the substitute dentist had written me up for work on both teeth (without telling me). Fscking wonderful. Not only do I still have a gap in my teeth, I don't have enough insurance left to cover another crown. The receptionist said she'd talk to the dentist and find out what could be done. After about an hour, I get a call saying the dentist can do a "build-up" filling for $150 ($75 out of my pocket) to last until next year, at which point my insurance renews and we can do a crown. So, I'm stuck doing unnecessary dental work to cover up their screw-up, which they say isn't their screw-up, until they can do even more dental work to fix the underlying problem. Lovely. This whole clusterfsck takes place on Tuesday of next week. Another seven shots, probably. Wonderful.

MRI Results are in on my knees: Severe arthritis behind my left kneecap. Bone spurs on my left knee. Arthritis behind my right kneecap, not as bad as the left kneecap. Questionable meniscus tears on both knees' cartilage. Decision by doctor: no surgery. Inject GELSYN-3 hyaluronic acid booster into the joint over the course of three weeks. Damn. I was hoping he'd do arthroscopic surgery and get it over with once and for all.

My wife is just now bringing my antibiotics for my foot home. Her timing couldn't be better - I think I'm coming down with a freaking ear infection. Ow ow ow ow ow.

Well, mixed news from the dentist. Yes, I'm already home, number one. Turns out that the break didn't go down into the nerve per the X-ray. It was also in the molar just before the last one, not the last one itself. That tooth already has a treatment plan in place which involves a crown. The break doesn't change that treatment plan: the tooth is still salvageable, so it still gets a crown. It'll just have to wait until my regular dentist is back from jury duty. So, today was a big waste of Uber money, dentist co-pay money, and time. Very annoying, yet reassuring that I'm not going to lose the tooth.

My dentist got picked for jury duty. I get to see a backup dentist in 40 minutes for my broken lower left back molar. I have a feeling that I'm going to completely lose the tooth. Mrs. Prof is away on cat business, so I'm stuck taking an UberX to the dentist's office. If I feel bad enough afterward, I might step up a level and take a Comfort ride back home.

I have absolutely no idea. There's no metal on the floor that I know of. Well, now there really isn't, because it's at the doctor's office.

Finally, some good news from the podiatrist. He found the source of the ulcer problem on my right foot. I had a sliver of metal buried way up inside that wasn't visible upon earlier examinations. It explains why my foot hurt so bad even when I wasn't putting pressure on it. Anyway, he managed to remove it, and my foot feels different already. Not 100% better yet - just strange, like a weight has been lifted from it. I'll be on Augmentin antibiotics for 2 weeks or so, and Mrs. Prof will be putting Iodosorb on it and bandaging it until she leaves on Saturday. After that, no Iodosorb and no bandages. Prognosis is, finally, good.

Aw, @$%!. I just lost either a filling from or a large chunk of my lower left molar. Emergency dental time. Thank God I'm on oxycodone, or this would be really hurting right now.

And just when things might be looking up ... The ulcer on the bottom of my right foot is back. I've got a hurry-up appointment with my podiatrist on Monday. He's probably going to debride it and tell me to put Iodosorb on it. Only problem: Mrs. Prof is going away for a week next Saturday. I won't be able to do the ointment and bandaging myself. I may have to get a home nurse for a week. Damn it all to hell.

Another set of very obnoxious neighbors who own at least four lifted big wheel pickup trucks which regularly block traffic on our street started building what looked like a massive, ugly porch in front of their house (and another to match in their backyard). They've been doing various work projects on this house for over two years now, very slowly. As we drove by on the way to a doctor's appointment, we looked and saw no building permit posted. That wasn't gonna stand. As soon as we got home, Mrs. Prof called Code Compliance and checked for permits on that address. There weren't any. She registered an official complaint. The Brothers Obnoxious may have to tear down their Grand Porches if they can't placate Code Compliance and the Garland Building Inspectors.