Tomorrow afternoon I’m going to an oral surgeon to get my bottom two canine teeth extracted, thanks to a case of internal resorption that is making my gums slowly disintegrate the roots of those teeth.
I take some small solace in that this is not happening because I was neglecting my teeth. I mean, I could have been flossing more regularly and brushing twice a day instead of once, but that’s hardly a cause for my body to slowly start going “screw those two teeth in particular.”
I also take some small solace in that dentists don’t know what causes internal resorption. I’m just lucky I guess.
I’m also beyond grateful that I’m getting help from my family to cover the enormous cost of this procedure, so I won’t have to start a GoFundMe or take emergency commissions to help pay for it. I am unironically and genuinely lucky in that regard.
But I’m still super bummed about it. It’s major surgery and I’ve never lost adult teeth before. My ex-girlfriend, with whom I spent many years, had major hangups with dental health and even went so far as to tell me that if I ever lost any of my adult teeth she’d have trouble staying with me. My wife has been extremely wonderful and supportive, so I have no reason to worry about how this will effect my marriage, but my ex’s remarks stuck around in my head long after she and I broke up, it seems.
I’m not really prepared for how I’m going to look when I won’t have the dental “flippers” in to cover up the gaps in my teeth while my gums heal around the implants. My dentist says they trend towards uncomfortable, so I imagine I’ll be doing a lot of adjusting to both my appearance when they’re out and my comfort levels when they’re in.
I’ll have to take some small solace in the fact that actual missing teeth will make for a great accessory to a Halloween costume, whatever I choose to be this year.