Yesterday I learned that I need to get my bottom canine teeth removed thanks to a case of internal resorption. I am, unsurprisingly, bummed out about this.
This whole process began about a month ago when I was getting my regular dental checkup, which included updating several x-rays of my teeth. My dentist looked them over and said, “I don’t like what I see here.” He suspected signs of internal resorption, and that I should get a 3D scan of my teeth for a proper diagnosis.
My appointment was yesterday. After getting the scan the endodontist said, “I don’t like what I see here.” She told me there wasn’t enough dentin at the roots of my lower canines to save with root canals, and the only sensible option moving forward would be to have them removed.
It put my emotions all over the place.
On the one hand, this isn’t my fault. Internal Resorption isn’t a result of negligence with your tooth care. Actually, no one seems to know why it happens at all. Physical trauma is the best guess, but my teeth haven’t experienced any! Ever! So I take solace in that, for what it’s worth.
On the other hand, losing adult teeth is a new thing for me to wrap my brain around. Not to mention the punch to the finances a pair of implants and crowns will likely be, even with insurance. And then there’s the paranoia that will likely follow: if something could happen to two of my teeth despite taking regular care of them, how many more will have problems?! Am I destined to lose them all?!
So yeah, this news is affecting me in all sorts of ways. Every little tingle and twitch in my mouth now is suspected to be a sign of something else going wrong. And despite taking solace in that this is something that’s happening to me, and not something I did to myself, I’m worrying what will be happening next.