I picked up some roses when I was at Trader Joe's today. Why? Because root canal. And all you nitrous pushers - what the hell? Seriously, that helped not one tiny bit. It made my extremities feel numb, but what good does that do when someone is working on my tooth? I felt
every injection. All four of them. So I spent that extra money for nothing, and it has left me feeling draggy all day. The one thing that was useful was taking ibuprofen several times a day for a few days in advance. Because after the fourth injection, the anesthetic finally kicked in and the rest was painless. I sat and said a metta meditation in my head through the whole thing, just to tune out the drills and such, directing at first at myself:
"May I have peace, may I be kind, may I be happy, may I be well." Then moving on to the endodontist and his assistant, and then everyone else out there. Round after round, it kept me centered. I hurt now, but it is only pain being inflicted on me that really bothers me. I was given a script for vicodin after the first attempt two weeks ago, but they sit unopened on my dresser. I don't need anything stronger than a glass of wine tonight. Which I'd have had anyway. I will say that the endodontist was consistently kind. I can't actually fault him or his staff - very considerate, friendly people. But if, as I suspect, the matching molar on the other side also warrants a root canal, I will take advance ibuprofen and skip the nitrous.
