Mama Diaries

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Laughing Through Surgery

Don't smile!  Stop it.  I'm serious.  Smiling is hazardous to your health!  You'll end up like me, needing surgery.

You think I'm kidding?  Nope.  I just came back from having my frenum detached and my gums cut up.  If you followed me a year ago, you might remember that I had some surgery on my gums to remove some odd scar tissue.  We didn't know what caused it, but we hoped that it wouldn't ever be a problem, again.  Well, it came back. 

"Sherry," the oral surgeon said, "I think the problem is that every time you smile, your frenum irritates your gum and causes blistering and scaring."

"Great," I said.  "So you're saying that every time I smile, I'm hurting myself?"

He nodded.  "Pretty much."

So that's like every three seconds.

He felt that detaching the frenum would correct the problem.  So I went in to have that little procedure done.  I opted for a shot in the gums to numb the area, rather than be put to sleep, which meant I was fully aware of what was going on.

My upper lip was pulled back so far that it literally covered my nostrils.  I thought that was hilarious.  Then my bottom lip started quivering. 

"Sorry, I have tickle your bottom lip," said the surgeon.

He had to?

Well, that did it.  I couldn't help it. I just started cracking up.

"Why are you laughing?" the surgeon asked.  "This isn't funny!"

I tried real hard to control myself, because I didn't want him to mess up.  When he was done, he wiped the blood off my face.  I started cracking up again.

He shook his head.   "Sherry, I've never had a patient laugh through surgery."

I tried to grin with my swollen, numb lips.  "Yeah, I'm a one-of-a-kind!"

So here I am, typing away, looking like a super model with swollen lips.  Okay.  Maybe not a super model, but I definitely have the swollen lip thing going on.  The good news is, the surgeon says in two weeks, I'll be able to smile without hurting myself.  I hope!  

33 comments:

  1. Ouch! I hope you're feeling better soon. I'd tell you to keep smiling, but... ;)

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    1. I'm reading some of these comments and cracking up! I just can't stop laughing! Ouch!

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  2. Hate to hear it Sherry ... hope you recover quickly and continue to smile! :-)

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    1. Oh, I'll keep smiling. I just hope it stops hurting soon! ;)

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  3. Hope no one tells you any jokes, and hope you get better soon. You must have a great sense of the funny (it shows in the Bubba posts).

    Hope you and your family have a great holiday season, Sherry.

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    1. Everybody is trying to crack me up. Such torture! Yes, I have a warped sense of humor. I think Bubba inherited it from me.

      I hope you have a great holiday season, too!

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  4. Uggg pain is no fun at all, hate it. But funny how funny can give it to you, in an ouch way.

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  5. LOL. Nice experience. Ur smile is looks pretty cute. May be the surgeon was jealous of it! ROFL.

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    1. Thanks, Amit. My smile isn't looking too cute at the moment. I look like a mutant goldfish. Or something.

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  6. A frenum? That sounds so friendly and happy. Who would want to be without it? "My frenum really likes you." Well, I'm sorry you had surgery, but I'm glad you could laugh.

    Love,
    Janie

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    1. Janie, you're torturing me! A friendly frenum! Quit making me laugh. It's painful! ;)

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  7. I've finally met someone who'd be better of being eternally grumpy like me. Say it ain't so... Yes, maybe the surgeon was jealous of your smile. Aha... you're a friend of Patrick's... Mr Cat.

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    1. Maybe you can teach me how to be grumpy. Smiling really hurts right now!

      Yes, Patrick is a cool cat. Glad to meet one of his friends!

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  8. The pain of joy! Great article, one that evokes empathy, laughter and questioning of your sanity. Praying that this surgery fixed the problem. Would hate for you to change that personality because smiling hurts too much.

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    1. Questioning my sanity. Yes, I question that all the time! Something is definitely messed up in my head!

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  9. Oh wow, that sounds painful, but also sounds like you dealt with it really well. Heal quick!

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  10. Best of luck with the healing process. New follower here. Julie recommended your blog to me. I look forward to reading more from you.

    Sylvia
    http://www.writinginwonderland.blogspot.com/

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    1. Yay! Julie said she'd recommend my blog to you. Thanks for checking it out!

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  11. Wishing you a speedy, back to normal, smiling, recovery.

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  12. Better than crying through surgery.... I hope you're feeling better.

    I laughed so hard I ripped my c-section stiches when my sister-in-law caught my baby's poop in her hand to save the diaper (he had gone through about 48 in one day).

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    1. OMG! Now I'm laughing. I can just picture that. Ouch!

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  13. I do hope you recover soon, me? I would have run a mile having that done. I have to have smear tests every six months to make sure the Big C don't come my way , I always want to run real fast.
    Hope your smile returns without any pain.
    Yvonne.

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    1. The pain is there. It's a big ouch right now. But hopefully the swelling will go down, so I can smile without looking like a mutant fish.

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  14. Ugh. This whole blog made me cringe. HOW could you laugh through that? You're my new hero!!! I have a phobia about dentists/anything involving people poking around my mouth. They would have to knock me out.

    I really hope you feel better and that this fixes the problem!!!

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    1. Something is seriously wrong with me! Nobody in their right mind would laugh having done to them what I had done!

      Thanks for the well-wishes!

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  15. I'm amazed by your ability to laugh through this procedure. The idea of surgery and dentists together makes me squirm. I hate that swollen feeling of the lips..I feel like a goldfish each time and I get scared that I might bite off my tongue without knowing. Wishing you a speedy recovery while enjoying pouty lips :)

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    1. Thanks! My pouty lips are looking more like a duck bill at the moment, though. :)

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  16. Ouch! I hope the healing process goes well so you can smile without hurting yourself.

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  17. Ouch! One for taking so long to respond to your funny post. And two, I felt your pain.
    Hope you recover soon. :)

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