I was on campus the other day, tanning, texting, and
reading the Times on my phone, behind
a professorial-looking man and his young daughter. There were several open
tables on that empty patio, thus it beats me why they chose the one closest to the
ledge I sprawled out on. Maybe it’s because I looked so scholar-chic with the unassuming
canvas bag, sensible shoes, and unopened library book at my side. I was role-model
material for this guy’s growing girl, which put an added pressure on me to do everything
I could to shield her from seeing me pop ibuprofen tablets like they were
Skittles.
If I’m even considering the idea of swallowing an
over-the-counter pill, it means I’m melting. I’ve reached last-resort row,
where it’s swallow or be swallowed. When I’d been writhing in toothache pain
the night before, I thought about the first time (and one of the only times) a
similar 5-alarm fire broke out across my jaw. It was years ago, when I lived in
Boston, a metro area that had been on my mind all day. After monitoring my
mouth and asking all the right questions to size me up as a compulsive gum-chomping,
teeth-clenching Type A personality, the late-night Emergency Room examiner advised
me to cut back on stress and periodically toss back ibuprofen tablets like they’re
Skittles until the symptoms sail away. No problem.
I don't think the Emergency Room examiner gave very good advice. Granted, I'm not a medical person, but it does seem to me that the better advice is, "Go to a good dentist." Best of luck with all this.
ReplyDeleteI don't think dentists can do very much for infrequent TMJ attacks once they've already begun.
DeleteAs a fellow TMJ sufferer (only very rarely, I'm glad to say) I love the advice to 'cut back on stress'. That's so easy. Like just lie back... Duh! Sadly, I agree that popping painkillers is the only answer. I hope it is as short-lived as mine usually are.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking of dentists, I have to go to one soon - one of my molars is missing its filling and as you can imagine, it's a tad painful.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I like picturing you sitting in the warmth of the sun or under the shade of a tree. Those images of summer are all I have left in the cold blistering wind of JHB.