I had been having major teeth problems, and finally I was able to make an appointment, and get the molars that were still in my gums dug out and removed. Extracted, was the medical term they used. They were abscessing and causing me so much problems. The Doctors all said it was normal for those molars to not always come in. Whatever, I just wanted the pain gone.
The day had come to see the Doctor, and the insurance had went through. But! Oh my goodness, there was a but. “They won’t cover the anesthetic.” My husband and I were dumbfounded. “We can do a local for $100 or anesthetic, putting you to sleep for $200.” I am astonished, why couldn’t they have told me this in advance? Instead, we came here with no money, they called, both the insurance and the Doctor, and said it was approved and we had the go ahead.
“I don’t have that kind of money….why didn’t you tell me this before hand?!” I whispered in shock. The nurses looked at one another, and it just made us feel like more of a failure.
“We can cancel, reschedule, hope your insurance will cover it again, and the next available appointment…lets see, will be about 6 months from now!” The nurse explained with a smile on her face. I could have slapped that smile off of her face!
My husband turned to me, wanting to know what I wanted to do. “I want the pain gone!” I started crying. I looked at the nurse. “We’re not rescheduling, you’re doing it today.” My husbands jaw dropped, as did the nurses. All of the nurses.
“Are you sure about this?” Everyone said at the same time. I was still crying, thoughts were racing through my head. Insurance is just as much as a head game as politics!
“I have no choice. My breath smells like death, I’m in pain constantly. At least if I do it now, this way, it should be the end of it, right?!” I said, pleading, knowing full well I was insane. They all agreed it would be the end of my pain.
I underwent the surgery, awake, feeling and watching every move they made. They dug in my jaw, cracked my jaw, dug some more. The Doctor turned to the nurse, apologized to her, and told her he had to. Then he cracked my jaw out of place, and opened my mouth even further. Things like this, you usually aren’t supposed to know. Let alone see! I knew, I felt every little detail, and can remember every piece of tooth, every bit of pain, and it was more then excruciating.
I couldn’t believe I actually was doing this, tears streaming down my face. But here it was, truly happening, seeing, feeling-knowing. It was the worst. And then once they were finished, they shoved me SITTING into a closet, and let me recover, SITTING! I was bleeding massively, and hurt. I was crying. I cried during the surgery too, but it was just non stop tears rolling down my cheeks. Whatever it takes, I wanted the pain gone.
The prescriptions, did nothing for the pain. I puked hourly, it was terrible. I was in more pain now, then before. Dry socket, blood, pain. So much of it, too. I felt so bad, puking like this in front of my little children. I was ashamed, I was in all of this pain. I like people to think I am strong. We called the doctor for refills, he wanted to see me. He actually understood needing a refill, and that the meds weren’t cutting it. He increased them. He cleaned everything, repacked it, explained it was a dry socket, and sent me away.
The new medicine was only a little better, I still took it, but I also still cried and puked and bled. Eventually everything stopped, and yes- low and behold I survived. I felt bad, for needing so much attention, and crying so much. It was one of the most painful experiences in my life, and I would never ever suggest to anyone, undergoing tooth surgery awake. You see, hear your own jaw crack, you know everything. And trust me, the pain is real.
It is sad, when insurance is so petty, the can refuse to pay for anesthetic. And it is just as sad, that the Doctors won’t tell you in advance, so that you can actually beg, borrow or steal the money to get it!
