An "inconvenient" adventure...

Listen to my journey with a crazy physical health issue I've been dealing with the last couple of months...

Beginning of May...
Off and on for one week, whenever I'm plodding down the big hill on my way to work, there is an odd, annoying sensitivity in my jaw/gums/teeth area of the back right side of my mouth.

A couple of weeks later...
One day there appears a very noticeable swelling in the "crevice" between my right cheek and jaw/gums. Hmm... wonder what that is?

I ignore it for about a week...
It didn't hurt too badly, but it bothered me a bit because it was obviously abnormal.

Then, let the pain begin...
I went to hug a friend one day that first week of June, and my face bumped their shoulder just in the "right" spot. OUCH!! I could no longer ignore the subtle dull pain that was now growing into a constant pain that continues to be swollen and irritable. For a couple days it became challenging to open my jaw as far as normal... eh, not good... hehe

So... the doctor marathon begins...
I first go to a dentist recommended by friends in the mission. Very nice guy who we'll call D1. He sends me to get an x-ray at a different place a ways up the main road... then I go back to him, and he can't help me so he sends me on to the first specialist...

Let's just make a diagram: (the initial represents the name of the place, a new line equals a new day, and the new numbers are a running total of the number of places I've been or doctors I've tried to contact...)

D1 => X2 => D1
E3 => R4 => F5
R4
P6 => O7?
O8?
P6
O9 => E10
C11
C11 => O9
C11

C11??
O7???
O8???
...........?????????

Alright, that may not make much sense to you, but it definitely does to me! Each of these symbols represents a relationship with a new doctor, dentist, endodonist, x-ray man, radiologist, cat-scan person, nurse, doctor's assistant, receptionist, pharmacist, periodontist, oral surgeon, or??... even a bus driver!! That nearly sums it up... :)

All this, and I still unfortunately have no answer about what is wrong with me.

I had been waiting to even post this story because I was hoping to finally have some sort of answer before I did... but it turns out the CATscan results I brought to the oral surgeon tonight are not complete enough to see the swelled area... soooo, yeah, there's a chance I'll have to get another CATscan... blah. :(

Some possible theories for this problem...

It could be related to the surgery I had to remove my wisdom teeth 1.5 years ago... (which I was fully awake for, what an adventure!... including not having enough numbing stuff (or laughing gas for that matter, sheepers!!) and totally feeling them start the cutting process, and nearly choking on a piece of tooth at one point... aaaand, then having the entire De Jong family pictures that night, haha! aaaanyhoo...)

The issue with this theory being the right one is that I have had MANY "teeth" people negate it by assuring that the tooth is vital. (a.k.a. - the possible damaged root isn't bad enough to cause this type of odd swelling infection(?))

If it is truly an infection of some kind, what else could be infected in that area? And why would it not have completely drained and gone away when one part did split open a bit and bleed and ooze some one night... or go away after I was taking antibiotics for one week...

Will I get another CATscan? eh? I have no idea... sure hope I don't have to pay for it again if I do!! I'll remember to eat a little more before I go this time so I don't have to almost pass out again!

This has been quite the process... but through it all I've
- developed even more confidence to handle stuff like this on my own,
- met a lot of nice doctors and other people,
- learned a bit more about how my insurance works,
- understood some new medical terms in Greek,
- conceded not to beat myself up for taking the time to deal with this "inconvenient" issue...
- and yeah, just a bunch of other good things have come out of this experience. And now I'll be able to recommend good doctors to people, and I can relate to others that have to have a CATscan or their teeth vitality checked or... the list goes on! :)

I like this prayer from an encouragement/daily scripture & prayer e-mail I get each day... May you come to know your Divine Healer intimately! :)

O Divine Healer, we thank you for the ways in which you transform our lives. Thank you for healing our bodies, minds, and souls. With lives transformed by you, we go out today to tell others of the wonderful ways in which you have blessed us. Amen.

Thanks to all who have been encouraging me and praying for me through this unique adventure... :)

Slip and slide! :)

What a better way to bring my LOL blog back to life
but to tell a LAUGH OUT LOUD story:

This afternoon I was walking from my bedroom to the kitchen to get a drink when I noticed the tile floor under one of my wicker chairs in the living room was shinier than usual. I was pondering the reason for this as I continued on towards the kitchen, when all of the sudden I nearly slipped and fell onto my backside (for like the 5th time this week! ...those stories to come in just a moment).

I had just finished a load of laundry... and I had forgotten to put the water hose into the sink drain. OOPS!!! I have never been more thankful to NOT have carpet because there was water all across my bathroom, hallway, kitchen, dining room, entryway and living room, hahahaha... so yeah, basically everywhere but the bedrooms. Nothing was damaged because my floors were clear; they were just telling me that it was time to mop, lol. A few days ago when I was cleaning I had decided to ONLY sweep this week. From now on, I know what I have to do to quickly and efficiently mop the floors, LOL!

I promised more "slip and slide" stories... so here they are:

Last week at our ministry campsite, I woke up early with my sister and friend to climb up the mountain to watch the sunrise. We made it to the top of the fenced-in property line, but I was determined to go beyond it to the look-out point I had been to last summer. The girls waited by the fence while I ventured ahead to look for the path clearing. I didn't make it more than 10 steps before the "big sturdy rock" I was climbing over gave way beneath my feet. All of the sudden I was toppling down the mountain-side... OUCH! My awful fall ended with me sprawled on my back, feet-end up the mountainside, head-end down, and that darn rock planted on my right ankle - as if pinning me there upside down so all the blood could rush to my head.

Praise the Lord I was able to move the rock, get up... and actually walk, haha! I was sporting some nasty scrapes and a couple of rainbow-colored bruises on my thigh and back after that, but I was mostly just grateful for no broken bones or swollen ankles!! I took a picture of the thigh bruise - perhaps I'll post it eventually... it's not loaded on to this particular computer yet.

I said in my first story that it was like the 5th time that I had survived an unexpected slip and slide... here's why:

Almost every day while I walk up and down the hills in my neighborhood, I nearly fall down at some point or another - because the sidewalks here are so stinkin' slick... and my poor flip flops have absolutely no traction... SCHNIKEES!

After all of these slips, and twists, and turns... I'm really missing my chiropractor! But if finding myself a chiropractor in Greece turns out to be anything like finding a doctor to treat my swollen jawbone, I'm not sure I have the energy for it this month. Maybe I'll post my "endodontist adventures" tomorrow...