Apicectomy

[Sarithecat]

I've been a long term user of this forum and in fact it was due to this forum that I finally saw a dentist after 18 years of fear. Initially I needed a fair amount of work, 3 fillings and a root filling with crown and an intensive cleaning which I managed thanks to an incredibly patient and kind dentist.
For the past 8 years I have religiously attended check ups and a scale and polish every 6 months despite the fear and anxieties always trying to lure me back into putting it off. I even took a job as a dental receptionist in a bid to take some of the fear out of and around dental care which really did help and I saw first hand how so many wonderful dentists are absolutley committed to saving teeth and also in helping the more nervous patients achieve good oral health.

Around Christmas time I noticed a little pressure above a root filled front tooth and kind of ignored it ( I'd already decided that it meant bad news and would result in an extraction). A little pimple appeared on my gum above it which sent me into panics so much that I had an emergency appt between Christmas and New Year. The Xray confirmed infection and I was referred to the oral surgery dept at local NHS hospital for an apicectomy.
During my check up in April my dentist said I should really consider going private as the wait times were so long on the nhs. After much stressing I contacted a colleague I used to work with who is an oral surgeon and general dentist who offered to do it for me.
I had the apicectomy yesterday morning and was utterly terrified. I barely slept for the week preceeding it. It was quite fast 40 mins in total from the moment I sat in the chair. The local anaesthetic ensured no pain but it was uncomfortable and lots of pressure. It's been incredibly sore since and with a fair amount of swelling but pain killers and ice are helping.

I wanted to post so that others in similar situations could maybe gain some comfort from my experience but also because I'm incredibly proud of myself for not freaking out and just refusing to get it sorted. Also if anybody has had this procedure how soon can I get start eating slightly better food. Current diet of lukewarm ready break and luke warm soup isn't really doing it for me and I'm starving!

 

[letsconnect]

Hi @Sarithecat, thanks so much for sharing your experience with apicectomy - it sounds like you've come a very long way with overcoming your fears .

I can't speak from personal experience, but by all accounts recovery from apicectomy takes a fair while. People here have mentioned that it took them two weeks to eat normally and about a month until they were fully healed.

In the meantime, we've got some soft food suggestions/inspiration here:

Soft Food Ideas

Lots of soft food ideas for recovering after tooth extractions or other dental procedures, or when you have dental problems.

www.dentalfearcentral.org

Hopefully, you'll find some foods on this list that are easy enough to eat (and aren't too boring or insubstantial).

Wishing you a speedy recovery and please keep us updated!

 

[Sarithecat]

Thank you very much. So far it all seems yo be going in the right direction. Swelling subsided and pain pretty much gone, just feels uncomfortable at times. Seeing the dentist on Thursday to have the stitches out and check it's healing okay. I'll have a look at the link, I'm certainly v bored by food choices. Hoping to manage some super soft pasta with a little ragu later. Will see if I'm brave enough!