Feeling Down in the Mouth

 A bad tooth can make the mildest of us into a grumpy old croc! At least - that's my excuse. I have had extreme pain in a lower molar for over a week now and it has tested all my fine theories about coping with life's storms! This may only be a severe squall rather than a destructive tornado or howling hurricane, but it has reminded me of how all-consuming serious pain can be. 

So - off to the dentist I went, to be told that I had an abscess under a back tooth and that I would need to suffer on, whilst taking a course of antibiotics until it would be safe enough to take it out. That happened yesterday and was not a fun experience! But I am so grateful to have a caring and experienced dentist who took so much trouble to minimise my distress. Now I'm just nursing a very sore jaw in the hope that it will all settle down by the time Christmas comes.

In all this I feel humbled and grateful that good medical care is on hand and available to us here in the West. There are many places where this is not the case. I have seen macabre scenes of amateur tooth pulling in the developing world and it is no laughing matter. Still, I am glad that yesterday is behind me and look forward to better days ahead. Roll on New Year!