Two weeks ago my dear husband was scheduled for a root canal. This was to be done on an upper right tooth, right next to a tooth that had a root canal 3 years ago. We traveled out of town to the dentist performing the root canal (he had successfully done the previous one 3 years ago) and thought that would be the end of the story. It was not.
After only an hour or so, my wonderful husband appeared back in the waiting room, all by himself, looking a little disoriented. I was startled to see him so quickly and wasn't really sure what was going on. I rose and walked across the room to meet him because he seemed a bit shaken. I asked how it went and he told me it hadn't happened. Totally confused I helped him get to our car in the parking lot. It should be noted here that no one came and spoke to me, no one helped Marvin to the waiting room, and Marvin had no instructions for care.
When we got to the car I began to ask Marvin questions about what had happened. He wasn't really able to say much except, "He really shot me up". As I started the car to leave he asked me to wait a minute... to not drive until he 'had a moment'. He sat in the car with his head down taking deep breaths. I honestly wondered if I needed to take him to the ER. But, he told me he was okay and wanted to head home. I began my white-knuckle drive back to our town, listening to him as he began to share a bit of what had happened back at that office.
He told me that everything had been going fine with the procedure until shortly after he received the anesthetic. At that point he was in a chair that was tipped at an extreme angle (he said he was on his head) and something happened to the back of his tongue. It felt paralyzed. Marvin involuntarily 'came up'. He said it felt as if there were a vice around his neck and he was choking. Unnerved and surprised, he did some tests of his own and discovered he could move the tip of his tongue and could also swallow. So, they all agreed to try again, thinking it must have been a fluke. However, when he laid down again, he was again choked by the back of his tongue, over which he had no control whatsoever. It was at that point that the dentist shook Marvin's hand and told him he was unable to help him. Marvin apologized and said he just couldn't understand what was happening to the back of his throat. The dentist simply left and Marvin struggled to get out of the chair. The assistant did help him out of that room, but NO ONE walked him to the lobby. No one spoke to me. No instructions for care were given. Nothing. Looking back, it felt to me that they all simply wanted Marvin out of that building ASAP.
Halfway home I noticed Marvin taking his pulse. I asked him what was going on and he said he was okay; he was just checking his heart. Now, if you know Marvin, you know that he is the calmest man around. The fact that he felt compelled to 'check his heart' struck me. At that point I determined that the minute we got back to town we were going to go straight to our dentist's office to have him checked out.
It was also at this point that Marvin began describing the state of his mouth to me. It seems that some of the work of the root canal had been started. The dentist had sliced his gum clear up to view the bone, leaving a large gash of open skin. He had also done some grinding of the tooth in preparation for the root canal, leaving an open hole in the side of the tooth and many sharp edges. In short, it was a disaster.
When we got to our local dentist's office she immediately took Marvin's blood pressure. At this point, over an hour and a half later, his blood pressure was 190/95!!!!!!! At that point my stomach lurched, picturing my husband walking out of the other dentist's office. I can only imagine what his blood pressure must have been at that point! No wonder he looked 'disoriented'! And they never took his blood pressure or made any attempt to be certain that he was okay. They just 'dismissed' him. They even allowed Marvin to apologize!!!!! (I should mention at this point that my dear husband is, to this very day, the picture of calm. He somehow 'understands' all that has happened to him over the last two weeks. I am the picture of righteous indignation and not a very good example for others. I shift between being hopping mad and being near tears - or both at the same time. As usual, I have much I can learn from my grace-filled husband.)
Our dear local dentist determined that we needed to see our regular doctor to make sure he would be able to have anesthesia again to remove the tooth. (At this point, a root canal was pretty much impossible. It would require an extraction.) We agreed to see our doctor the following morning (it was about 4:30 Tuesday afternoon by this time) and then return to her to remove the tooth.
The next morning we visited our doctor and went over the whole story. The back of Marvin's tongue was still not working correctly. All were concerned about a possible reaction to the anesthesia and recommended that he not undergo more anesthesia for several days. We went to our dentist and she agreed to wait until the following Tuesday; a full week after the initial attempted root canal. She sent us home with a prescription for pain in case Marvin felt that was needed.
Unfortunately, when that Tuesday appointment arrived, our dentist examined Marvin and determined that she really wasn't set up to extract the tooth. It just wasn't going to be as safe as it needed to be and he needed to see an oral surgeon. We appreciated her care and concern. We were disappointed at the prospect of continuing on with the tooth in the shape it was, but surely didn't want to do anything that could be dangerous to Marvin. I have to say at this point that we have total confidence in, and respect for, our local dentist. She is remarkably kind, competent, and helpful.
Before I go on with the rest of this story, I should mention that all of this is part of a larger story. Marvin never even had a cavity before going to Vietnam. However, after his return, and for all the years since, his teeth have been a disaster. We have never had dental insurance and so all dental care has been out of our pocket. This has included several caps, crowns, bridges, root canals, and etc. About a year and a half ago we determined to try to get VA approval for yet another big round of work that desperately needed to be done in Marvin's mouth. We knew of another service-connected vet who was able to get that done and knew we were looking at tens of thousands more dollars of work - and we didn't have that kind of money. Back in February Marvin was finally approved for the work, starting with this root canal on the upper right side. It should be noted, however, that about 2 years ago he had to have 3 teeth pulled from the upper left side, hoping to afford another bridge someday. (that has been approved and eventually, he will get that done!) Anyway, he has been chewing all his food on his right side because of the missing teeth on his left side. Since this root canal debacle, he has been unable to chew food much at all. Literally using his front teeth only. And only soft foods because of the gashed up root canal tooth. My skinny husband is losing weight through this whole thing and that worries me.
Back to the story... We had managed to get VA approval for our local dentist to extract the tooth but she referred us to the oral surgeon out of town. We began the process to get VA approval for that. We had no way of knowing that would turn into a bungled mess.
We found out that the oral surgeon would require a consultation appointment before he would do the oral surgery. We were happy to get that appointment set for the following day, Wednesday. That is, until we were told that the VA hadn't approved the consultation appointment. We offered to pay cash for that appointment just to get the ball rolling but were told that if we paid cash for that appointment, we would forfeit the VA coverage for the whole procedure. Obviously, we couldn't afford that, so had to cancel the Wednesday appointment. Then began the waiting game.
Friday late afternoon we received a call from the VA telling us the extraction had been approved and we could set the appointment with the oral surgeon. Marvin immediately called them to tell the good news. However, the oral surgeon's office would not schedule the appointment until the paperwork came through. We felt a bit between a rock and a hard place because the VA told Marvin to schedule the appointment, but the office didn't follow the same procedure. Marvin spoke to the insurance person in the office and she stated she would call the VA herself to straighten it all out and call him back Friday afternoon. Sadly, we didn't hear anything more. Another long weekend to try to get through.
Monday morning that lady called and apologized, saying she had just forgotten to call him back. She also said that although the extraction was approved by the VA, the consultation appointment had not been approved. That process would go easily, she assured us, but would take another week. She offered the consultation appointment for April 2. My dear husband visibly sank. He did explain to her that he was hoping to get something done sooner. That this was a fairly critical situation and he was in discomfort and felt that it could only get worse. She then mentioned that he needed to have paperwork about all of this sent to her. Well, we knew that paperwork from our local doctor and our local dentist had been faxed to that office last week! Somehow, it has all been misplaced. :( Marvin said he would have all the information faxed again so that they could begin the process of approving the consultation appointment. He also found out at this point that the VA believed there would still be a root canal on that tooth. The tooth that they approved to be extracted????? Anyway...
Marvin was able to call and talk to our dear local dentist. She agreed to get the paperwork resent or perhaps help the oral surgeon's office track down what had been sent previously. We also now have an appointment for a consultation for
this Thursday. However, we still do not have an appointment for the actual tooth extraction. My fear is that it will not happen until next week. If so, that will be 3 full weeks from the date of the botched root canal. I don't honestly see how my husband can manage.
Although, he will. He will continue to be the picture of calm, cool, and collected. No matter what happens. I know he will. He is a far better person than I am. Perhaps that is why I am so upset by all of this. I just want my husband treated with the respect and care that I know he deserves. 'Systems' frustrate me greatly. I just want someone to help my husband. I have held off even saying anything here on this blog because I don't want to complain or rant or sound ungrateful. But, we could really use your prayers. Please pray that all the bureaucracy can be overcome and that somehow Marvin can continue without excruciating pain.
Note added... I just read this whole thing to Marvin prior to publishing and he came and comforted ME! He said he was doing 'fine' and even felt better now since the gash in his gum has had so much time to heal! He states (and fully believes) that every person involved in this is trying to do the best they can do. He even convinces me. I don't think I know a better person than Marvin.
"Fools vent their anger, but the wise quietly hold it back." Proverbs 29:11
Ugh... I have a lot to work on...
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