Ok,here is a y2k glitch that affected me directly.

The past week, I had been experiencing the same pain on my left jaw and just below it (lymph glands) radiating back to my ear that I have felt off and on for who know how long? Yet this time, instead of going away, it got worse and a huge lump thing developed over my left jaw. I was going to see a dr on Monday (the 3rd) but my mother insisted it was a dental thing and made me an appt (just for the record, I am 29 yrs old, she is what's called Pushy, I-Know-What's-Best-Mom, but I love her!) Well, good call on her part, it WAS a dental thing.

The tip of a root of a molar I had a root canal on 6 yrs ago had developed an infection, and, sorry to get graphic, bored a hole through my jaw bone and was making a HUGE abcess. Also, secondary infection in the lymph glands. So it was pretty bad. Emergency reverse root canal immediately (apioectomy I think it is called). Referred to an oral surgeon. Went there just two hours later (this is still Monday)...when I got there, the office workers were going crazy trying to call Microsoft and kept telling me just a minute. Finally I heard the office manager behind a partition fairly screaming into the phone "Hang on a minute! Don't you DARE put me on hold again! Now this is YOUR system and it is NOT letting us log on! What is the deal?" More grumbling, some cussing. Not what I usually hear in a dr/dentist office. The nurse came up and told me that I would have to reschedule for in the morning. I told her I needed to be seen NOW, as I have an abcess the size of a small child on my face. She looked at me and said the dr would be able to look at it today, but no surgeries until tomorrow at the earliest. He looked at it and agreed it was pretty bad gave me an Rx for narcotic pain relief and antibiotics to be started immediately.

Went in the next morning (Tues)at 8:30. More gnashing of teeth going on over the computer system. I was finally brought back at 9 am. They tried to set up the pulse rate/blood pressure machine on me, since I was being put under, but the nurse couldn't get it to work. Kept flashing all 8's. She finally said, "Um, I'm going to turn this off for right now." When she left, she shut the door and I heard her telling the dr what happened. He said hurry up and go borrow the one from Dr. Miller, next door. So she did, and the nurse hooked it up and just said "Ours was pretty old, probably need to replace it, so we had to borrow this one." Big grin. Left me.

It is now going on 10 am. When the nurse came back in I asked what was going on. SHe laughed and said, "Oh we're having a little y2k problem. It won't let us log on, same thing as yesterday, and Dr. Walters is talking to Microsoft, he'll be right in."

10:30 the nurses finally came in to knock me out. The dr didn't start until 11 am. Just as an interesting note on how weird the human mind is sometimes, when I came to, I was face down (!!!!!) on a paper pillow in a darkened room, crying and drooling on the pillow. I kept saying the lady in the next room was screaming, that she ran out of anasthetic. I was quite upset. The nurse was trying to calm me down, she turned to my husband and I heard her say "That's so odd. She's describing what happened to HER." Up front my husband asked about this, and they said yes, her anastetic started wearing off about halfway through and her eyes even started opening. SHe was moaning and trying to move around so we gave her another dose.

Sheesh.

I'm outta here. Probably won't be back. This computer is just an inantimate object that I have spent too much of the last year on. Time to live my life now.

It's also time to take some more of that lovely narcotic medicine and sleep.

Take care everyone! Kellie (real name)

-- preparing (preparing@home.com), January 05, 2000

Answers

Oh and just in case I didn't make it clear, this glitch affected me b/c the surgery was put off by almost 24 hours. Not a big deal unless it's you lying in bed holding the side of your face, hoping to God SOMEONE can help you the next day (if he still couldn't do it, I would be going to another surgeon).

-- preparing (preparing@home.com), January 05, 2000.

Wow, Kellie...what an ordeal!!! Hope you get better soon!!1

-- Jay Urban (Jayho99@aol.com), January 05, 2000.

Wow Kellie! That is awful! Wanna Shag?

-- not even real (anon@anon.com), January 05, 2000.

Thank you for affirming my decision to go to the dentist on 12/29...part of my preps!

-- Slobby Don (slobbydon@hotmail.com), January 05, 2000.

I believe this posting is the tooth, the whole tooth, and nothing but the tooth ...

Nice mixture of chaos caused bt MS and embedded's.

-- merville (merville@globalnet.co.uk), January 05, 2000.

nothing like having pearly whites while your home gets looted by the mobs....

-- Bob Dole (bunkde@gethappy.com), January 05, 2000.

I'd find another dentist!

Mine numbs my gum with some painkiller paste on cottonwool, then injects local anaesthetic using a syringe. Hurts a little for a few seconds, but nothing too bad, and not a chip in sight! No computer in her surgery either, just a secretary/nurse and an appointments book. Only problem would be if she couldn't get the drugs.

One thing, however: a dental absess can block the blood flow to the tooth such that a local anaesthetic won't "take". This happened to me once, leaving me with a choice between no anaesthetic, a course of antibiotics, or expensive surgery under general anaesthetic with associated risks. I take it your doctor did explain that general anaesthesia carries some risk to your life, which a local doesn't? Tried #1, rapidly decided there were even worse things than toothache. #2 fortunately worked, though five days of toothache is an experience I hope never to repeat. You have my sympathy!

-- Nigel (nra@maxwell.ph.kcl.ac.uk), January 05, 2000.

Preparing, how awful for you! Having experienced a very nasty wisdom tooth extraction (root was twisted twice) and then complicated by an infection which went down into the jawbone, was referred to as a "drysocket" by my dentist. The pain was unimaginable. Like a nail being driven repeatedly into my gum. Ran a fever for five days and this was during the drought of 1988, at the peak of the 105 degree July days. I think we had 19 days straight over 90 d. plus. I had no air conditioning back in those humble newlywed days. Misery? You darn betcha. I sympathise. Have enjoyed all your posts. God bless you in the years ahead and thank you for all your suggestions and advice. I too will never go back to a JIT mindset either. Get well soon.

-- homecanner (tomatoes@mygarden.com), January 05, 2000.

Kellie, Just had the same operation in early December. The part I hated most was the "drilling into the jawbone" thing. Terrible infection, I was on antibiotics forever it seems and jaw is still tender after a month. I can't imagine being subjected to all that chaos when in that much pain. And yes, I was thankful that it was happening in December rather than January because of the medical equipment, etc. Maybe they will lose the bill....not. E is real if you have questions, since I've just been through it. Max

-- Max (Xam01@aol.com), January 05, 2000.

Wow, preparing. Sounds like you also had an OBE(out of body experience.)

-- DB (tomG@h.com), January 05, 2000.