The Glass is Half Full (Even When You Have Stitches in Your Mouth)

So, about 2 months ago I got this bump on the inside of my bottom lip.  It wasn't too bothersome.  It got bigger then it got smaller.  Initially, you just kind of shrug these things off so it took me a while to figure out that it was the same one and that it didn't seem to be going away.  I did what I always do when I have strange symptoms.  I took it to Google and self diagnosed myself with a cyst that was probably not going to go away.  Ever.  At one point I though maybe the inter-webs were wrong because it got super flat and stayed away for about a week but then it came back bigger and badder then ever.  And maybe I could have lived with it if it were in a different location but my bottom teeth kept hitting it making it tender and uncomfortable.  I scheduled a doctor's appointment when I realized there was a good chance it wouldn't go away and was referred to a head and neck specialist appointment for the following week.

I wasn't sure what to expect at the appointment.  Would they tell me to wait and see?  Would they remove it that day?  Would they schedule a different appointment to remove it?  I sat down in the exam room and the doctor confirmed what I'd found out on the internet.  It's a mucocele cyst caused by a blocked salivary gland and sometimes they do but there is a very good chance it won't go away.  I asked if he could just pop it rather then actually dig it out and he said no.  My body is trying to make saliva and as long as that gland is blocked it would just build right up again.  Bummer.  He could perform oral surgery right then and there to remove the gland and the cyst.  There would be cutting and stitches involved but it would only take 15 minutes.  I wasn't mentally prepared to be cut that day, but when are you ever?  I realized that if I left I would just give me more time to worry.  I'd just have to come back and in the meantime I'd still be suffering with the cyst.  I told him I'd wait and think about it so the nurse went to get me a business card.  Just when the doctor was standing up to leave, I changed my mind.

Hope this pic isn't too gross for my blog.

There were two numbing shots which really hurt.  Then I didn't feel much.  Then there was this burning smell like a campfire.  Not entirely unpleasant unless it's coming from your mouth.  Then there was some tugging.  I knew that had to be the stitches.  As promised about 20 minutes later I was on my way home with 4 stitches and a swollen bottom lip.  When the numbing medication wore off I thought I was going to be really, really bad off and it was for a little while but I took an Ibuprofen and that helped.  The doctor had the nerve to say that most people really aren't in that much pain.  What?  It hurt!  I think it hurt more then my abdominal laparascopic surgery if that makes any sense at all.

It hurts if I talk too much but I'm getting used to the feel of prickly stitches in my mouth.  They are supposed to dissolve in a week.  It was throbbing in the morning but it's feeling better now.  My bottom lip is still swollen, I use straws out of the right side of my mouth and I have this odd sensation that people are looking at me funny trying to figure out what exactly is wrong with me.  

Things like this suck but it really makes me stop and appreciate the fact that I have really good health insurance.  I have no idea how much my laparascopic surgery cost.  I'm sure it was in the five figures but I didn't pay a dime for any of it and I walked in and out of oral surgery without paying anything.  I don't have a deductible to meet or even a co pay for doctor visits and I only pay $5 for Rx's.  As long as it's just me and my spouse I don't pay for these benefits at all.  It's totally free.  About 8 years ago I didn't have health insurance at all for almost two years.  I went to planned parenthood for necessities and luckily nothing happened but what if it had?  As much as I complain about the daily grind that is work I have to be grateful (and I really, really am) because it's what gets us such amazing benefits.

The glass is always half full.  Even when you have stitches in your mouth.  There was a time when I couldn't see it that way but I'm glad that I do now.

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