Urgent Oral Surgery & Dental Care

Back in December I went to my dentist about pain and inflammation in the back of the right side of my mouth. She discovered I had an abscessed root tip (a piece of tooth that had been carelessly left by the oral surgeon who took out my wisdom tooth several years ago) that had become infected.

She said that not only was this the reason my gums were as tender and inflamed as “hamburger meat” (no kidding, that’s literally what it did and currently does look like), but that because of where it’s positioned, it’s highly likely that this tooth fragment has been causing me referred pain along my jaw nerves for a while, triggering and worsening my already chronic migraines.

She gave me referrals to three different oral surgeons and I called all of them. The first one never called me back. The second wouldn’t take my insurance. The third, also the place I had my wisdom tooth removed in the first place, denied responsibility and then argued with me about the wording of the referral.

So I just took the antibiotics prescribed and went back to life as normal. Before seeing my current dentist, I hadn’t had access to dental care for five years during the time I was without insurance, so a lot of my recent appointments with her have been fillings and catching up on half a decade of no access to care.

Through these other appointments I know that I need a root canal on a tooth on the other side of my mouth, as well as a crown on a separate tooth. I haven’t been able to do anything about either of these, because either one is a base minimum of $700 I don’t have to spare.

Last summer I lost a tooth that could have been saved because I simply could not afford the root canal to fix it.

At each of the three appointments I’ve had with her in the nearly six months since we discovered this infected tooth, she has given me more referrals and I have tried to get anyone to accept my insurance and take out a tooth that is literally rotting inside my mouth and damaging the bone density in not only my jaw but the other teeth around it.

This past week I’ve been lethargic and dizzy and plagued with headaches every day and yesterday I noticed my gums were inflamed and raw again. I went to the dentist for an emergency walk in just to ask for antibiotics again, because at this point I know there’s nothing else I can do.

My dentist confirmed that not only has the infection returned with a vengeance, but because we haven’t been able to get anyone to remove the bad tooth its infection has spread to the root of my previously healthy tooth next to it. That tooth will have to be removed now too, unless I can come up with the money to get a full root canal and crown on it as soon as possible.

If I lose that tooth, I will lose all chewing power in the back of the right side of my mouth. This was an entirely healthy tooth that I’m going to lose because I couldn’t get someone to help me for several months, despite knowing exactly what was wrong.

I’m tired of losing teeth simply because I’m too poor to fix them.

My dentist has given me a few new referrals, but because we’ve exhausted all other leads, these places will require some form of additional payment even if they do accept my insurance. That’s not even counting the cost of the work I’d need to save my last remaining right molar or to treat the other teeth that need work to prevent them from becoming just as bad.

I’d need a minimum of 3k to treat all the problem teeth, likely more. My dentist said it would take “at least” one thousand alone to save my right molar. I’m setting the goal a bit higher because of GoFundMe fees.

I have to get the root tip removed regardless, even if I can’t save anything else. The longer it’s in the the worse it gets and not only is it causing bone loss, but it could worsen into a blood infection and then my life would be at risk as well.I don’t want to make this GFM because I’m so tired of having to crowdfund for basic needs but I don’t know what else to do. I’ve literally exhausted all my other options.

UPDATE, WEDNESDAY MAY 2ND:

I have good news and bad news.

Good News: I've found a place that is willing and able to take out my root tip. They charge, but thanks to you guys I am able to pay them. It cost a hefty chunk of what we've raised so far to secure my spot, but I'm getting my surgery Friday morning, May 5!

Bad News: When I met with the dentist, they took another X-ray with a more powerful machine that gives out a better picture and it turns out the spread of the infection is even worse than we thought. The tooth next to my abscess (which was previously healthy before this) can't be saved.

The oral surgeon said I could attempt a root canal and crown on it, but she said it would very likely fail because of how deep the infection is in the root. It won't heal and could spread even further.

Because it would cost an estimated $2,500 to attempt both a root canal and a crown, she suggested a dental implant instead. They start at 3k, but are a permanent replacement for the lost tooth and much safer investment for that amount of money.

It would also mean a safer extraction of the root tip to take out both teeth at once (because the infected tip is much smaller and hidden in the gums behind the other tooth).

This means that on Friday, I will be losing both teeth and therefore my ability to chew on the right side of my mouth. I'm devastated. This is exactly what I had hoped to avoid and I'm upset that no one took me seriously in December, when treating my abscess then would have saved my other tooth.

I'm raising my goal to include the cost of a potential dental implant, but considering that the base price is equal to the entire amount I had initially set this up for I'm not very confident I'll reach enough to get one.

I try really hard to stay positive and optimistic, but with this news the base amount I now need to raise for dental care is equal to my ENTIRE credit card debt from expenses when we were homeless. If you follow me on social media, you know how stressed and struggling I am just to make minimum payments on that monthly.

I'm nowhere near paying that off and definitely not in a position to double that debt for this, no matter how badly I need it. Even though not getting these procedures will likely mean losing more teeth.

Thank you so much for your support. I will keep you update on how my surgery goes.