Hello internet. I hope everyone is well and that none of you have been pining away for me too much in my absence. I don’t have a good excuse as to why I’ve been neglecting the blog – unless you count that I’ve been devoting more time than usual to being a big ol’ southern drama queen. I’m still suffering from a downright nasty case of the vapors (and not without reason).
Here’s today’s installment:
I’m sitting in a dentist’s chair, listening to the oral surgeon describe exactly what parts of my face he’d most like to cut on and move around. We’ve just met. He seems like a nice enough guy. I can’t quite put my finger on what I don’t like about him. Maybe it’s the plaster skull he has in his hands – the one with the clamps all over it. Obviously, it’s the vision he has for my future. It’s reminiscent of something I saw in Hellraiser, and let me tell you, it’s not the best icebreaker. But, who knows? In a more literal sense, maybe it is. Hell, it might be the ultimate party tool. He might also be able to use it as a nutcracker or a handy-dandy skullrific bottle opener. It might even administer oral sex. I don’t know. All I know is that he needs to keep the creepy fuckin’ thing away from me.
So, he’s waving his toy skull around and talking about blood loss. My blood loss. I shouldn’t lose more than five percent of my total blood supply. If I were to do that a transfusion would be necessary but that is a very unlikely scenario. That last part about the transfusion being unlikely? Yeah, I didn’t hear that part. Michael told me that later. When the doctor started in on the blood loss thing, I was trying not to throw up and doing a mighty fine job on the not throwing up front. But, then I was trying to remember to keep breathing too, and I must’ve totally flaked on that part, because I noticed the doctor’s voice starting to fade and everything starting to seem far away. I took my glasses off and the nurse said, “Whoa! Doctor, should I get her some oxygen?” At this point I managed to ask for a glass of water and the nurse brought some water in a Dixie cup. The doctor offered to shut up for a minute so that I might better stay conscious.
During this brief intermission, I occupied myself with breathing in and out slowly while the nurse explained to me that the skull wasn’t “real.” This was both unnecessary and uncalled for but it is rather amusing on hindsight. I’m a coward not a moron, thank you very much. Everybody knows, doctors only use real human skulls for bookends and sometimes for bowling. But, I’d like to meet the doctor who has the chutzpa to do otherwise. “You see, Debbie, this skull belonged to my last patient, but I TOTALLY know what I screwed up and I can assure you it won’t happen again.”
Anyway, did any of you have a clue that I was this much of a candy-ass? I don’t think I even grasped it myself. But, I should have fully expected to get woozy and make a fool of myself today. Here’s why:
A. I don’t breath at the dentist’s office. I just don’t. I do my breathing in the car after the visit is over.
B. Every single time they take my blood I pass out cold. There was one particular incident where I woke up between a nurse’s boobs. Why she positioned me there, I dunno. I was seated when I fainted, but I guess she didn’t want to shove my limp ass back onto the chair. Anyway, you take my blood, I lose consciousness. It’s my thang. If you lay me down before you take my blood, hopefully, I won’t fall on the floor.
C. The doctor said “blood” over and over, like it was his frickin’ mantra or something. Oh, and he said “milliliters” and “blood” in the same sentence. Worse yet, he was STILL talking about my blood. I’m American dammit! I have only a vague understanding of the metric system!* And he kept saying “blood.”
So, yeah, I’m a big crybaby pants, and even after all thi
s whining, I may yet chicken out and not do the surgery at all. I’m still thinking about it, but it is mainly cosmetic and he said “blood.”
Last but not least, I’d like to send best wishes out to Brian who is gonna get rebuilt so that he’ll be part man, part monster truck. It’s gonna be cool.
Word.
*Please note: If he had said “pints” or “quarts” or (god forbid) “gallons”, I’d have gone all swoony even sooner. It’s my thang.
Ouch! Know how you feel, it was like before my op when they told you EVERYTHING that could wrong – i was just like “I will sign anything you want, just stop TELLING me!”
Glad to see you back!
I insist that they use baby needles on me when they draw blood. I don’t CARE if it’s gonna take longer, Nurse Mengele!
Yowch! Oddly enough, I relax at the dentist’s office, but then, I’ve had nothing but good experiences (well, I got both nitrous [does best Wooderson stoner look] and novicaine when I had, yes, all four of my root canals; and I got to watch a movie!). As for needles, let’s just say that IV drug use was never going to be an issue for me. Whatever you’re having done, I hope it goes well.
That just made my stomach knot all up funny like.
Now this skull. Couldn’t they have had a more patient friendly stick figure kind of skull?
At 7, my two front teeth broke my fall one day in the kitchen. 40 years later, I have been to just about every dentist, orthodontist, and oral surgeon in southeastern Louisiana and not a single one of them has ever mentioned “loss of blood”. Before one procedure, the dentist told me he was going to take his time so my teeth won’t get “overheated”. I found that to be a bit of an overshare.