Going Under the Knife... Again.

September 23, 2026

Meet Freddy, our resident squirrel.

We may have more in common in the coming days... 🤕

There is a word that sends a slight tremor of tension through our household, it's the word "surgery." For obvious reasons (ICU stay post lumpectomy blogged about here and schwannoma removal "day" surgery that resulted in an overnight stay on the Obs unit, blogged about here), no one is keen to see me go under the knife. Well, at least until we figure out why I have such difficulty coming up again! Thankfully, my next surgery can be done under local. 😬

Several years ago, a routine dental x-ray showed a cyst that had developed between my bottom left wisdom tooth and the molar next to it. What complicates matters is that my wisdom tooth is super lazy...as in, lying horizontal beneath the surface of the gum. It's never really bothered me and the wisdom tooth I had removed about 30 years ago was so difficult, the dentist put his knee on my body to brace himself as he wrenched it out. 🔧 I kid you not! Of course, this was before we knew I had a bleeding disorder, so we blamed him when I required stitches and cauterization. 🤷🏼‍♀️ In retrospect, he probably should not have touched it, but you know what they say about hindsight. 🤓 My current dentist, Dr. Jang, looked at my X-rays during our first meeting and started to laugh, "You can stop brushing and flossing, with these roots your teeth are never coming out!" Of course she was joking, but it explained the problematic wisdom tooth removal. When I asked her about them, her response was, "I'm not touching those!"

This is not my X-ray, but it could almost be...

if the roots were longer. 😬

Doesn't removing that wisdom tooth look like fun?

Because any type of surgery involving bone is forbidden while receiving zoledronic acid infusions, and tooth extraction falls into that category, I was unable to have the surgery until now. My last infusion was over 6 months ago, which is the required wash-out period. Zoledronic acid can limit the blood supply to the jaw bone, causing osteonecrosis of the jaw. This is basically when the jaw bone dies. Sounds pleasant, doesn't it? 😖 I am so very, very glad I have wonderful dental professionals in my life since merely typing this information made me cringe so hard I almost knocked my glasses off my face!

According to my oral surgeon, Dr. Gotaas, my cyst has been "very well behaved," meaning that it hasn't grown as fast as anticipated and thus hasn't been too problematic. It's likely that the cyst is a simple dentigerous or odontogenic cyst, a sac that forms around an impacted or unerupted wisdom tooth, but a biopsy will be taken to ensure that it's nothing nasty...like cancer. 🙄 Frankly, that thought makes me laugh; I can't imagine receiving another cancer diagnosis. 😂 Thankfully, the chances of that are extremely slim. The schwannoma I had removed from my left forearm in June was also biopsied and the results were exactly as anticipated, benign. We're praying for the same! 🙏🏼

I must admit to deliberate ignorance regarding the details of tomorrow's surgery. When Dr. Gotaas mentioned cutting open my gum and taking the tooth out in slices, I'll may have checked out. 🤢 Turns out that dental professionals are super heroes! 🤷🏼‍♀️

So tonight I've placed a grocery order of soup, pudding and mashed potatoes, and I'm trying to tidy up the bajillion unfinished projects around the house, knowing they'll drive me crazy when I'm lying on the sofa tomorrow. It could be a short night! 😁 Thanks to my (Delta Pool Dense Granule Platelet Disorder) bleeding disorder, I need to be at the University Hospital Bleeding Disorder Clinic at 8:30 am, even though my surgery's not until 11:00 am at South Edmonton Oral Surgery. I'll receive IV infusions of both desmopressin and tranexamic acid, as well as a bottle of a specially compounded tranexamic acid mouthwash to take home. I'm just glad I avoided the need for a hospital surgical suite, by opting for local anesthetic. I prefer to keep my distance from hospitals. 🙃

I was recently reading in Jeremiah 17:8 where it says, "They will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream." That started up the "soundtrack of my life" in my head and I've been singing "I Shall Not Be Moved" for several days. As long as my wisdom tooth isn't singing along with me, I'll be fine! 🤭

I shall not, I shall not be moved