Tooth Trauma ... and Drama

A couple weeks ago, Aden told us he had a loose tooth. This seemed a bit unusual to us, as Dad had convinced everyone after the loss of Aden's eighth tooth that he was now done losing his teeth. In fact, several times over the last few years he has reminded us of this. So now at age ten, for Aden to have a loose tooth, perhaps connected to being hit by a soccer ball, we began to prepare, at least mentally, for what may happen. We hoped it would somehow magically stop wiggling and fuse back into his gums; we tried to prepare Aden for possible scenarios that might play out, depending on if the tooth fell out or not and when we would get to the dentist. We already had appointments scheduled for November for all five kids, so were really hoping there would be no serious fallout before then (pun intended).

This evening at dinner, Aden bit into a soft dinner roll and felt something snap. His tooth was suddenly much looser (we even had Dad give it a wiggle to check it), and against our better judgment we watched him eat another roll and even offered him cake and ice cream for dessert. It seemed soft enough, and Aden was visibly becoming more and more concerned about the potential of his tooth falling out, so we figured he was eating cautiously ... until just before he finished his dessert he cried out that there was blood in his mouth. As we rushed for a cold washrag to help him, the tooth fell out. Thankfully, Dad had just googled what to do if a tooth falls out - put it in milk or saliva and get to a dentist as soon as possible. (Literally, even as the children were eating their dessert, he was on the computer looking it up.) We frantically put the tooth and some milk in a glass while we tried to sort out what to do next. 

Aden was in tears, terrified of what might happen at the imminent and dreaded visit to the dentist who would no doubt drill a hole into his gums and try to reattach the tooth. He compared it to losing a baby tooth, and the joy of having the tooth out and finding fifty pesos under his pillow ... now he might have a false tooth or a hole, and no P50 for comfort. Mom asked the other two boys to stop and pray for Aden; meanwhile she texted every contact she could think of who might possibly be able to help us find a dentist well after hours. By now it was 7:00, and finding an available dentist was proving a daunting task indeed. It seemed we were racing against the clock, with the tooth soaking in milk, and regretting all the food we had continued to offer Aden, knowing his tooth was so loose.

While Mom was frantically texting, Dad was back on Google, searching for what to do when a canine tooth falls out at age ten. It seemed that most of the results he found were either about dogs, or informative pages about what ages children lose their teeth. At one point Dad found a site that allowed a live chat-consult with a dentist. After answering a few simple questions about his age and the tooth, he gave up when the site required P1000 to move forward with the conversation. Mom got on a local moms' group on facebook and put out a plea for dentist recommendations who might be available after hours; then she kept texting. She texted friends in the US (one of whom had worked for a dentist for years and might have some advice for things we could do if we did not find a dentist immediately) ... a missionary nurse who has lots of medical contacts here ... Grandma Karen (mostly for moral support - she would be praying) ... and our local pediatrician, who informed us that there would be emergency dental care at the ER at two of the major hospitals here. We opted for St. Luke's, knowing their ER would have the better care, even though it can take significantly longer to get there.

In the midst of these decisions, Mom heard back from another friend, currently in the US, but with excellent dentists here locally, so she also texted them. Before Dad and Aden left the house with the tooth and the milk, Mom prayed with them and sent them on their way. She was helping the other four children get ready for bed when she heard back from one of the local dentists. Returning the call, she found a very friendly, helpful voice on the other end of the line. "Tell me what happened." Mom explained that her ten year old son had lost one of his cuspids at dinner, which had been loose for a couple of weeks. "It's a baby cuspid, then?" There was a brief moment of silence. It took Mom a moment to process what she had just heard, so she repeated it. "It's a baby cuspid? You're supposed to lose those?" The dentist kindly explained that those teeth are generally lost at age 11, but sometimes at age ten. "He didn't have pain?" "No." Mom reviewed the scene with the dentist. No roots came out with the tooth; there was no pain; it simply got loose and then fell out. To be extra helpful the dentist offered, "You could send me a picture so I can see where the tooth fell out." Mom laughed out loud as she explained that Aden was already on the way to the ER with his dad. Thankfully, that was one hospital visit we were able to avoid before it happened. To help compensate for any emotional trauma experienced, the tooth fairy was extra generous ... and in the end, Aden was able to have his cake, and eat it, too.

Aden's new smile