Mr. Jaws

My jaw was double-broken, upper and lower, in the accident. It was reset and wired shut while I was still unconscious during the first days after the accident. The wiring was taken off a couple of months later and I was able to resume normal use of my mouth. The first thing that I ate after the wiring was taken off was pizza. I have to admit that it was a dumb move. The crust was really difficult to chew and provided more pain than pleasure.

I endured an enormous amount of work done to my mouth over the next year, but my teeth and my jaw were eventually restored and life went on. But now…over the past weeks my jaw has begun hurting. It has happened before in the past, but this time the pain has been more pronounced and it continues to linger. I can’t bring myself to even consider the option of going to see someone about it because the year after the accident produced enough visits to the oral maxillofacial surgeon and the cosmetic dentist to last a lifetime.

Although this current pain is lasting longer than past occurences, I’m hoping that this will go away within time like it has before. For now, it’s just another annoyance that lingers. My body seems to want to remind me that things will never truly be the way that they were before the accident, and I guess it’s up to me to minimize the impact and stay away from things that require a tougher chew. Pass the Jell-O.