Busy day with the kids. Besides the usual violin and Chinese Saturday run, I had to dash to my dentist between violin class and lunch for a check up. The journey took about 30 minutes each way, but the check up only 5. He took a quick 5 second glance at my surgical site and pronounced that it was in great shape. I asked him if we know if the surgery has been successful, will the bone graft have hardened, can I start exercising now, how about drinking alcohol, brushing my teeth etc. I said I was worried because I had sneezed a few times the day of the surgery, so the soufflé probably jiggled. And he said, yeah that’s all fine. Remember I said you only had to restrict things for 10 days (really? I thought it was between 10-14 days…). And he said he can’t probe to check if all is good with my bone graft yet, because it is still soft like jelly. But the fact that the gum is still at the position he placed it is a positive sign. I said that I had even largely slept with my head elevated as he suggested. He chuckled and said I’m the first person he knows who has actually done as they are told.

I’m due for a more detailed check up in January, where he can probe the site to see how the bone growth has gone. He will also take the mould for my mouth splint then.

We had lunch at Bill’s. I celebrated with an indulgent dinner of roast pork belly joint, steamed bao dumplings, with sugar drop tomatoes and spinach. I asked the kids if they wanted pasta and salmon again, or the pork belly, and they were both in favour of pork belly. So pork belly it was, to celebrate the first checkpoint / milestone of my dental surgery.

I’m wishing I could get back to exercising sooner rather than later. I’ve been feeling discouraged and sad again. Maybe it’s the onset of winter blues. Or that I’m missing the happy hormones from exercising. I wish I could have my cyst removal earlier, so I didn’t need to be out of commission for so long.