Sometimes you just gotta laugh...

On Tuesday, I went in to the dentist to get a crown put on the root canal that I had done back in March. This root canal cost me $1500 because I had already exhausted my dental benefits for the year (It is only March. It has been this sort of year...) I actually cried when the financial lady told me how much this root canal/crown was going to cost me but I ponied up the money and took it like a (wo)man.

It was nearly a month after the actual root canal before I could get back in to get the crown seated due to my crazy schedule but Tuesday I finally made it in. When the office lady called me to confirm my appointment on Monday, she asked me if I wanted to have impressions made for a new night guard (I grind me teeth badly). I told her that I could not afford a new one at this time and she said, "Well you have $688 credit so you can just use that!" Stunned I stammered something about that being ok and hung up the phone. Six hundred eighty eight dollars credit? How could this happen?

Apparently she underestimated my insurance payments (by a lot) and so she over charged me (by a lot). There was apparently insurance money left over when she said there was not thus the large credit. So, I went ahead and ordered the new night guard which costs nearly $500 dollars.

While they were seating the new crown, I was experiencing a lot of pain, which was odd since there are no nerves left in the tooth, but we thought it was just from my grinding and the fact that I had not been wearing my old night guard. My dentist numbed me up a bit and all was ok. Sort of.

Fast forward to today, Thursday. I have not been able to chew on that side of my mouth since Tuesday and now I have hot and cold sensitivity. This afternoon I developed intense jaw pain. I figured it was just a bite adjustment (that's what they always tell me) so I ran over to the dentist to have them adjust the crown.

Except instead of a bite adjustment my dentist tells me I need a root canal on the tooth behind the newly placed crown. Oh and it's going to cost $1000. Just for the root canal. Not including the crown.

Sometimes you just gotta laugh. Or else you will cry.