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Monday 30 November 2015

Road To Recovery: Reinfected Root Canal Part I

(Recount of 28 November 2015)

The much-awaited appointment to see Dr. Jac Lam finally arrived. There was a countdown - yes, it was that bad!

His consult was precise and fast, which I like. I described my pain and he agreed that the old root canal was worth taking a look at, both physical check and X-Ray.

He was right. All that pain and agony were from referred pain. The top two second molars were fine. The hind bottom second molar also looked fine.

The culprit showed up on X-Ray.

An old root canal of mine, first of my second molar on the left side of my mouth (if you are dentist and are reading this, please tell me the code number, teehee) had a hairline crack to its crown.

Many people think their root canal site is dead and done for, and that crown will last forever. Well, now I know it is not entirely true. Dr. Jac Lam has seen enough patients with similar case to know that reinfection of root canal is probable (largely caused by cracked crown) - and his profession is to fix them!

Never underestimate anything tiny. That microscopic crack had unfortunately allowed some bacteria in. 

Some bacteria is more than enough to wreck havoc to me existence and happiness, obviously! It was so painful I thought I had terminal gum cancer (note to self: do not read too many health and medicine articles online when sick).

The pain, referred pain and fever that rendered me helpless was soon put to a stop. 

Dr. Jac Lam quickly explained the treatment plan and I was "fine" after 3 injections of LA, an "oil rig platform", drilling, upstream of abscess, cleaning, redo of root canal and just about RM1200.00 poorer after an hour.

He was marvelous enough to explain that healing crisis will also cause some pain and discomfort in diminishing rate. I am sorry to testify that after the LA wore off, the pain was like 8.5/10!

My next appointment for permanent filling of root canal will be in about 2 weeks. I know I am looking forward to healing this completely.

If you have ever had a reinfection of root canal with abscess, I know you understand the pain too well. The promise of Allah swt that with hardship comes ease has helped me through this ordeal. 

Take good care, my lovelies. I am on my road to recovery, so wish me luck and thank you for keeping me in your prayers

Friday, 27 November 2015



Salam, my lovelies!


In the last few days, I have learnt an important lesson about never taking the blessings of Allah for granted. You know the saying, "health is wealth"? 


On Monday, Girl came home with a pair of swollen eyes, cheeks and sported insect bite marks all over her back, arms and face. She was taken in to ER at PCMC and referred to Dr. Anthony James Mansul, her usual paed, on Tuesday morning.


Dr. Anthony James Mansul prescribed her with an antihistamine and cream for itch control. Instead of issuing a Medical Certificate for missing school that day, he positively wrote a fit to return to school note so she could return without further questions. She took the antihistamine syrup like a champ using a syringe, but we never used the cream because it contains a low percentage of steroid.


Girl had missed a day of school that Tuesday. The load of homework just for one day is proof of how much she learns is a day at school, a topic worthy of its own post. 


I am suffering as I type this because my gums have acted up, and 4 of my molars  on my left side are all hurting and throbbing from referred pain. Neck, left ear and entire left side of my head all pulsing and pounding. Sometimes, tears just roll down by reflex. 


Yesterday evening, The Other Half had sent me to ER at PCMC to get some pain relief/pain management/pain intervention until I see my Endodontist, Dr. Jac Lam, tomorrow. How bad was the pain to warrant a trip to ER? It was 9.5/10. If there were an epidural for teeth/gum/head/neck/ear pain, I would have signed the consent form. It was THAT bad.


The bad news is none of the painkillers are working. Celebrex, ibuprofen, Panadol all have failed me. The Diflam Throat Anti-Inflammation spray works for short relief, which is great. The pain level went down to 8/10. Who would have thought of that? Thank you, Dr. Sharmini. 


I haven't been able to chew, or swallow solid food. So, luckily for me, I love juices. La Juiceria to the stop-gap nourishment rescue at least for today. I absolutely do not need to lose any more weight! Flab control with exercise, yes. Detox, yes. Some nourishment in absence of food, YES!


I have many hours to go before the appointment tomorrow. 

The countdown till I see Dr. Jac Lam has started. I have a fever 37.4C and the pain level is at 9.5/10 again. I suspect there is something seriously wrong with my root canal from many years ago. The gums around it is very swollen and painful. Pray all will work out well, Amin!


Wednesday 25 November 2015

Bean'sTalk: I Was Thinking About It

One morning whilst I was rushing to get Girl out the door in time for The Big School, Bean cried for my attention at the breakfast table.

The Other Half sensed he had to offer something highly entertaining and engaging so as to free me from the koala grip of this very strong-willed chap.

The Other Half: Bean, would you like breakfast and the iPad? You can watch Cars 2 if you like.

Bean: I was thinking about it.

I was gasping from disbelief and stopped to count the number of words he said in that phrase he uttered. The Other Half was so proud too. Even Girl was taken aback.

"5! Wow, Bean! You speak English now!"

I drove Girl to The Big School that day, just almost late, but did I grin from ear to ear?

Syukur alhamdulillah for such a great start! May Allah swt send my son His endless blessings. Amin.


Bean'sTalk: Must Say Please

Ms. T related to me how she had caught Bean picking up cornflakes from the basin containing food waste at The Playschool last week.

She had caught him just in time, before he did eat anything! Promptly, she gently pulled this young chap aside to have a word with him. 

Ms. T: If you are still hungry, you must ask one of the teachers to give you more food or drink, ok?

Bean: Must say please! 

Ms. T: Yes, must say "please". Good boy.

Bean: More cornflakes, please!

Ms. T: Yes. Good boy.

Bean then continued eating until he was full and finished his portion of water.




Saturday 21 November 2015

Snippets: Ambition

During Maal Hijrah, Girl had to go to The Big School to participate in World Education Games (World Mathematics, Science and Literacy Day). While waiting for her to complete her turn, Mrs. L and I had a chat in the classroom.

Mrs. L teaches Girl History subject at The Big School and in one of their class discussion about life phases and timelines, each of the 16 students were asked about their respective ambitions.

Some said run-of-the-mill "lawyer", "doctor" and/or "engineer" whilst others mentioned whatever profession their parents are honing them for, in preparation of inheriting their respective business empires. "CEO", "CFO" and "COO" were also rolling off the tongues of these young guns!

When it came to Girl's turn, she said one word which rendered Mrs. L speechless, because it is her first time hearing such an earnest ambition never before heard at such a competitive school. 

Girl had said, "Mother". 

Mrs. L asked if Girl wanted to change her answer, and Girl was resolute in keeping her answer.

Mrs. L then complimented her on her original idea and explained that being a mother is tough work. One has to be very talented, strong (body, mind and soul) and loving at the same time. The payment is in kind and the benefits are also in kind. A mother has to be a leader, chef, teacher, nurse, friend, driver, singer, actress, painter, tailor etc. and the students had a lot of fun discovering the many hats a mother wears!

It is heart-warming to know that Mrs. L did not shoot down Girl's ambition. I am so thankful she believes in nurturing young minds and not just plainly forcing them into pigeon holes created by society at large.

Thank you, Mrs. L. May Girl grow up to be a great mother, and more! Amin.
Tuesday 17 November 2015

Buzz Buzz Busy Bees

So much has happened since my last post and now when I try to post a summary, this comes out...please pardon my strangely unworthy and borderline ungrateful sounding bullet points:

• Packed weekends (it was and will always be awesome!)

• Topical Tests preparations for Girl (which tests my patience, until this week is over)

• Charity Bazaar at The Playschool (which we hope will be fun with a good cause like always)

• Holiday Programme decision to be made (Girl is unsure about spending RM600 for a 5-days programme versus spending it on whatever other activities  she likes, such as Petrosains and Kidzania with her good friend, Stonor Mummy's D)

• Thunderstorms and flash floods at home time with Girl (I need a Range Rover, although a motorboat may be a clever gift too)

• Jalan Tun Razak traffic dispersal system (which results in more congestion for me to sit on)

• ASEAN summit and related summits (which will result in even more road closures and diversions for me to experience)

• Sewing with Brother machine (I hope to learn a new skill every year so this is my 2016 bucket list item, inshaAllah. Paid for the basic beginners class, one stitch at a time, ok?)

• Resume cooking dinner at home (I declared the kitchen shut for dinner for a week during Deepavali, just because I was uninspired and tired)

• Baking (been itching to put together a no-bake strawberry cheesecake, have all necessary ingredients but no discipline to set aside 40 minutes of uninterrupted time to do so. I have unfollowed Tip Hero because the recipes all use too much sugar for my health)

• Juicing (I have been cheating on my juicer by going to juice bars, to save time)

• Running (my knees! I scare myself into thinking that I may have symptoms of osteoporosis, so I load up on my broccoli/celery green juice)

• Marie-France (too expensive at 12k that was quoted to me. Zumba classes are way more reasonable)

• Weaning Bean off the breasts (he wisely detests bottles and formula of any kind and I am hunting for straw cups featuring his favourite Disney characters to entice him to some UHT milk. He is 2 years and 5 months so, tick tock tick tock I have a few more months to work something out for us both, hopefully not traumatic or emotionally detrimental)

• Bean's own room + the new home office cum study + the new laundry room (if you know of a reliable and decently OCD interior designer, please drop me an email/comment. I am having "IKEA hackertitis" and "Pinterest fatigue syndrome". Thank you!)

• LaundryMonster (syukur alhamdulillah we have enough clothes to get by!)

• December get-away, birthdays and visits from overseas relatives (December is coming so soon?!)

Phew! That's a whole load off my chest.
Wednesday 11 November 2015

Snippets: Single Ingle

Girl has been trying to rhyme, increasingly more frequent now.

Sometimes, she rearranges music scores of tunes she has already learnt at Yamaha JMC and tries to fit in her own lyrics/prose. Quite often, she changes the pace (every adagio becomes staccato) or worse, the loudness (piano becomes forte with a grand crescendo).

As her mum, I can only encourage her growth (confidence!) and secretly tell myself not to dream of her becoming the next Taylor Swift just yet. Join the performing arts company at The Bog School, maybe. Baby steps.

Coming back to rhymes, "Easy peasy lemon squeezey" is the most common mantra I get from her, whenever she is asked if she can manage some simple tasks on her own, like cleaning up her toys after playtime. She had learnt the phrase from one of the cleverest girls in her reception class, C.

Well, sometimes she says something original. "Single ingle" - I admit this took me by surprise because it does not make grammatical sense, just phonetically pleasant (to us).

I would give her 5/5 for being creative and original, and hope she keeps the spirit of learning up!

Snippets: Omega

"Mummy, we have been so busy at school. So much so that T2 and I have no time to play Omega. We just high-5 or smile at each other during break time."

Omega is a rhyming/clapping game the girls play at The Big School, passed down by T1 to T2, and now a few of them can play that game quite smoothly.

Do you remember "Assalamualaikum" and "Set Set Set Bom Bom Bom" games?

Omega is a notch up in complexity as the topics can be random, from names of capital cities to names of characters in My Little Ponies. The winner chooses the new topic, so I have been told by Mamapumpkin.

Perhaps T2 can teach Drama Queen's H so that they can all clap Omega while the mums sip juice and catch up?

Zoo Negara Malaysia






We spent our Deepavali this year with The Grandparents, at our national zoo. It was a bright and early start at 9 am; and it was just as well that we did.

The male panda was fast asleep when we were there. We hope to visit again when the female and cub pandas are out of confinement. InshaAllah

The little ones enjoyed the walk, ice-cream treats and tram ride on a gorgeously sunny and hot day on 10 November 2015. Actually, I was also prepared with extra set of clothes for the little ones which proved to be a smart move because Girl spilled Milo at the entrance. A Ziplock bag kept all our rubbish in during our walk until the next bin came to sight (we realized they were painted in camouflage and they were so well hidden!). Fold-up brollies shaded the young and old alike from the scorching sun.


This zoo visit ended with a heavy downpour. Fortunately, I was prepared with the fold-up brollies in my supplies' bag. During our previous visit, we were blessed with the same downpour just at noon; and it had also drizzled at the end of our day out at The London Zoo. What a coincidence!

Our family day ended with a quick lunch at Great Eastern Mall before we headed for home, exhausted but happy. Syukur alhamdulillah.




Tuesday 3 November 2015

Spelling

Girl has trouble spelling the word "friends".

My solution? 

Find a way for her to memorise and connect easily. Using the traditional:
1. say
2. spell
3. say
steps work too but sometimes, a little extra effort goes a long way. Learning is not just a process, it is an experience akin to a journey (says me, the tutor with low patience threshold, ha!).

This Google image hopefully will help:


"Not Lego, dear. Friends. F R I E N D S. friends."

"Not Chandler Bing and Jennifer Aniston Friends, that was my era. This. Is yours."

All the best, Girl!

Out In The Yard







Lovely Sunday it was, our own grand welcome to November just by being able to potter around outside. Could not have asked for more. Syukur alhamdulillah.