My First Wisdom Tooth Extraction

A few days before Ballet Philippines’ much awaited performance of Giselle, I encountered an emergency. I woke up one morning with excruciating pain in my lower right cheek, which had swollen to the size of a golf ball. I could barely open my mouth, and chewing was so difficult. Judgment Day for my wisdom tooth had come.

Except I had one huge problem. It’s Giselle. I was part of the corps de ballet in Act 2. Any ballerina would know just how important the corps-work in Giselle is and how crucial it is that all dancers are present. ALL THE TIME.

Oh frak. So, what did I do? I did what anyone would do this today’s tech-driven age – I looked it up online. Surely someone out there in the big wide world must have had the same problem right? Which is what I thought, only to find out that there was nothing on the web that could help me. All related items had dancers who had time on their side and took a couple of weeks off after the surgery. Were there any dancers who had to rush recovery and had to be back in tip top shape as soon as possible?

That’s why I decided to blog about this. For the next poor ballerina/danseur, who has to panic the way I did right before a performance. (I feel for you, my friend. I really do.)

 

The Extraction

‘Twas the middle mark for rehearsals of Ballet Philippines’ Giselle. I was so determined to be present for all rehearsals and focus all my energy on the show when suddenly…

This had to happen.

My wisdom tooth (lower, right side) decided to harbor a nasty infection that threatened to grow into something serious if I didn’t have it removed right away. (I was hamster-cheeked for a few days due to this infection. It was so painful, I couldn’t even open my mouth!)

Before the extraction could happen though, the infection had to go away. I was given antibiotics for a week to take care that. During that time I was still dancing and doing full runthrus, trying to make up for future post-extraction absences. My surgery was scheduled 5 days later and on a weekend, so that I’d have time to fully rest.

Now, I just have to say that I’m chicken shit when it comes to dentists. I was so scared for my very first extraction that I almost wanted to back out, but at the same time, I knew that having to deal with the pain from the infection would be a lot worse.

The surgery took almost 2 hours, but hats off to my Tito Raffy Borromeo, who gave me all the anesthesia I wanted! The tooth itself was out quick enough, but a tiny part of the tooth got dislodged and he even had to use an X-ray to find it.

Tricky bugger. See the tiny root that broke off?

To my amazement, I didn’t feel anything except some pulling, pushing, and some patting thingy on my gums. My jaw though became a little sore from having my mouth open for 2 hours, and light bruising happened near my lips. To keep myself distracted from the huge ass injections and various paraphernalia going into my mouth, I closed my eyes, played Giselle music and went through the dances in my head.

 

The Recovery

Luckily, I had 3 full days of rest. During this time, I survived on nothing but yogurt, arroz caldo, oatmeal and soft eggs. I barely felt any pain though, and it was even more painful that my family had burgers and burritos right after my surgery and I was stuck with plain rice porridge. (And my cheek was more swollen from the infection than from the surgery.)

I followed all my dentist’s instructions – saline rinses at least thrice a day, all my pain meds and antibiotics, vitamin C everyday to speed up recovery and the hot/cold compresses. My dentist also said that my blood clots quickly, good news for me since I had to get better. Really fast.

By my 4^th day, I was able to sit-in and watch rehearsals. I was discouraged from moving around too much, so I only sat in a corner, took videos and notes. On my 6^th day, I took some light barrework, but I was careful not to overexert myself. I was still on a soft food diet so my energy was also incredibly low. To play it safe, I also avoided forward bends and backbends because I could feel some slight tugging on my stitches. Whenever I could, I sat down and rested and packed some yogurt and chocolate pudding for extra energy.

On my 7^th day, I was able to do full barre already, though I still stayed away from centerwork. I was able to do a full run of Giselle’s Act 2, although during post-run corrections and notes, there was some slight bleeding after I got a bit too excited with some running.

My 10^th day fell right on the onset of production week. By this time, I was off my antibiotics and pain meds, successfully able to eat solids, and more importantly, I was back to full-time dancing. Fouettés, runs, grand jetés and all!

 

The Advice

I was lucky enough that my timing was just right. Had the surgery happened a day later, I think I might have been taken out of the show. My recovery period fell on a weekend, I was permitted to cut my academic classes, and there was an additional day when I wasn’t needed in rehearsals, giving me ample rest time.

However, should you find yourself in a similar situation, here’s what I’d advise…

1) Follow the dentist’s instructions down to the letter. It’s for your own good, and you’ll be able to recover faster. That is what we want, isn’t it? So don’t forget the meds, the warm saline rinses, and hot/cold compress. Don’t drink from a straw, and avoid hard foods. And DON’T poke it with your tongue.

2) Take it easy! Don’t be in such a rush to go back to rehearsals. You may just make matters worse and you don’t want that! You are still recovering from surgery, however minor it may be. Start out with a few barre exercises and stretching, and gradually build it up. If you feel your wound throbbing with pain, that’s a signal to stop. Save the jumps and runs for at least 7 days later. (And that may be pushing it already!)

Most importantly…

3) Be honest with your choreographer/teacher. I was very thankful that the powers-that-be on my end (Nonoy Froilan, Monette Victoria, and Paul Morales) were very understanding and allowed me to miss a few days of rehearsal, despite the looming production week. I informed them as soon as I could and provided them with the dental certificate and dentist’s advice. Even though I couldn’t move, I still attended rehearsals to take note of blocking and any corrections or changes made.

If you can push the surgery to a better date then good! But if not, let your superiors know about the problem, make a choice, be accountable for yourself and just be ready to face the consequences.

It’s Been Oh-so-quiet…

I’m alive! 😀
I know I haven’t been writing as much as I… Well, I haven’t been writing at all. And no, I don’t have an original excuse for it, so here’s a barrage of the usual: I got busy – something came up – I didn’t have time – I was traveling with the Doctor –  I was marathoning Sherlock –  I was playing The Secret World – my dog ate it.

Since we had a month off this summer, I had time to put together some thoughts and experiences I wanted to write about. (Man, when I’m not dancing, my head gets really really noisy.)

I just hope I can be consistent once again!

Cheers!

September Assessment

We’re a quarter away from ending 2011, can you believe that? I took a look at my 2011 planner and reread the goals I set for myself at the start of the year.

I wrote:

“I want to attend at least one big event every month. I also want to try something new every month, just like last year. My big goals? To fix my school stuff, to get my passport, and to finally take my first step abroad. I need to make more money and to be a better manager, and a better dancer. Got it? Get back to me after 365 days.”

I’m now at day 245. I managed to get myself to UP (that’s one down) however, I have not fixed my passport yet. As for taking my first step abroad – I might need to delay that, due to my current unemployed status.

The passport – I could insert this excuse: My IDs were snatched while commuting from UP one time, therefore leaving me one ID short of the requirement of 2 for the passport. But I have to admit, I haven’t done anything to forward this goal due to neglect. x_x

As I did last year, I’ve still been keeping track of my new experiences every month. It’s an amazing list, which I’ll probably share by the end of the year. (Hmmm… I should post the list I made last year.)

Life, for me, is made up of the good, the bad and the ugly.  I’m cooped up in the basement of CCP for 55% of my week, but even so I still make an effort to experience new things and meet new people. Dancers are usually a sheltered bunch, with little life outside of rehearsals, so I’m rather proud of this yearly goal of first times I set for myself.

When I told my friends that I was back in school, one piece of advice in particular stood out for me: “Make sure to hang out with bad influences, go to wild parties, fail a few tests (not subjects), cut classes, talk back to professors, bring alcohol to school, vandalize property, demand changes in the administration – whatever gets you the 360 experience!”

He’s right. I’m proud of my life and the way I live it. Some might call me a rebel or think I’m too wild, but I can say I’ve seen wilder. What stories do you tell people if you haven’t fallen down or gotten hurt? What kind of experiences do you share?

So… Next up. Fix my passport and open the gateway to even more first experiences. 🙂

Life, for me, is made up of the good, the bad and the ugly.

Down with Nostalgia

This afternoon I got a sudden surge of nostalgia while working on my midterm paper, “What would you tell your 7-year old self?”. To get into the mood, I decided to search for old songs, I listened to or just heard frequently at that time. (And here I give away my real age, Sir Joscar. :P)

I played Lisa Loeb’s Stay, Semi-Charmed Life by Third Eye Blind, Ironic and Hand in my Pocket by Alanis, Linger by the Cranberries while writing.

I wrote:

It’s 1995 and you’re 7 years old right now. You’re now Grade 2 in Woodrose and your favorite subject is Science. You still stay in Ayala Alabang Village, at 107 Camia Street, the huge white house with a big garden.

Your cousins from Bacolod still stay with your family in that huge house, along with your grandparents and your step-uncle. You love chasing cats off the walls surrounding the house, “helping” your dog (an askal) Ranger rid the house of them. After school, you spend your afternoons running around the garden looking for newts and grasshoppers, and climbing the gate and the aratilis tree in the empty lot beside the house. At night, you’re still scared of going upstairs alone, because the second floor hallway has the statues of saints and Mama Mary, and they look scary in the dark. You share the bedroom with Mom, Dad and Mara, your only sibling as of the moment. You and Mara have a double decker bed. You took the bed on top, so that you could jump off from the top in the mornings – also to pretend you’re a mountain lion sometimes, or a pterodactyl.

It got me so emotional and nostalgic as I looked back and relived the days when we still lived in my grandfather’s house (which we loved), my family was still whole and times were simple. I realized how much I’ve grown up in the past years, much more so than my contemporaries.

I miss those simple times. I don’t regret the events that lead to my sudden and somewhat forced maturity, because I know they’ve shaped me into a pretty kick-ass woman. It’s just a sad reality check that there’s definitely no turning back from here.

“How do you pick up the threads of an old life? How do you go on, when in your heart you begin to understand… there is no going back? There are some things that time cannot mend. Some hurts that go too deep, that have taken hold.” – Frodo Baggins, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

Quick Post-Rehearsal Thoughts

Blood, sweat, tears – literally. I’ve never been a part of a production this intense.

I’d love to get some time to sit down and talk about this experience in more detail, but as I write I only have a few hours of sleep before I have to wake up and go back to CCP to rehearse again.

I have cried with productions before, but this is the first time I’ve actually cried because of the raw emotion in the studio. Agnes Locsin’s Encantada is intense not only in its story and from the audience’s perspective, but also for the dancers. Aside from hardcore modern dance technique, about 70% of the work is actually just capturing the essence, feeling and very being of our characters. We don’t dance anymore, we have to -become-.

The choreographer even walks us through the “emotional monologue” that should be playing in our heads, alongside the music. The entire production is done in such a way that the emotions can’t be faked.

Everyone has to be in the right mindset and extremely focused for this ballet.

Which is actually why I can’t write properly at the moment. XD

Please come and watch Encantada at the CCP Main Theater, next weekend Aug 12-14. More details here: http://www.facebook.com/#!/event.php?eid=100872416678681