Apple camp and a pulled tooth

Sag started a three day Apple camp today and loved it.

He and Owen were definitely on the more "expert" end of the scale and kept themselves entertained playing games as they quickly finished the tasks set forth for them (they were quite content throughout the experience).  I enjoyed the minimalist look of the place which is hard to do when the store is open because it's usually so crowded.  I also enjoyed, ahem, marveling over how light and wonderful the Mac Book Airs were.

Later on in the day the boys enlisted the help of their brothers to shoot video footage for their movies, which was their homework.  (Gem enjoyed a quiet morning with Lukas playing catch and watching episodes of The Regular Show.  He has really missed spending time with Lukas.)

Tomorrow morning we'll do it again.  After lunch I'll be taking them to see Cars 2 to escape the super heat (how fast did Pirates of the Caribbean disappear from theaters...wow).

Here's a pic of the tooth.  I processed the original photo to enhance it and then tone the color down.  It was bloody and not pretty, I was quite shaken by the experience, as was Gem, but I wanted to document it because we were told we couldn't bring it home.

So, the bullets: 

• the clinic is solid and I recommend it for anyone who has kids who have a hard time going to the dentist.  (we waited a whole ten minutes or so as walk-ins, our dentist was very friendly and warm, Gem felt instantly comfortable with her, which meant a lot...and in the end, they were unfazed, professional, cooperative and efficient.)

• we only encountered one person who was unkind...she was in his face and then mine and old school...she made an impression, but realized quickly her method wasn't working and disappeared.

• we had two surprises (need for an x-ray and the use of novacaine rather than gas).  I decided to agree to both because they were going to help us get to where we needed to be (determining if the tooth did, indeed, need to be pulled that day; getting the tooth pulled using a less invasive form of anesthetic).

• both surprises worked very much against Gem's well being which was already low due to anxiety about the process/experience of getting his tooth extracted and dental work in general.

• getting a picture of the tooth in question required four different "personnel" facing Gem with their various bags of tricks (it was strange that no one introduced themselves/identified their roles).  the fourth guy figured out that Gem didn't need to stick the x-ray film so far back in his mouth (which makes him gag and he can't hold it in there long enough for the x-ray to hit it).  success!  but Gem had already shed some tears and was not happy.  the picture made t clear he needed the tooth extracted.  I was given the choice to return with him in a couple of days since he was clearly upset by the x-ray experience, but my gut told me to stay.  I knew he could get through this and it felt important to stick it out with/for him, to see it through to completion despite the obstacles that were being thrown up along the way.

• there was crying, screaming, panic, and a fighting will and spirit within him (radiating out powerfully) I rarely get to see.  after the first shot of novacaine (which he never saw coming) it took three adults (me and two assistants) to hold him down for the second shot and then the extraction.  it probably was over within five minutes, but it felt much longer.  in the end, one of the assistants yelling (part adrenalin, part making sure he could hear her over his shrieking and bucking) in his face that if he didn't stop moving on the count of three she was going to send me out of the room (which *never* would have happened, but I kept my mouth shut intuitively knowing we were very close to the end), did the trick.  on "two" he stopped moving long enough for the dentist to make the final pull and out the tooth came.

• as I held him down, my face was close to his and I talked to him the whole time.  afterward, we were given time and space to hold each other in the chair as he calmed down.  someone who had not been involved in the procedure came in and spoke to him incredibly gently and sympathetically.  much afterward, over lunch at his favorite sushi place, I asked him if I had broken his sense of trust in me.  "what do you mean?" he asked.  I elaborated and then he said, definitively, without hesitation, "no".

• phew.

• he has recovered quickly and well.  despite indications that the novacaine did not work and he felt excruciating pain when the tooth came out.  this report, from a boy whose threshold for pain is so high...broke my heart.  the after-pain eased up significantly during our car ride home.  he was cheered up by a new Warriors book, lunch out, and a new video game on order from Amazon.  Vinny was able to squeeze him in and when he walked out of there, Gem's cheeks were rosy once again.  he slept well and he has been completely himself today.

• he hopes to never have another tooth extracted ever again.

• it truly sucks that the novacaine didn't work after the trauma of having it injected (I am so not a denta-phobe, and it is hard for me to tolerate getting novacaine injections...I mean, really, why hasn't someone improved on using a big ass needle to give a minimum of *two* shots into the gums yet?!)

• I am still emotionally exhausted, my shoulders and upper back are very tight.  I can't talk about the experience without getting a bit hyper and shaky.  I don't feel guilt or regret, but I have lost something, temporarily.  that feeling, the sense that I have what it takes to keep my child feeling safe and secure.  because even though he is safer now that the infected tooth is out, and even though he was "safe" throughout the ordeal, he did not feel safe.  and I was right there letting that happen.