Hi Nate

you are only 27 and young people do so much better in surgery and recovery than us "old farts". You seem to manage pain better and you just get better faster.

At age 30, I had my gall bladder removed on a Friday, discharged myself on Saturday and was back at work on Monday. Admittedly this was probably a little toooo soon since my dress didn't fit properly and I had to get my neighbour to buckle my shoes because of swollen tummy ... but my point is that whilst you might not be back at work next week, you will bounce back fast. By the way, I am not suggesting that my piddly little gall bladder op is anything like your oral surgery which will(temporarily) get in the way of really fun stuff such as eating, swallowing and talking.

My Alex says the waiting and not knowing is worse than the treatment so hopefully a lot of the fear and stress you are carrying now, will fall away after the operation when you realise it is not nearly as bad as your imagination.

In the words of Eowyn, daughter of the King of Rohan "courage Merry, courage".

Apologies if you are not a fan of Lord of the Rings, but I adore the stories and manage to find inspiration or an apt quote (or so I think) for every situation and try and convert everyone else in the process .

good luck

Karen