Wednesday 10 June 2009

Paying the price



6 months in, and had my 4th adjustment on Monday. It was a pretty good session, Dr H fitted a steel wire with 2 hooks resting by my canines, and announced I was well on track to be surgery ready by December – Yipeee! The hooks, unexpectedly, are not proving to be the demonic torture devices I was anticipating, though having flicked through the archives of archwired.com I expect it’ll be a different story once the elastics are attached. Dr H also announced he will ‘start work’ on the rotated tooth at the bottom next time. This could mean either slenderizing or removal, but I expect that it’s the former - surely he wouldn’t have spent all these months rotating it this way and that only to end up pulling it out!

So I should be out celebrating all the good things going on right now, but committing myself to this process is now having serious consequences on my life. The company I work for has been heavily hit by redundancies recently, and now I’ve had to choose between taking severance or accepting a demotion in order to carry on here. If things were otherwise I would probably accept the payout, but I really can’t afford my orthodontics and surgery without a regular paycheck coming in. Jobs are thin on the ground right now, and even if I do eventually come across a good one my surgery could possibly be a matter of weeks away by then. Can’t see how any firm would be willing to take on an employee who’s looking for a month’s paid sick leave so soon when there are dozens of candidates for the job, so I’ve reluctantly taken the decision to accept the demotion. I can’t begin to express what a blow this is. Plan to get out of this situation quick sharp once I’m through surgery, but the thought of those months stretching out ahead of me between now and then is really hard to bear. Still, I said at the start I’d do whatever it takes to get this done, and it seems fate plans to test my resolve to the limit. Rest assured though, the moment I come round from the anaesthetic I’ll be reaching for my CV and pen…

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

I do enjoy your articulate updates. Thanks for sharing your journey. I am also a class III underbite - I'll be getting braced on 7 July. Your blog has certainly played a part in helping me to take the leap. So Sorry to hear about your demotion. I hear things are a bit bleak in the UK. Hang in there though - your surgery is hopefully only 6 months away! That time will be gone before you know it...

Katherine (Kate) said...

Congrats on the 6 month Bracaversary! I agree that all his hard work would be wasted on removing that tooth now, so let's assume it's slenderizing... much more pleasant thought,haha.

Wow, that really does blow, and what crappy choices to pick between. It's crap, but understand the need for that paycheck. The severence would have to be pretty darned impressive... Will hope that something more substantial comes up in the meantime, or business picks up enough that you can get re-promoted at least to your previous position. Crap.

Very good news to hear all is on track for your surg date and super cool that the hooks aren't giving you grief~ who knows, those elastics might not bug you at all. :)

Lisa said...

Two of the hardest things i think about this journey is both the emotional build up to go through with it and secondly, the money aspect. To be hit with a demotion a few months before surgery would be such a blow and i hope that everything pans out for you in the upcoming months. :)

Jaw Surgery Brandon said...

You've got a great sense of humor, so I'm sure you'll make it through just fine, and good luck!