"Patience"

Saw the dentist for treatment today. His forecast of recovery of 4 to 6 weeks (which later became 6 to 8 weeks) was incorrect, but diagnosing paresthesia is not an exact science. At least he is being gracious about it, and not charging for the follow-up visits. He prescribed "patience" as the nerve heals VERY slowly, about the width of a single tine on a comb. He said he sees progress to the point where we'll now meet every 3 weeks, instead of 2.

Sandpaper at Week 7

I can "feel" recovery, but it's taking its sweet time getting here, and it hurts. I finally gained some sensation on the right edge and top of my tongue. But that sensation amounts to a feeling that there's a layer of sandpaper or roof shingle. Not sure why that is - perhaps it's part of the healing process? I still have what feels like deeper-layer numbness, and it is still impacting my ability to project my voice when I talk.

Week 6

So I hit a milestone today: Six weeks ago, the dentist whose needle into the back of my mouth caused this paresthesia said I would return to normalcy in the 6-to-8-week window. But I'm far from recovered and, in fact, it's still impossible to communicate clearly to others, especially on the phone. Being limited in your speech has taken its toll on my mindset. I continue to be social, but when I join coworkers for lunch I keep my mouth shut. My words can't keep up with the conversation at the table. It's frustrating. And, every day where I feel some progress, the next day I experience a regression.

Metamorphosis

The cold sensation on my tongue that was the source of constant annoyance finally dissipated [albeit  briefly] over the weekend, with the numbness shifting to the lower side of my mouth. Again, holding a conversation is incredibly frustrating - either because the listener has trouble understanding some of the words in a sentence, or because of the soreness involved with overcoming the limitations of my tongue. Another day ...

Warm beverages help?

The cold sensation returned in force this morning (and it seems like morning is when I experience the biggest odd effects from my paresthesia). What seems to minimize the symptoms is consuming warm beverages and food served at room temperature. Not unlike how honey can temporarily minimize the annoyance of a sore throat, the beverages seem to "raise the temperature" inside my mouth. It's the only way I can combat the frustrating, unrelenting coldness that has become part of my life since June 7.

An ice shelf in my mouth

Woke up today with a most-annoying sensation: the cold has returned. It feels like frost has embedded the lower right corner of my mouth. For the second time during this malady, the numbness takes a back seat to the cold sensation. Oddly, what seems to abate the sensation, if only for a few seconds, is my warm container of coffee. I've taken another dose of ibuprofen hoping it will drop the "temperature" but no good, so far.

Third trip to dentist reveals progress

Almost a month to the date from the dental work, I still have a numb tongue and no feeling in the area of my mouth (the "valley") under the tongue and just below the toothline. The dentist repeats the procedure that he had done on two prior visits: using what I presume to be the dental scaler, or pick, he moves along the surface of my tongue and asks if I can feel anything. Later he uses a dry cloth and has me describe what I'm feeling. Afterwards, he says he's compared his analysis to the previous trips and says the feeling is returning, albeit slightly.