My journey to breathe

About 2 weeks ago, I went to Philly and Dr. E installed my MSE (maxillary skeletal expander). I met with her at 9:30 that morning to have molds of my teeth taken and then I went back at 1pm to have the expander installed. I sat down in the chair that afternoon to find her beaming and so elated when she saw the expander, “oh, it’s perfect, I’m so excited”. Welp, that makes one of us, talk to me in 10 months when this sucker comes out. Then I’ll share in that excitement. Dr. E placed the expander in my mouth, a damn perfect fit. Shit. She momentarily took it out, grabbed a piece of gauze and stuck it to the roof of my mouth. She gave me the spit suction thingy and said “don’t swallow”. What? Why not? What would happen if I did? Of course, my mouth is wide open with gauze stuffed in it, so I can’t ask. I’m beginning to think dentists do that, tell you something you’ll object to or question when you can’t. Then I remembered reading about the MSE installation procedure, ah yes...

CPC device, oxygen sensor, mouth taped and mute dilator Recently, my dentist has been taking countless trainings in airway prosthodontics, the study of abnormal breathing and its impact on someone’s health. During my most recent intense appointments with her, she told me she ordered a cardiopulmonary coupling device, a patented technology that establishes Sleep Quality from the analysis of the connection between heart rate variability and respiratory volume variability. I clearly have no clue what this means, but sure, I’ll do another sleep study, especially at home. In order to, hopefully, alleviate some of my daytime fatigue prior to any surgery, my dentist recommended that I tape my mouth shut when I sleep as I’m a mouth breather. And that I purchase dilators for my nose, a small plastic device that opens my nostrils wider to increase my air flow, as my nostrils collapse when I inhale. A week later, she called and told me the cardiooulmonary coupling device had arrived...