The day they braced her…
Today’s post coincides with the World Sickle Cell Day (2021). A day set aside by the United Nations to raise awareness for Sickle Cell Disease.
Going through the shared story of a friend on her Fb wall, I stumbled upon a video that graphically describes how sickled cells and normal red bloods cells move within the vessels of a warrior. Below is the link to this post on Instagram.
Hmmm… Now this is the way I’ll choose to continue today’s post. We warriors are actually tested in so many facets of our physical beings.
My thoughts at this moment are actually adrift in many ways. Do I share what is actually going on at this instant? OR do I just remove my focus from me and post on something else?
Before I go on, I would like you all to realize that the purpose of this blog is not to make you lose hope especially if you are a warrior or are in one way or another connected to one. The objective of my blog is to shift your paradigm about the way you probably view your health condition or that of your warrior offspring. To let you know for a fact that a warrior possesses unique strength by reason of their challenges and; that the right perspective by the grace of God enables them surmount all.
So please don’t be disheartened by whatever I have to share today. To say the least, I believe on many occasions I bore you with thoughts about me but nonetheless, I hope it does make an impact on someone out there. One day eventually, I believe all this focus will change but until then…
That being said, I’ll just continue from where I digressed. A few years ago, I was informed by my dentist that I required Orthodontic braces. Me being who I am, just viewed the issue with laxity and went on with my daily activities. Anyhow, I started to develop sensitivity but this time around, I was seeing a different dentist who recommended a particular toothpaste to ease it. With time, plaque also started appearing so I decided to go back to see my previous dentist to get a second opinion.
To my dismay, this very experienced dentist informed me that the reason behind all my issues was as a result of my dental structure which was causing my teeth on both jaws to tap and exert pressure on one another.
She added that if I do not address it immediately, (“you’ll find this funny”), I may start to lose some of my upper and lower tooth. OMG! For the very first time, the implication shook me out of my deep sleep such that I signed up immediately to have the braces fixed. Phew! that might’ve been a close shave. Lol!
So, here I am with braces on my teeth and this time I have noticed an immediate difference on my facial – dental structure.
Engaging this dentist in a private discussion, she revealed to me that on many occasions, Sickle Cell Disease does have an effect on the dental structure of a warrior and in such cases it needs to be corrected by means of Orthodontic braces.
Now someone told me that I’m fond of telling you all what to do frequently. I’ve accepted this feedback which of course was given verbally. However, I feel the need to enlighten you at this juncture, on how it’s been convenient to pay the various medical bills that arise from my health condition. You may just find it useful, especially if you are warriors living in Nigeria.
I make sure I’m registered with a Health Management Organization (HMO). It’s something I’ve been doing for quite sometime now. There were times in the past when I had employers that did not provide this cover for their staff, so I enrolled myself with one. Even now, I still try to ensure that I have additional cover for my medical condition. With an HMO cover, you pay a premium and as long you are covered for a particular service under your chosen plan, you simply walk out of the hospital leaving the HMO to pay the bills. It saves you all the hassle and stress of constantly making out of pocket payments. However, HMOs in Nigeria don’t usually cover Orthodontic braces because it’s viewed as cosmetic dentistry.
So that being said and done, I’m trying to get used to having on these braces. It still seems quite odd when eating.
I do hope you understand why I started today’s post with my Hmmm… and comment above.
Try please to spread awareness on SCD.
Until next week, do take care.
