“You would not have made it through the weekend”

Today the dentist told me I would have been in the hospital and would have been lucky to make it through last weekend had I not made an emergency appointment to get an infected wisdom tooth removed last Friday instead of this coming Tuesday.

“These infections kill people you know?” “Once it reaches other areas of your body it causes irreversible damage.”

I am now left to ponder: Is the all out pursuit for your dream worth dying a preventable death?

After putting off dealing with a bum wisdom tooth for way too long I was hit with an infection deep in the root of one of my wisdom teeth. It was the worst and most painful thing I have ever dealt with. It started as some dull pain at the beginning of the year upon which I would take some Ibuprofen and dealt with it. But it grew worse and hit an 11 out of 10 on the pain scale last weekend. The infection started spreading quickly throughout my jaw, became very swollen and unbearable. On the left that is me , swollen and taken over by infection the day before the surgery. It was terrible, not to mention extremely dangerous. I couldn’t think straight, add much value or even lead a team meeting with any energy at all.

Frustratingly, it hit the same week we were planning a meeting with some angel investors and so I was initially trying to hold the pain off, have the meeting on Friday and get it taken out the next Tuesday. Well from what I experienced and what I know now, I don’t think I would have made it to Tuesday. Once an infection like that spreads to other parts of your head, neck and chest… you’re done.

On Friday, at the same time as the others were at the investor meeting, I went and had surgery to get the tooth taken out. And whoa do I feel better! I am a bit swollen from the extraction but infection free and really feel like a new man.

Lesson learned: deal with your health issues up front, some things are more important than the business you are building. I can be guilty of putting everything aside to focus on the main thing in front of me so this was a wake up call to be aware of creeping health issues.

Dodged a bullet on that one.

As an entrepreneur still trying to make it I don’t have the extra cash for insurance right now so I just pushed it off thinking it would take care of itself. I did not want to let anything get in the way of important meetings and work as we prepare to move Seconds forward with strategic partners and investors.

But what is more important than your health and wellbeing? Please take it from me, get your health issues in line. Take some time off if needed. Use credit or a loan if you feel you cannot afford to spend the money to get an ailment taken care of.

Do not end up like that idiot on the left with a weird growth on his face.

@jnickhughes