Horizontally Impacted Wisdom Tooth

[Vlinder717]

Hi all, I'm new here and was wondering if some of you could ease my fears and give some helpful advice.

Last Saturday I finally worked up the courage to go to the dentist after a few years of having not been. I had been experiencing some discomfort in my upper left 2nd molar and my husband convinced me to finally go. Since my wisdom teeth have not come down yet, I thought it was just a simple cavity or something of the sort but it turns out my wisdom teeth are impacted. Just taking the xrays, i was pushing against the dentists hand and whimpering. I've always had anxiety about going to the dentist for I have a strong gag reflex and I have a strange sensation of feeling as though I'm about to choke on my toungue and I start to panic. The thought of being in the chair for as long as 30 mins with my mouth open and all that will be going on in there completely terrifes me. My appt is on Wednesday and I've spent the past two nights crying myself to sleep with panic attacks.

I have never been to this dentist prior since I just moved to a different state 2 weeks ago. I immediately let the dentist know of my concerns. I've told him that I would like to be completely out of it during the procedure but he doesn't do an IV sedation, only oral. I've done some research and have read that I will still be able to have a sense of time and a sense of what's going on and just will not care, which is NOT what I want. I have been under IV sedation before for a non dental related surgery and I remember nothing of that, just going in and being awoken a few minutes later and would like to find a dentist who will do this.

Also I wonder if it really is a problem with the wisdom tooth considering it's when I poke or put pressure on the 2nd molar when I'm in pain..

My fear however is that the horizontally impacted tooth will cause pain and damage before I can find a dentist and set up a new appointment. I've told this to my parents, husband, sister you name it and they all tell me to get it done with before it get worse.

My questions are:
How long do I have before the horizontally impacted tooth causes much pain and damage? (I have no pain most of the time and when I do, the pain is no more than a cavity)
Is IV sedation what I'm looking for or will oral actually do the trick?

For those of you who read all this I'm greatly in debt. I'm terrified of being in pain, but I'm terrified of the dentist as well, and that makes for a horrible combination.
Sincerely,
Vlinder717

 

[red7]

I'm in the same situation as yourself - not been to the dentist for years and suffering pain at the moment which i believe is being caused by the pressure of a wisdom tooth - i found the site yesterday and i am so pleased i found likeminded people who know exactly what i am going through !! After reading peoples stories and stuff i now have 2 or 3 dentists details i have promised myself i will call before the week is out - and i am also going to confide in a family member for some additional support ...... you need to get a dentist who is totally understanding to your feelings and fears - i think once you have done that - the rest will follow

Goodluck

 

[FinnishGirl]

Been there, done that... my wisdom teeth are "easy" (said the oral surgeon) but otherwise the same story. I went to a dentist clinic which offers GA because I didn't want to know anything about the operation. Unfortunately (as I thought then, now I would say fortunately) the only date for that was totally impossible for me, so I had to agree to LA but I insisted on a Valium prescriprion and got it. I chose Valium because I've had it before and I belong to those relatively few people for whom it's a real miracle drug, and I didn't want to try something I hadn't had before.

So... I had the operation with Valium. It was great. I was aware of what happened, and with normal feeling of time. But I didn't feel anything, the LA worked well and the injections were pretty painless, and the procedure was very quick! In addition, I kept my eyes closed all the time, as I usually do when I'm being injected, so I didn't see anything either. And I really didn't care! I wasn't scared, I didn't panic, I didn't hit or kick the dentist (I worry about that a lot), I didn't hyperventilate. I felt pretty calm, very relaxed (impossible to be anxious at the same time) and quite normal actually. Chatted with the surgeon like anyone!

After the operation I realized my fear was history! That was nothing to be scared of! Nothing awful happened, practically no pain, nothing I had been afraid of. If I had had GA or iv sedation, I would still be afraid of the dentist. Now I got rid of my fear, and that's absolutely fantastic! So I would say oral sedation is fine. There's nothing in wisdom tooth removing that you wouldn't want to be aware of. If you have good experiences about Valium and stuff like that, it will be great. If they haven't helped you before, then it's different.

Hope the dentists here will reply soon. You'll do well!

 

[Gordon]

On your first question, it's hard to say for sure without seeing the x-rays. Your dentist should be able to give you a better answer.
The different sedation methods have been quite widely discussed here already, why not have a wee poke about and come back if you need more information.

Otherwise Finnishgirl, <waves> has given you a nice patient's eye view of it.

 

[finney]

If you're in pain, the wisdom tooth is already causing you problems. The pain may get better for a time and then start again but it will only continue to get worse. Left untreated you could go from slight annoying pain to an abscess. I'm not trying to scare you, I have the same fears you do, but the reality is that you can't stay in denial because your wisdom tooth won't join you in convincing yourself there is no problem.

Some oral sedatives - not sure which ones but I think Valium might be one - do cause amnesia. You will be aware of the procedure but you will NOT remember it. I had that same kind of sedation for a minor surgery on my ankle and don't remember anything of the procedure.

If you really want IV sedation, you're going to have to find a dentist that does it, plain and simple. It's your choice, and you know what's best for you. But you really do need to do something soon...I know, easier said than done, but you will thank yourself for getting it taken care of early.

 

[FinnishGirl]

Yes, my dad the doctor says Valium can cause amnesia. Not for me, anyway! So you can't count on that. But I wonder why anyone would WANT to forget a fantastic experience. It's cool to remember afterwards how well you did and how easy the procedure was. That's a great way to get rid of fears.

By the way, there is a weird memory-related side effect of Valium for me. I wouldn't recognize the oral surgeon or his assistant if I met them. Valium takes away my face memory! I remember perfectly well everything else.

 

[Vlinder717]

Thanks for all the replies everyone. I have looked at other threads regarding oral vs. IV sedation and have decided the IV sedation is what I need. I do enjoy the idea of ridding my fear of dentistry, but I don't think that this is the right time to do it although I'm very glad it worked for you finnishgirl.
As of now I'm not in pain and I've never been in pain, more of pressure/discomfort every once in awhile if i fiddled with my teeth. I've already made appointments with other doctors to find the right one for myself and my anxieties. It was also hard with this dentist because he spoke Korean (my husbands language) and not english so it was very hard to get proper answers and build a trust with this dentist.

Now I just hope that my problems won't progress until my next appointment. Thanks again for everyone's imput