Impacted Wisdom Tooth Extraction Scheduled: Scared Silly

[Historian]

Hello everyone. I have 4 impacted wisdom teeth that my dentist says need to come out. I am scheduled to get my teeth out this Friday by a good oral surgeon but I am terrified. He recommended iv sedation and says that although impacted, my teeth have not grown roots yet. Im scared about going under and possibly feeling the procedure and I am also afraid of the pain afterwards. It is just very intense and I was looking for some support. Thanks everyone

 

[Sol]

Hello Historian,
Being nervous about something new or unknown its pretty common but it sounds like you are well on your way to getting through this. I've had IV sedation before to have some impacted wisdom teeth removed. While under sedation you will still be awake but a side effect is that it causes amnesia so you wont remember what happened. The sedation will also cause you to be very relaxed. Once the sedation effect kicked in for me, I had no memory of what happened until the surgery was done. In addition to the IV sedation, they should also give you local anesthetic so you wont feel anything during surgery.

As far as pain during healing goes, it can vary a bit by person. Most people will be fine with over the counter pain killers like Advil/ibuprofen. Some surgeons will also write a back up prescription pain killer but that should be up to you if you want to use it. Plan on taking things easy for a few days after and follow the post-op instructions they give you. There is some good information below if you haven't seen these articles yet. Good luck with your appointment.

IV Sedation

Find out all about IV dental sedation: what does it feel like, is it safe, and how do the sedation drugs midazolam and remimazolam differ?

www.dentalfearcentral.org

Wisdom Teeth Frequently Asked Questions - Please Read before posting!

Wisdom teeth removal is a common procedure and most of the time there are no issues and everything heals nicely. Even so, you may worry and have questions. Prior to posting a comment, we request that you please take a moment to read through the information provided here to see if you find an...

www.dentalfearcentral.org

 

[Historian]

Hello Historian,
Being nervous about something new or unknown its pretty common but it sounds like you are well on your way to getting through this. I've had IV sedation before to have some impacted wisdom teeth removed. While under sedation you will still be awake but a side effect is that it causes amnesia so you wont remember what happened. The sedation will also cause you to be very relaxed. Once the sedation effect kicked in for me, I had no memory of what happened until the surgery was done. In addition to the IV sedation, they should also give you local anesthetic so you wont feel anything during surgery.

As far as pain during healing goes, it can vary a bit by person. Most people will be fine with over the counter pain killers like Advil/ibuprofen. Some surgeons will also write a back up prescription pain killer but that should be up to you if you want to use it. Plan on taking things easy for a few days after and follow the post-op instructions they give you. There is some good information below if you haven't seen these articles yet. Good luck with your appointment.

IV Sedation

Find out all about IV dental sedation: what does it feel like, is it safe, and how do the sedation drugs midazolam and remimazolam differ?

www.dentalfearcentral.org

Wisdom Teeth Frequently Asked Questions - Please Read before posting!

Wisdom teeth removal is a common procedure and most of the time there are no issues and everything heals nicely. Even so, you may worry and have questions. Prior to posting a comment, we request that you please take a moment to read through the information provided here to see if you find an...

www.dentalfearcentral.org

Thanks so much for the response, that really helps. So for iv sedation I read that it makes you sleepy so will I be aware of what is happening when he is doing the extraction or will I be out of it?

 

[Sol]

Would suggest reading that article as it goes into more detail but IV sedation doesn't make you sleep. Many people describe it that way though because they can't remember what happened during surgery. It feels like you took a nap due to the gap in memory.

This is what I experienced in more detail. After they set up the IV, I remember the surgeon telling me they would start to lay back the chair. Closed my eyes thinking I would open them again when I was laying down. 40 minutes later I opened my eyes. I was up right in the chair and they were done with the surgery. No memory of anything that happened during the time I was sedated.

 

[Historian]

Update: I had my surgery at noon today and I survived! Didn't even cry. It felt like going to sleep and I even dreamed. When I woke up I felt in control of my mind. I feel mildly sore but I'm resting and using ice packs. I even had a drink because I was so thirsty. I know it's scary but it really isn't worth worrying about for months like I did. I feel so relieved that I did it and it's over with. Now just gotta focus on recovering.Thank you everyone who was supportive ?

 

[Historian]

Update: still doing okay, just a bit sore. I haven't slept yet but my surgery was late in the day so I had a full night's sleep. Ice packs really really help.

 

[Tracey]

Have you been able to eat? How long were you numb for?

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Historian

That is great news!! Hope you can get some rest and recovery and its painfree as soon as possible! Really glad the sedation went well and smooth for you!

 

[Historian]

Have you been able to eat? How long were you numb for?

I have been able to eat but just soft things. I was numb for three hours and after that was the worst of the pain but it was nothing excruciating. After that I got my first round of painkillers and I have been fine since.

 

[Historian]

Historian

That is great news!! Hope you can get some rest and recovery and its painfree as soon as possible! Really glad the sedation went well and smooth for you!

Thanks so much! Honestly, recovery has been easy going so far, just a little sore sometimes. I'm so glad that I did it and the surgery was very easy and wasn't really scary at all. They did some gas which put me to sleep and then did the IV sedation. Super simple ?