Implant surgery in 2 days, ugh

[Mary9921]

I will be having implant surgery on the bottoms of my teeth on Thursday and I am very nervous and was wondering if anyone has any advice on what to do before? and afterwards? Meals, cleansing, & pain relief any advice would help. Thank you. I am scared of having 2 metal posts implanted in my jaw.... ugh, ?

 

[geos]

For what to do before, I would say prepare everything for after getting the implants. I mostly mean buying everything you would need.

For cleaning, the often mentioned salted water is a good option. My dentist gave me a bottle of something to apply on the gums around the implant with a q-tip.

Regarding meals, I took: meal replacement drinks, apple sauce, jello. After a few days switched to soft and easy to eat stuff such as ground meat, soups or mashed potatoes.

For pain relief I was fine with over the counter medication, mostly ibuprofen.

I strongly recommend relaxing afterwards and taking it easy for the rest of the day.

 

[MountainMama]

Not a dentist, but I have had one implant placed and am getting two more in the coming months. My first was in my lower jaw, as will be my second.
In my experience, the procedure itself was fairly easy, and not nearly as bad as I expected. I had nitrous oxide, because I get extremely nervous with any dental surgery, but was still aware of what was going on.
It heals very quickly, and pain was gone by the third day. Definitely take your pain medicine the first day (in fact, I would take some a half hour before the procedure).
Mine swelled quite a bit, even when the pain was gone, and I had bruising, but the swelling subsided after about a week.

Overall, not nearly as bad as the extraction, in terms of length of recovery.

Have soft foods on hand. You don't want to chew on that side for awhile, to allow the implant to integrate with the bone.
If you have teeth around the implant, and are worried about brushing, get a baby toothbrush, or some of those interdental brushes. I still use those to clean the implant healing cap.

 

[Sol]

Some soft food ideas:
https://www.dentalfearcentral.org/forum/threads/food.27135/

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Hello Mary 9921,

Welcome to DFC. Implant surgery is a huge step and sounds like you are really preparing well for it , though it can make one nervous at the thought of it. To me, for sure the thought is way worse than the procedure or having it. I've had one and now on my second. and glad I did.. I don't even notice I have any metal posts in my jaw at all . I believe you will find it worth doing and easier than you imagined. however. totally understand the anxiety of it. the thought of the whole thing is weird. I hope it all goes well for you. keep writing here and letting us know how it goes.. you have a great support and lots of people who have been through this rooting for you!

 

[FearfulInMA]

Just stopping in to echo what others have said. Everyone told me the implant would be easier than the extraction and I didn’t believe them. That didn’t sound possible given what was involved. BUT, it totally was. Both the procedure and the recovery were way, way easier. I had no pain during the procedure (I just had local) and very little pain during the healing process. I was find with ibuprofen. I stocked up on things I needed for protein-packed smoothies and did that for a couple of days. I think after about 3 days I was pretty much back to normal food.

Good luck and please let us know how it goes!

 

[tazey]

How did it go? I've got 12 posts in my mouth (looks awfull) but I'm sure 2 won't be that noticable,I understand how nervous you must be tho.

 

[Mary9921]

I had to cancel my surgery. It is rescheduled for this Thursday, August 1st.
Now I find myself in a different dilemma.
We have a trip to Disney World scheduled for Aug 5-10. I wonder how I am going to feel on the 5th? Should I put myself in that position? I will be home for the 7-day post-op appt. Just wondering if I am really going to want to deal with food restrictions and the stress on the surgery area directly after surgery... Before, I had a week in between... Now I don't know whether to go, Any thoughts? please...

 

[MountainMama]

Honestly, with mine, I felt fine after the second day. The first evening after surgery was the worst, and the next day was just a little sore. I had swelling at three days past, but not really any pain. I couldn't take ibuprofen, so I was doing just tylenol. I know my experience is not typical (since I can't take ibuprofen), but when the numbing wore off, I was blindsided by how much pain I felt, as everyone told me they had little to no pain. However, I did manage to fall asleep and by morning it felt no more painful than a bruise. I am sure the pain I experienced was mostly due to the fact that I was only taking tylenol up to that point. I took a tramadol before bed, and the pain eased enough for me to sleep.

I would probably avoid any rides that are jarring or bumpy, but otherwise you will probably feel fine 3 days after.

I was cheering my kids on at their basketball games three days after getting my implant put in.

 

[Mazey]

I was fine by the second day after my implant. I took ibuprofen for several days at my dentist’s suggestion, and he prescribe a stronger painkiller just in case that I took the first day as a precaution, but I don’t think I needed it. I think if you rest and take good care of the site you should be okay on the trip—just don’t push yourself too hard!

 

[FearfulInMA]

Like others, I was fine after a day or 2. I had my implant placed in a Friday and was totally ok on Monday to go back to work. Are you flying? I know sometimes altitude can impact things. Also, you may just want to take it easy if you’re walking around and find your heart rate getting too high because that may increase discomfort. Maybe check with the surgeon to see what s/he thinks?

 

[Ann Mel]

I will be having implant surgery on the bottoms of my teeth on Thursday and I am very nervous and was wondering if anyone has any advice on what to do before? and afterwards? Meals, cleansing, & pain relief any advice would help. Thank you. I am scared of having 2 metal posts implanted in my jaw.... ugh, ?

Nothing to be afraid of it never hurt as I had a pill from the dr and don’t remember anything.. if they take and most do,you won’t even know they are there ( the post) great way to go you will love it after its over.. I would do it any time.. they’re great!