Stressed to the point of crying about recovery

[justifiedwariness]

Hi all.

This past Thursday, I had a lot of work done. All four of my wisdom teeth were impacted and removed, some in pieces. At the same time, I had an implant put in for one of my molars (#19). The implant and most complicated removal were both on the lower left.

I know I should be past the point of worrying about dry sockets, but I have pretty severe OCD, and not a single good experience with any health professional or procedures, which has led to extreme anxiety about the recovery process. For a change, I trust the doctor who did all of this for me, but I still can't help but worry.

Most sources say I should already be over the worst of it, but I'm not sure. It's day five or six depending on if you count the day of the surgery as the first, and it's been rough. I can't control the pain well due to medication allergies and other complications. The pain meds have made it difficult to eat, so I can barely even support my body through the healing process anymore as it is. My jaw is still too swollen to let me fully open or close my mouth enough to brush, so I'm even worried about infections, as I wasn't prescribed antibiotics.

I was given no resources for what to expect from the implant recovery process. At most I was told recovery from it is less intense than a tooth extraction, but it's (I think) what's been causing me the most pain other than some swelling along my palate from my gums on the same side. What I suspect was the implant just oozed a bit, and I guess that was finally the thing that broke me. It's probably totally normal, but that and now writing this has me crying nonstop.

I'm terrified of the thought of making it almost in the clear and then finding out something is infected, the implant isn't taking, or I'll end up with a dry socket anyway. That would honestly be my luck based on how all other surgeries I've been through have gone.

I could really use some reassurance. What is normal for implant recovery? How likely are they to fail, and what signs should I look out for in case it is failing? In the event it does fail, what can I expect from the process of having it addressed? Am I truly past the point of needing to worry about a dry socket, even from impacted wisdom teeth, by day 5-6?

 

[Tigerlily]

Hey, I just saw this ... how're you doing now? Seems you're having a rough time of it x

 

[justifiedwariness]

@Tigerlily
As of today, I'm officially a week out. I'm still having a pretty rough time with everything, honestly, but a lot of the pain has lessened. I can usually go about ten hours without ibuprofen before seriously needing it again, and a lot of the swelling has gone down, but there was so much work done on the left side that it's going to take a lot longer than average to settle down. I can expect pretty much the usual recovery roadmap to have an extra 4-5 days added on for my case.

I've had so many unbelievably damaging experiences with negligent healthcare professionals that it's left me scared of just about any kind of doctor, but I have to say my dental team has been amazing. I went to someone new for the surgery, and I'm so glad I did. This is honestly the first time I've felt heard and cared for. I'm used to being disregarded or procedures just outright being botched, but I've been in to see my dentist twice since surgery because they actually took my concerns seriously. The oozing and odd swelling mentioned in my post was enough for them to call me in to check for infection. So far it looks like I'm in the clear, so a lot of it just comes down to staying cautious, but pushing myself to eat and stay hydrated.

 

[Tigerlily]

@Tigerlily
As of today, I'm officially a week out. I'm still having a pretty rough time with everything, honestly, but a lot of the pain has lessened. I can usually go about ten hours without ibuprofen before seriously needing it again, and a lot of the swelling has gone down, but there was so much work done on the left side that it's going to take a lot longer than average to settle down. I can expect pretty much the usual recovery roadmap to have an extra 4-5 days added on for my case.

I've had so many unbelievably damaging experiences with negligent healthcare professionals that it's left me scared of just about any kind of doctor, but I have to say my dental team has been amazing. I went to someone new for the surgery, and I'm so glad I did. This is honestly the first time I've felt heard and cared for. I'm used to being disregarded or procedures just outright being botched, but I've been in to see my dentist twice since surgery because they actually took my concerns seriously. The oozing and odd swelling mentioned in my post was enough for them to call me in to check for infection. So far it looks like I'm in the clear, so a lot of it just comes down to staying cautious, but pushing myself to eat and stay hydrated.

So happy to hear this! It really makes all the difference to have good providers x