Trying to move on after wisdom teeth removal

[dentistbraver]

At the beginning of January, I found out that I needed to have my wisdom teeth removed, which sent me into complete and utter panic. It was one of the worst times of my life, dealing with such extreme anxiety.

Fast-forward, I ended up finding an AMAZING doctor and got through the surgery. It was way easier than I ever expected. But now, I find myself replaying the moments before being put to sleep over and over in my head. Although I felt safe and cared for, I did not like the feeling of having so many monitors and wires hooked up to me. It made me feel completely out of control. I remember seeing all of the surgical tools on a table up close to me, which is an image I can’t get out of my head. (Mind you, I never felt a thing. I didn’t even have to open my mouth while I was awake.) They also put a “seatbelt” over my legs which just made me feel like I couldn’t escape if I needed to.

I remember crying so hard in the chair right before being put to sleep, but I woke up no pain and happy that it was over. So why am I still thinking and worrying about the fear of being in that chair, hooked up to machines, when it’s all over and went well?

 

[kitkat]

I often replay moments of appointments in my head…both things that went well and things that did not. It sounds like those first few moments before being put to sleep were filled with very intense emotions that you are still trying to process. You could ask yourself how does it make you feel when you replay that memory. Does it bring up those feelings of fear, anxiety, panic? The initial reaction is to push them away and resist those sensations but that gives more energy to them and it makes it harder to release them. I’ve found that if you can sit with them and breathe until they pass, the intensity lessens and the mind stops replaying as frequently or when it does replay, I am less reactive to it and it doesn’t disturb my mental state as much.