Wisdom removal in 2 hours and vomiting

[Destiny2122]

I’ve been putting off this wisdom removal for 5 years. I am 32 and decided I needed to toughen up since I want braces and without these out I can’t get them. I have surgery at 7:45 this morning. It is currently 5:45 in Oklahoma. I have had diarrhea all morning and am on the verge of vomiting due to nerves. I am so fearful of anesthesia and now I’m crying. I need support badly. The thought of not waking up from it and not coming home to my family is tearing me apart. Please help calm my nerves. Today I am conquering all of dental fear and this is big for me.

 

[oneby]

Hope it went well for you. Usually this surgery isn't anywhere near as bad as people think it will be.

 

[Destiny2122]

Thank you for the response! I actually had to reschedule for Friday. The sickness got worse. I’ve been puking all day long. I puked up a bunch of shrimp in the office! So embarrassing.

 

[oneby]

@Destiny2122
Let me tell you my story - it may help. I was scared out of my mind about having my wisdom teeth removed. I thought about every detail obsessively. I was horrified at the thought of them cutting on me, and I was horrified at the thought of the sedation. Like you, I feared not waking up (I don't know if that's even remotely possible with IV sedation). The doc knew I was nervous and gave me a sedative to take before I came in for the procedure but that didn't seem to even make a dent in my anxiety and the doc was surprised that my pulse rate was still so high. Well all that worry and fear was unwarranted. Thanks to the sedation, the whole thing seemed to be over in an instant, and before I knew it I was in the car being driven home. And in hindsight, looking over the whole experience, I don't think I ever experienced any pain, even in recovery. Sure there were some strange feelings, and I was groggy for a while, but nothing was really bad.

My story is not unique - many others could tell you stories pretty much like mine. Of course, things can go wrong - things can go wrong in anything and everything in life, but wisdom teeth extraction is a very routine thing for most people. My son had his out recently and I was surprised at how nonchalant he was about the whole thing. As for IV sedation - it's your best friend. It's not like being put to sleep, it's more like skipping ahead in time.

It will be okay. You can do this, and get it put behind you. Try to depersonalize things and think of yourself existing beyond your body, just let go of the tension because because your body will be absolutely fine with this. Your body need this to happen. Every day countless people in this world have their wisdom teeth out and you can too.

 

[Destiny2122]

@oneby thank you. I needed to hear this. I appreciate you sharing your story and I can’t wait to tell you all on an update that I did it! I’m proud of you also for overcoming the fear.

 

[Loso456]

@oneby omg readin this helped relieve the stress I'm feeling frm just thinking bout making the appointment I caught infection last week it's almost completely better now after antibiotics but now I have a referral for oral surgeon and this whole week has been a nightmare my heart wants to come out my chest I break into sweats my body numb all from just thinking bout being in dentist chair I dont want another infection I've dealt with this in the past I finally went and got 4 wisdom pulled by oral surgeon and it was beautiful experience but 15 years or more later I'm way too scared the amount of severe pain I've gone thru in my life bcuz of my fear is unfair I'm praying Hod gives me the strength He helped me find this group I didn't know others felt the same as me I hope this group leads to me getting it done hope we all do

 

[Loso456]

GOD*

 

[Destiny2122]

@Loso456 it is so scary! I found this group the other day and it has been so reassuring! I hope that we can all overcome this!

 

[oneby]

@Loso456 I hear you, and so sorry to hear about the torment of fear you've been through. I lived most of my life without much dental fear, but then again, I never had many problems (besides wisdom teeth) and I saw the dentist twice a year for checkups. But over the past couple of years I've become anxious about anything medical. A month ago I started having some pain on one side of my mouth and then discovered a lump on my gums. That scared me - especially when the dentist wanted to do a CT scan. The scan revealed a dead nerve in a molar. Dentist put me on antibiotics and referred me to an endodontist for a root canal. I have an initial appointment with the endodontist first thing tomorrow morning.

I can't say that I'm especially afraid of the root canal itself, at the moment at least. But somehow I'm just anxious about going to a specialist and being examined further and seeing a bunch of new equipment. And my biggest fear is that the endodontist might discover a tiny crack in the tooth and tell me the tooth has to be extracted. Having a tooth extracted is such a disturbing concept to me. I can't stand the thought of someone pulling a tooth out of my head. I hope that things can just be settled with a root canal.

Anyhow, glad you found the forum. This fear we have is something we learned, and I am trying to unlearn it but it's not easy. I tell myself that I can choose my thoughts and I try to work on my perspective. I remind myself that I'm lucky to live in modern times and to have access to modern dentistry.

 

[Destiny2122]

@oneby I am 32 and I’ve always been an anxious skeptical person. However over the last few months I’ve been a hypochondriac. I think it has to do with my profession. I work in an emergency room and see so many bad things all day that I take it home and stuff it away and then end up obsessing and dramatizing minor health conditions in myself. It truly is an awful feeling. I had a cosmetic surgery in 2018 and was under general anesthesia and while I was nervous leading up to it, it wasn’t to the extent of this dental procedure. I feel like an idiot even comparing the two, but I also have a major uptick in my hypochondria and obsessive thoughts now more than ever so maybe that’s playing a role? My procedure is Friday and I just hope I can remain calm and do this. The food poisoning I had yesterday was actually a blessing in disguise because it gave me a “test run”. I actually showed up to my appointment but they saw how sick I was and sent me home. But the staff was so nice and it actually helped calm my nerves. I just really thank you for sharing your story.

 

[oneby]

Wow - working in the ER environment, that's gotta mess with you. I've often wondered what that does to someone's psyche. I figured it either made you numb or made you a hypochondriac - one extreme or the other.

I hope you can do it too. I think you can. Just try to find the right thoughts, the right mental space, the place of peace in your mind. And just think about how quickly Friday will go by and become Saturday and then life will go on and this whole procedure will quickly become a thing of the past - over and done with. Maybe instead of dreading Friday try to focus on looking forward to Saturday and how relieved you'll be to have this out of the way.

 

[oneby]

I need to follow my own advice now - finding that right mental space and peace of mind. So much easier to tell other people to do it. I saw the endodontist this morning and he is actually getting me in today for the root canal in about 2 hours from now. I'm glad I can do it today instead of waiting (and worrying) longer for it. I'm actually not so nervous about the procedure itself as I am the result. There's a significant chance he will find a hidden, deep crack in the tooth, underneath the filling, and then have to abort the treatment and send me back to my dentist to have it extracted - a thought I find so disturbing, and then there's the consideration (and cost) of what to do after that.

My ideal for any dental procedure is to just try to relax, try to put my mind in another place, let the doc do his work, and try to get through it. But because there is some suspicion of a crack beneath the filling, I will be on edge the entire time waiting to hear what he says as we go along - dreading any words about a crack and what it means.

Anyhow - hoping for the best for us all.

 

[letsconnect]

Best of luck @oneby - hope your endo appointment went/is going well

 

[oneby]

Thanks. Root canal went really well. No pain at all - not even with the three shots. And thankfully no cracks in the tooth so it looks like I can keep it. I see my general dentist in a week to have the tooth ground down and fitted for a crown. Not looking forward to that either but I'm not feeling fearful about it - not yet at least. I'm just glad I'm not having an extraction.

 

[Destiny2122]

Guys! I am 1 hour post op! I did it ! It was so easy! I literally went to sleep and woke up and it was over. I can’t believe how easy that was! Thank you all so much for the support. I’m still a bit loopy but I’ll give updates later!

 

[oneby]

Congratulations! I was sure you would be fine with it all if you could get over that huge lump of fear that was holding you back. You are going to feel so much better now, especially after your recover. Such a burden lifted from your shoulders.

 

[letsconnect]

@oneby that's brilliant news, glad to hear it went so well

@Destiny2122 congratulations! Wishing you a super speedy recovery!