Wizzie removal success stories Mega Thread

[jenniferf]

Here is my story. I have gone to an oral surgeon to have the bottom two teeth pulled about 10 years ago. I was told I would most likely loose the nerve on one side and then he wouldn’t do the other side for legal reasons. I had been in pain then, but this scared my husband and I so I have lived with off and on pain.

About a year ago, my right bottom molar erupted and it was moving sideways towards my inner cheek. It was poking my side cheek. Having avoided dentists because I was also told by my regular dentist at that time that they couldn’t clean my teeth due to my gums receding, I was starting to think I’m going to have to get these teeth pulled. I wanted them pulled but previous dentist and oral surgeon basically didn’t want to touch my teeth.

My husband and I thought maybe we should try going to dentist again. We now live in a whole different state. So we had friends refer us to dentist. I had the greatest experience. The dentist referred me to an oral surgeon that did a great job removing my 2 impacted bottom teeth. I am at my 6 day and I do have pain on right side still and I am eating soft foods and following all rules. Got little concerned today if pain is normal after 6 days or should I call back doctor? It was difficult surgery and took 20 minutes, but I was sedated and remember nothing. The recovery is harder part. This dentist also referred me to a periodontist instead of just saying we won’t clean your teeth. I wish I would have had second opinion back then. I have endured lots of pain over the years. Oh I wish they were both pulled 10 years ago.

I’m so happy these teeth are gone. I already feel difference in amount of pressure that was on my teeth. Just now want this pain to go away. I’ll give it until day 10 and see if I still have pain. No discolored gums, no bleeding, so looks like all is well. Just pain that sometimes gives headaches and sore throat. I take over counter Advil/ Tylenol and alternate. On antibiotic for prevention of infection. Special mouth rinse 2x a day. I think my nerves are going to be fine. I guess because I’m older that recovery takes longer.

That has been my dental experience.

 

[Jane Dorothy]

4 impacted wisdom teeth extracted yesterday morning

Good morning all! This site has been so much help in calming my nerves I just knew it was only right to share my story.

So I am 25 yrs old had braces twice as a teen pretty decent teeth overall but hadn't been to the dentis or doctor in over 10yrs.(we all know how the fear of the unknown makes it worse!) my wisdom teeth didn't start bothering me until probably the age of 20. I kept pushing it off until the paint was becoming more frequent and damage to my adjacent teeth was starting to occur. Being someone that always dreaded needles in the forearm only made matters worse. I thought to myself how am I ever going to get through this!!! Well last month with the help of friends and family I made an appointment to the local dentist for a checkup! Let me just start by saying if you haven't been to the dentist in years things have changes dramatically, everything is state of the art and they make it as comfortable as possible. A panoramic X-ray confirmed that my trouble and discomfort was from 4 impacted wisdom teeth( my worst nightmare. Other than that my cleaning went well and I only had one small cavity after over 10 yrs which was somewhat of a relief. 2 weeks later I was able to summon the courage to see the oral surgeon for a consultation. I was extremely nervous going in and didnt know what to expect! The only thing they do that day is get some medical information from you and ask about your symptoms. They took my blood pressure which was extremely high! The nurse said it could be nerves but was still something to get checked out because of my age I believe it was 186/120. The surgeon came in and introduced himself and didn't seem to happy that I waited this long. He confirmed all 4 were impacted, 2 deep in the bone on the bottom and 2 entering my sinus cavity at the top. I explained of chin numbness and lip quivering that I had been having and they both made a face of "that's not good". He then explained to me there was a 10% chance that the bottom roots during extraction could cause nerve damage that could be PERMANENT and that the tops could leave temporary holes in my sinus cavity. So I left the consultation scared to death but what options did I truly have. I kept putting off scheduling my surgery then decided I needed to find a local doctor and let him know of my high blood pressure. They too were alarmed at the readings for my age so he started me on a low does of hydrochorothiazide and ordered a lipid test(great something else to stress about!) a friend went with me for my blood test and let me tell you it was nothing! I literally felt a little bit of pressure! I immediately said all "all of this worrying for that!" they gave me a lolly and I was on my way. I got my results back that confirmed my cholesterol was high along with my tryglycerides being in the 400's!!! Was it ever going to stop?!! I started eating better and taking my meds and finally decided this had to be done feeling like all of this was somehow related to my teeth. Ears ringing, ear draining, jaw tightness and numbers, neck pain the works. I scheduled my appointment and my dad agreed to take me. Weeks prior it got to the point I was depressed and having panic attacks every other day! KEEP YOUR HEAD UP! I promise there is a light at the end of the tunnel. The Friday before my surgery I called the office to confirm my appointment and make them aware of how nervous I was and the meds I was currently on. She explained they could give me some Xanax for my nerves but didn't think it would help much. I said well at this point I'll try anything so go ahead and order them. So here I am 25 never taken ANY prescriptions before other than for colds when I was a kid. They have me on high bp ,meds, niacin and now I have to pop some Xanax!! Here I am WORRIED about taking the pills that are supposed to make me STOP worrying!!LOL that's me. I spent Sunday getting my house ready and heading to the store for soft foods and I stayed generally calm. It got worse as the night progressed knowing the dreaded blue pill was coming up. I ate a small sandwich and took the Xanax. About 30 min later I started to feel very relaxed and a little buzzed nothing scary and nothing overbearing, when my head hit the pillow I slept through the entire night! Woke up feeling a little groggy but best sleep I've had in a long time!! I was instructed to takes another 1mg Xanax 2 hours before surgery which I was excited for knowing it was going to help! I had a good convo with my father on the way to the office no anxiety at all. Paid my dues and they had me back in the chair within 10 min! Checked my booth pressure which was still a little high? Clipped a hr monitor on my finger and some clips to my ankles and wrist! I explained that I wasn't nearly as nervous and actually excited to get it over with. They knew I was nervous about the IV so she made small talk with me as the surgeon came in and spoke to me. She put the rubberband on my arm found the vein and it was in and over with no flinch! Just don't look!!! Its easy I promise I am terrified of needles and this kind of helped my fear. She asked me a few things as she said she was putting medicine in to calm me and I was out!!! This was the part I was scared about but it wasn't a room spinning knock out ears ringing feeling it was just like drifting off to sleep!! I barely remember her walking me to the recovery room and then I woke up In the chair. The nurse was shaking my shoulder and i woke right up! No pain at all! They let me lay for a min then sat me up to get adjusted and out the door we went!!! I tooke the pain pills last night and sat up the ENTIRE time! Try not to lay down the clots will form better sitting upright. Changed my gauze a few times drank some sprite and ate some jellow

Was yours a conscious iv or GA

 

[person54321]

These helped me so much I wanted to write mine too! And before I go further let me just tell you DO NOT go on Reddit. There are so many horror stories, people just want the shock value. Please don't do what I did and scare yourself out of sleeping! I am extremely anesthesia resistant and have been terrified of having the bottom teeth removed. I have 4 healthy erupted teeth but the top one got a cavity that was hard to get to and the dentist persuaded me to remove all instead of just the one. I picked a surgeon who was well-reviewed online and opted for IV sedation with local anesthesia.

The week of my procedure I stopped sleeping out of anxiety. I kept imagining all the worst case scenarios. That with sedation I'd be tortured and screaming but not remember it, that I'd be paralyzed and in pain but unable to communicate, that I'd wake up midway through from some horrible thing happening, all sorts of awful things. The night before I was a wreck, I barely slept and every time I did I woke up in a puddle of sweat. Morning of I was surprisingly calm though for some reason. I think I was just ready to be done. When they took me back they gave me a blanket, oxygen for my nose, and put some monitors on. I have a fear of needles and unfortunately I have terrible veins. Luckily my surgeon was an expert at inserting them, only had to poke once, and it was over immediately and just a teensy pinch. And frankly if you're scared of your teeth, it will massively override your fear of the needle!

I was also nervous what sedation would feel like, let me reassure you it's amazing! I was worried I would get the spins or feel out of control or drunk, or have some kind of trip. I felt none of that. After asking if I had any questions he injected two drugs into the IV and within a couple seconds I felt tingly, then everything felt heavy, then there was a rubber dam in my mouth (the timeline got fuzzy real fast) and the next thing I knew I was awake and mid-sentence of asking the nurse for my teeth. Everything here is SO TRUE. It's like that time was just snipped out of my timeline. I didn't really feel it "kicking in" and there was no "oh boy here we go." Just a little tingly, then I was done. I was really afraid of waking up mid-surgery and feeling pain, and I did wake up a little, but it was such a non-issue I feel silly for even worrying about it now. I just saw them working and heard some talking and was out again. I didn't feel a thing and I was so out of it I honestly wouldn't have been able to feel fear if there was a velociraptor about to eat me when I opened my eyes. It's hard to imagine until you've done it, but it really was nothing.

I was also worried I would say stupid things when I was in recovery, and I guess I was talking, but I have no idea what I said and frankly am way less concerned about it than I thought I would be. I remember part of asking the nurse for my teeth, she said they were in pieces so I couldn't have them and it sounded like I'd asked her multiple times already. My husband said when he came in I was chattering to the other nurse about how they'd broken my teeth into pieces (he said I sounded really amused and excited about this), then raised the wrong hand to be helped into the wheelchair and did some really comical maneuvering (I don't remember any of this). He said I didn't do anything really embarrassing I was just being silly. The next thing I knew I was being poured into my car (it was hard to walk) then it was 30 minutes later and we were pulling into the garage. I kept having gaps in my memory, but even though my memory wasn't working yet I was apparently pretty coherent. I apparently chatted with my husband about the route home (I disapproved of his choice). I was expecting a full day of groggy and being out of it, but I was only feeling weird for about 2 hours including time in recovery. When I came home I slept 2 hours and woke up feeling very refreshed. PRO TIP, when you sleep put down towels under your head. I'm glad I did because there was a pinkish puddle on the towel when I got up. When you're numb you WILL drool all over yourself. I was concerned about nerve damage and got nervous when I still had some numb spots on my lip and chin 6 hours later, but it wore off the same day.

I'm not going to lie I felt really nauseous when I got home, I think from swallowing a ton of blood, but the doctor prescribed me some ondansetron and after I took it and ate a little I felt fine. The pain never reached unbearable levels. Between doses of medication it was a little uncomfortable but totally manageable. I never touched the prescription stuff and have been fine on ibuprofen. I stopped taking it after 48 hours. When the doctor called to check on me I asked him if I seemed uncomfortable or fought him or anything, he said I was just sort of in and out of sleep and quiet. So that answers the question of if I was being tortured and just forgot it!

It's now day 5 and everything seems to be healing well. I'm still restricting my diet and activity to avoid dry socket, but I think I'm in the home stretch here. I was out running errands after 24 hours. I wouldn't say I feel normal, I'm still a little puffy and sore and I am restricting my food, but it's not a big deal anymore.

 

[ap1989]

Hello! I wanted to share my story here to inspire/encourage others.

I'm not really afraid of the dentist, honestly and was quite up for the process. When I sat down, I felt a small prick in my hand as the IV drip was inserted into my vein. It is nothing but a scratch. After that, they gave me a small dose of Midazolam to get me started. As I was talking to the staff, I felt a sensation similar to being tipsy. After a while, they asked me to lie down.

Before I went for this procedure, my main curiosity was whether I would be aware of what was happening. I can only assume they increased the dosage after the initial amount, because I have no recollection of anything. One minute I was lying down, the next I was told it was finished. When I got home, I remembered discussing with the dentist my after care, but I cannot recall what was said. Just as well I had someone with me to pay attention!

Overall, it was a great experience. I'm in no pain at the moment and all I have used is paracetamol and ibuprofen. I am living off ice cream and yogurt for now, which is a real treat! I went private and, with the sedation, it cost me upwards of £400. It was well worth the money, though.

 

[evanpelt17]

How much pain have you been experiencing since the numbness wore off?

 

[ap1989]

How much pain have you been experiencing since the numbness wore off?

For 3-5 hours after the extraction (two upper wisdom teeth) I had a strong aching feeling. I took the meds I mentioned above and the pain went away. I last took them 5 hours ago and don't feel any significant pain at all. I can't open my jaw the entire way yet, though.

 

[tomorei]

Dear All,

This morning I removed two wisdom teeth with IV sedation (one impacted and the other with regular removal). I wanted to pitch in my story because I had benefited so much from just reading the experiences of the community here !

My surgery was at 8:30AM this morning. It is currently 13:20 here and I must say that I am feeling great. I got to the dentist pretty early, and at that time I was shivering - I literally couldn't feel my hands because I was so so so nervous and I was sweating even though the room was freezing cold.

I was telling my dentist and anaesthologist that I was really nervous and I hadn't have an injection for 4 years so I've already forgotten what that felt like. My anaesthologist popped in the needle and it just was a tiny tiny pinch. It really didn't hurt as much as my mind had made it out to be. They quickly set me up and the administered the drug immediately. Next thing I know I fell asleep. I think I woke up in the middle of the surgery but then very quickly fell asleep again and I didn't care at all about what was happening to me. I think my surgery lasted for around 45 minutes, but I didn't really know because I had a really nice nap!

The night before this I was having trouble sleeping and couldn't calm myself down no matter which meditation video I was using. I don't think I would have stressed myself up this much if I knew it was going to be this easy!

I am a very controlling person and I found it difficult to be at ease when it comes to letting other people take control of my body. But I was assured that the dental team helping me with this was very sweet and lovely!

I just hope that my recovery process will go smoothly! Now I'm just resting up for the day.

For those who are going to get their wisdom teeth removed - you'll be fine!

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Tomorei,


Just wanted to thank you for this! What an awesome testimony!!

 

[Hellga]

I will tell my story, to make others who are anxious feel better.

I had mine removed when I was 18, as the X-rays showed there was no way for them to grow. My insurance would only cover two, but I was going to the local dental school at the time (cheaper with the crappy student insurance I had) and they said if I agree to get all four removed at once, they will not charge me for the other two. I agreed. All I remember from the surgery is them asking me a couple times whether I was sleepy and me telling them now, and then a couple times them asking me (or maybe the assistant?) to turn my head to the side. I was ready to get up and walk the minute they woke me up, but they made me wait for the wheelchair. My dad drove me home and I walked up to my second-floor apartment just fine. Eating soft foods was annoying, but I had no pain at all, some discomfort the first day and nothing at all later. The gums felt kind of weird on the extraction sites for a while, maybe a couple months, but did not bother me. Everything healed beautifully and 18 years later, no trouble whatsoever has come from that surgery. I am glad I had it done, because with my small mouth, there was no room for them, and had I refused, they would have damaged my other teeth trying to come out.

So if your dentist is telling you they have to come out, don't wait for the problems, just get it done... it's not that bad.

 

[MeaDrea]

So... I have 2 of mine coming out on Friday. What freaks me out... all of y'all talk about IV sedation and my dentist doesn't do it. So he's giving me oral sedation (pill the night before, day of, and half hour before)

Has anyone done this under non-iv sedation methods?

 

[FearfulInMA]

@MeaDrea I had mine out with just local anesthetic b/c I was way more terrified of the sedation. The 2 top ones that were not impacted came out very quickly without any pain. My experience is that, if the dentist thinks the extractions will he at all difficult, they strongly recommend IV sedation. I also imagine your dentist would refer you elsewhere if s/he thought sedation was necessary. If you’re really worried, could you get a second opinion?

 

[MeaDrea]

Unfortunately I can't get a second opinion. I already paid $3000 for the procedure. (Have to pay ahead of time due to the sedation making me unable to give legal consent)

Plus, they're the only dentist in 50 miles who even does sedation dentistry at all. But he said my wisdoms are not impacted, so it's an easy procedure.

I just read about everyone having IV sedation and I can't find any info on oral. How will I feel, will I be loopy or still cognizant, how long will it last, etc, is it as effective as IV...

 

[MeaDrea]

okay guys. I can finally post my update. I'm now 7 days post extractions. I still have some gum swelling as everything heals, but very little discomfort. in fact, I had very little discomfort at all. maybe one day where it was a little more tender and made me nervous, but 3 extra strength Tylenol (cause I ran out of ibuprofen) helped a lot, so I knew it wasn't dry socket.

Anyway... here's my story. I needed 2 wisdom teeth extracted and a root canal of the 2nd molar. the bottom wisdom was decayed, the top one was good, but too close to the 2nd molar that needed a root canal and they felt that was the cause of the issue. The closer they are, the more bacteria gets stuck. So they figured since the bottom one is going, may as well...

The wisdom teeth weren't impacted so it was going to be a simple extraction. I was really freaking out about oral sedation since most extractions of wisdom teeth are done by IV... but my dentist didn't offer IV.

I took a valium the night before. I got really calm, and almost emotionless. I had just lost my dog the morning before. (she had a stroke, and was slowly slipping away so I had to put her down.) After crying all day and all night and all the next morning, The Valium made me completely calm and took the depression away.

the next morning I took another sedative, forgot the name. And I barely remember the trip to the clinic. My mom said I was mumbling things and laughing at nothing. lol When I got there I have vague recollections of things that may or may not have happened. I do know that when they took me, I had to use the restroom before they could start since it was a long procedure and a nurse accompanied me into the bathroom, waited with me while I went, (back turned) then brought me to a chair. Apparently I was laughing hysterically for no reason.

I don't remember much else. I think I remember them giving me a cup of water with a pill crushed into it... and a second cup of water because it tasted bad, so I could wash the taste out... then I vaguely remember the dentist saying that was the wrong way to do it, you're suppose to wet the tongue and place the crushed pill under the tongue, and then I think they did it that way... but not sure if that's a memory or not lol

I do remember the laughing gas mask over my nose... I remember the sound of a drill and laughing about it... I remember them saying, "It's out." and asking to see the tooth and they said, "don't worry you can look later". same with the bottom tooth. (They actually sent them home with me because they said I kept begging to see my "babies". I don't remember that lol)

Bits and pieces, but not much else. I didn't feel anything, I barely remember anything and some of the things I thought I remembered (like my mom giving me wine at home, which we don't even have in the house because we both hate wine) never happened. lol I had no fear, no pain, and little memory.

I do remember after I was done, they syringed me a small bottle of cherry Gatorade to start waking me up and making me go to the bathroom. The next thing I remember is my mom holding water up to my mouth and making me drink, then putting a spoon in my mouth of applesauce and making me eat several bites every so often until I was more awake.

After that, it really hasn't been that bad. I've had panicked moments because I don't know how things were supposed to look or feel... but pain wise... very little. Nothing 2 Tylenol with 2 ibuprofen didn't help... I had swelling in my gums, but nothing visible on the outside (like some who get chipmunk cheeks)… I had a slight hangover the next day from all the meds getting out of my system... but it was really mild. Slight headache that went away by the afternoon.

It really wasn't as bad as I was working myself up to make it... and the oral sedation was really nice. lol

I don't think I'd be afraid at all if I had to do it again for the otherside. though it seems my right side is doing good and I don't need anything done there but regular cleanings. It was so easy, I even was thinking of having this one really crooked tooth removed next to my incisors because I read that sometimes teeth that are crowded may shift towards the empty spot... and that could straighten out the two front incisors which are overlapping at the moment.

So all in all... it's not exactly pleasant. It's not something I'd do for fun... but it wasn't nearly as bad as I worked myself into thinking it would be. As someone with an autoimmune disease, I thought recovery would be bad. It' really isn't.

 

[Ames235]

So I got mine taken out this morning, and while I was nervous my dentist made me feel so much better to where I was able to focus on breathing properly and not shake so badly.

When his assistant took my blood pressure, she even said it was good! She said most patients where high because of how nervous they where and mine was just right. I didn't have any sedation or gas, just straight up local.

3 of them came out easy, and even the one that was hard to get out and took a bit of work wasn't that bad either. I was worried about pressure and sound and while the sound was eh, pressure was easy and barely felt it.

So I made it out, proud of myself for voluntarily getting my wisdom teeth removed and not backing out.

 

[Missymajor]

I’m getting all 4 of my wisdom teeth out in the morning. I’m a little nervous but not as nervous as I thought I’d be tbh. I was supposed to get deep sedation but after the first oral surgeon who was supposed to do it backed out when he found out my BMI (I’m morbidly obese), I got super freaked out and decided to ask for just local instead. I’d much rather be sedated but I’m honestly so scared of complications now so just forget it. I think my biggest fear is the numbing needle. I remember getting it when I was a kid getting a filling I believe and it really hurt. Ugh. Besides that I’m just nervous about the gross sounds everyone keeps telling me about. I’ll update this thread when I get out of my appointment tomorrow!

 

[letsconnect]

Best of luck for your appointment tomorrow, Missymajor! Many thanks for the updates, let us know how you got on !

 

[Missymajor]

So my last post was from last night before getting all 4 of my wisdom teeth extracted. So I woke up this morning at 8:30am and surprisingly I slept pretty well. about 6 hours of sleep. My appointment was at 10 and I arrived at about 9:50. Because of COVID I had to wear a mask to the appointment and they took my temperature and I had to read a list of COVID symptoms and tell them if I had any. Then they found me a room and I had to sit and fill out a bit of paperwork because I did the bulk of it online the night before. The oral surgeon was in the room doing some paperwork of her own. I noticed on the paper it said I'd be getting deep sedation. I had called a few days before my appointment and asked if I could get just local instead and was told yes. The reason I wanted local instead was because the first oral surgeon who was supposed to do the procedure backed out because of my BMI. I guess because of the fact that morbidly obese people are more at risk for complications from anesthesia. This freaked me out and I decided to ask for just local instead. I asked the guy who'd given me the papers to fill out why it said I was getting deep sedation when I'd called and asked if I could get just local and was told yes. The oral surgeon who was in the room doing some paperwork kind of sighed because she realized there'd been a mix up somewhere and then they kinda looked at each other and the guy went to ask the people at the front desk about it He came back and said "Yeah the local is for numbing and then you'll get deep sedation." I was like "um... okay." I already knew that but I was told I could get just local with no sedation. Anyways I decided to just drop it and get the sedation because I didn't want to cause trouble. Definitely made me a bit more nervous though and felt my eyes welling a bit because something was already going wrong and we hadn't even started. I took a deep breath and fought back my tears and got myself together before anyone noticed I was upset. The oral surgeon told me I could go ahead and lay in the chair and I sat there for probably around 5 mins before she started prepping me. They put these patches on me that were gonna be used to measure my heartbeat. Two patches on either side of my chest and one on my belly. She then put a blood pressure cuff on my arm and a little clamp thing on my finger to keep track of something I don't remember lol. I sat there hooked up for another few minutes before her assistant came in. She asked me about my tolerance to the prescriptions they were going to give me. She asked if I'd ever had the antibiotic Amoxicillin and I told her I had but it'd stopped working for me so I was prescribed Amoxicillin Clavulanate instead. She said okay and went back to the front desk to tell them I'm assuming. She then came back and started trying to find a vein to hook up my IV on my right arm but had trouble. She put the needle in but had to take it out because I guess the vein wasn't good enough. She switched over to my left arm and found a good one immediately. So they put the IV in my arm and then an oxygen thing in my nose and then I felt my chair start to lift bringing me closer to the lamp above me. Then I watched them start to put the medication into the IV and I don't remember anything else after that accept that at one point while they were still pulling my teeth I think I woke up. I remember feeling a lot of pressure. I don't remember if there was pain but just being woken up and feeling the pressure was enough to freak me out. I think they gave me more medication or something because I fell back asleep. When I woke up I started crying and they were asking me if I was okay and were wiping my tears. When I got home I googled it and found out crying after waking up from IV sedation is fairly common and happens because of the stress of surgery and just feeling disoriented. Then I just remember getting put into a wheelchair and them wheeling me out to the car where my mom was waiting. I wasn't in any pain whatsoever and had no swelling but I hear all that starts around day 2 anyway. I was stumbling a bit getting in and out of the car and cried about 4 times when I got home over really dumb stuff lol which again might be due to the medication not having fully worn off yet. Still no pain though. Overall while it wasn't an awesome experience it was nowhere near as bad as I thought it'd be. My oral surgeon and the assistant were both very nice. When I got home and went to change the gauze for the first time I used the flashlight on my phone to look into my mouth and realized they didn't give me stitches. I googled it and found out a lot of the time you just don't get stitches with widsom teeth removal. I'm not complaining. When my mom came back from the store with my prescriptions I realized they'd prescribed me Amoxicillin after I'd specifically told me it doesn't work for me. The other things the prescribed for me were Tylenol 3, Ibuprofen 800, and a medicated mouth wash. I'm hoping that's fine and I don't need anything stronger. On a good note, one thing I noticed immediately is that my bite is already different. My bite felt very off the last few months that I had my wisdom teeth. It was a weird feeling. Now it seems to have gone back to normal.

So the pros of getting 4 non-impacted but infected and decayed wisdom teeth out at 31 years old were:
The procedure was painless

The cons were:
They made me get IV sedation even though I'd been told I could get just local
They gave me an antibiotic I'm resistant to after I told them I'm resistant to it
I woke up in the middle of the sedation which was scary to wake up to the feeling of someone digging a tooth out of my mouth

Overall not the most pleasant experience but also nowhere near as bad as I thought it'd be. I'm so glad it's over and I hope recovery isn't too bad. I've dealt with excruciatingly painful wisdom tooth infections off and on for two years now though so I feel like I can handle this

 

[krlovesherkids777]

Missymajor.

How are you doing? I am thinking of you and hope this went better than you imagined . please let us know how you are.

 

[Steve82]

Hello everyone, I'm Steve and this is my first post here after lurking around for the last week or so. Everyone's success story really helped me prepare for my wisdom tooth removal so I wanted to share my story and pay it forward to anyone else who may be nervous.
My backstory: I'm 37 years old and had all wisdom teeth grown out. They've been grown out for about the last 20 years or so. My bottom wisdom teeth grew out straight like normal molars but my top teeth grew out kinda sideways a bit. The bottoms never caused any problems, my toothbrush can easily reach them so they're in good health, but for as long as I can remember, probably around 15 years or so, my top teeth have always caused me problems. It started out as food getting caught in the area, which turned into cavities. Fast forward a few more years, those cavities were now huge and open holes in the teeth, which meant more food getting caught inside which meant the cavities got worse and worse.
About 2 years ago or so the top wisdom teeth are now heavily decayed. Big pieces had broken off and the teeth were literally rotting away in my mouth. I visit the dentist regularly and am not usually afraid of a cleaning or even getting a filling done but something about having teeth pulled terrified me to death. My dentist would always recommend getting them pulled after each visit and my answer was always the same.."maybe next time", knowing darn well I wouldn't do it. So in January another big piece broke off my top left tooth and now I couldn't have anything colder than room temp and had to be very careful with everything I chewed cause if something poked up into that tooth it was like a little lightening strike of pain followed by hours of throbbing. I knew it was time to face the music and I finally scheduled a dentist appointment and got a referral to an oral surgeon.
I made my appointment 2 weeks ago and was living in fear each and every day till my appointment arrived. Again, I'm 37 years. When I was a kid I thought my fear of the dentist would fade away when I was a grown up lol. I don't have any history of anxiety or panic attacks but for those 2 weeks, I literally woke up nervous with my stomach gurgling. The closer my appointment got, the worse the panic got. I can't tell you how many times I wanted to cancel my appointment and just forget it but I knew it had to be done if I ever wanted to eat normally again. I had moments where my breathing was labored, my chest felt heavy and I was lightheaded. They say to take deep breathes in moments like that but for me it was easier said than done. I can't remember such a difficult time in my life. I was also terrified about being sedated, I've never done it before and had no idea what to expect or how it would make me feel. Something about being "knocked out" before I could count backwards from 10 really freaked me out. Even the thought of not being about to remember anything from conscious sedation freaked me out.
About 1 week ago I was Googling "how to overcome dentist anxiety" and came across this forum. WHAT A LIFE SAVER YOU ALL HAVE BEEN!!! Reading everyone's stories and how many have had the same fears and feelings I was having really put me at ease. Everyday when I felt a panic attack coming on, I took out my phone and would reread everyone's stories. Seriously, I can't thank everyone enough, even those people who posted their stories from years ago and probably never come back to this site, THANK YOU.
So yesterday was my appointment and I'm happy to say that everything went perfect! Here's how it played out... I arrived at the office and got checked in and before I could sit down they said they were already ready for me. I stood at an x-ray machine which took a panoramic x-ray of my all my teeth (the office I went to did consults and the removals in the same day) then I sat in my dental chair. The tech came in first and explained how everything was going to work. He took my blood pressure which was a bit high for how scared I was. I explained to him how nervous I was and he very politely laughed and said "not to worry, literally everyone who comes in here is nervous, it's normal". After that, the surgeon/dentist came in and introduced himself, he was also very polite and friendly. He had a chance to view my xrays and went over my options. He explained my the top wisdom teeth had to come out, no "ifs, ands or buts" however my bottom wisdom teeth were optional. They had no disease, decay or even a cavity. Since I'm a bit older (in wisdom tooth years anyways lol) he said if I was 25 years old or younger he would suggest getting all 4 out, but since I waited so long the bottom teeth were a bit more rooted in and would be harder to extract. I asked him for his advice on what he thought would be the best option and he suggested just the top 2 would be perfectly fine and he saw no reason the bottom needed to come out. So that's what we agreed upon.
After the quick consult it was time to go to work. They put a nasal cannula in my nose for a little extra oxygen and started my IV which was painless. Next came the part I was worried about...the sedation. I opted for the conscious sedation. He explained I wouldn't be knocked out and that I would be awake and be able to talk to them during the whole thing, I'd just feel relaxed and wouldn't remember anything about the procedure. He then pushed the meds into my IV and before I could finish my sentence of "I'm pretty nervous, I don't know if that's gonna do the trick, you might need moooooorrreeee" it hit me lol. If you're nervous about sedation, don't let that worry you. When it takes affect, all my nervousness just melted away and I felt completely calm as if I was just sitting at home watching tv. They laid me back in the chair and asked if I wanted a cloth over my eyes so the lights wouldn't blind me and I said sure. Next thing I knew I was being raised up in my chair so I asked if there was a problem and the surgeon was like "no problem, just keep the gauze in your mouth and you'll be outta here in just a minute". "Gauze?" I asked. It wasn't until then that I actually realized I had gauze in my mouth lol. I then asked "wait, are we done???". The surgeon and the tech both laughed and said "see, we told you wouldn't remember a thing". And just like that, it was all over!
Today is the day after I had them removed and I'm sitting here pain free! I took some extra strength Advil yesterday before bed but that was it. The surgeon said the top wisdom teeth are much easier and quicker to heal than the bottom and I'd probably be just fine today and he was right. Other than a little stiffness in the jaw my only other complaint is not being able to eat anything I want lol.
So if anyone has a upcoming appointment and is as terrified as I was, please relax. I know it's easier said than done but really, you can do it! It's normal to be nervous but don't work yourself up like I did. I had restless and sleepless nights worrying over this so I don't want you to do the same! Enjoy your days leading up to your appointment and more importantly, get some sleep during the nights lol. There was truly nothing to it and was the simplest encounter I've ever had at the dentist. Please, please, please don't worry about it! Good luck and I can't wait to hear your success story!

 

[LoafsMom]

Hey all! I have been reading this forum a lot in anticipation of my own wisdom teeth removal surgery. I was absolutely terrified, and put it off for years until my wisdom teeth were rotting away because I was so scared. I am 34 and everyone told me the recovery is SO much worse when you are in your 30s. This year I have worked really had to deal with my dental issues and improve my dental health and I am finally on the road to do it! So here is my story. . .

I found a new dentist in my city who is highly rated. I went to her having not seen a dentist in many years and she was wonderful friendly and non judgemental. I had to have three cavities filled, and then we booked my wisdom teeth surgery for May 24 but thanks to COVID it got pushed back to June 24. I woke up the day of surgery and threw up because I was SO nervous. I went to my appointment and they started by sedation which was some kind of oral sedation (not sure of the name). I took the pills and watched some netflix while they kicked in. I never really felt like they did kick in, but they must have because I felt perfectly calm and the surgery was a breeze! I only had the oral sedation, nothing else.

Three of my wisdom teeth were like half in and one was still in my gums. The three came out really quickly and I felt NO pain and honestly very little of the pressure that everyone talks about. The fourth one took a bit more time but I didn't care. I just laid there perfectly calm. The whole thing took about an hour and a half but it felt like 10 minutes to me. I would like to emphasize I felt NO pain at all during surgery. None. I felt a bit of discomfort when the dentist put some pressure on my lip accidentally, but I just put my hand up and he readjusted. They put the gauze in my mouth and when I got up I was a bit wobbly but I was never out of it. My husband picked me up and honestly I felt perfectly fine. The dentist told me to take ibuprofen when I got home. I did for the first night but I really haven't even felt like I needed it. I have been taking it still just to help with swelling.

I really only have swelling on one side of my face (where the tooth had not erupted). The other side had VERY minor swelling. I felt fine to start drinking ensure and eating yogurt as soon as my mouth was no longer numb. It is now Friday (surgery was on Wednesday) and the swelling on the one side of my face has gone down quite a bit. The swelling never hurt, it was just a bit tender and a bit uncomfortable.

Honestly, there was no need for me to be as nervous as I was. The whole thing has been SO easy compared to what I thought I was in for. I am so proud of myself for finally getting it done. If I can do it, you can do it too