Wizzie removal success stories Mega Thread

[Sironastar]

Thanks so much for sharing this as I will be opting for IV sedation too.

 

[tabatha7]

and me three! and still scared out of my mind.

 

[tabatha7]

Ink, I wish you were still around. I would love to ask you more about your procedure. It encourages me that you didn't feel any pain when they did the bone removal.

 

[anxiousgirl83]

This is exactly what I needed to find on the internet
Before finding this site all I found were horror stories and all that, feeling much better now
Wish me luck tomorrow morn!!!
I ll keep on reading the good stories

 

[carole]

Good luck

 

[MaggieJohnson]

Finally got the little bugger taken out

After 16 years of avoiding it I finally got my upper wisdom tooth removed this morning. I was absolutely terrified to the point of throwing up before my appt but it really wasn't bad at all. My tooth was fully erupted and straight but had a massive cavity on the back so it needed to go. After being hooked up to the nitrous (which I had never tried before and fully recommend) I was nice and relaxed and didn't really care what happened to me after that.I received a few freezing needles and then it was literally seconds from the time he touched my tooth to it being out. I am now happily back at home and the freezing is starting to go. So far I am not in any pain.

 

[carole]

Hi Maggie I nearly didn't see this, I would like to say to the forum.

I am so pleased that you have had this extraction done after suffering for so many years. I am also pleased that it was a positive experience for you too.

Congratulations

Thank you for telling us of your experience it will help others that are afraid and may have their minds put to rest a bit by reading about what happened to you, and how easy it turned out to be.

Happy healing

 

[m4rci4]

Hiccupod-Thank you very much for posting about your experience. How old were you when you had the surgery? I'm 43, and have read horrible things about wisdom teeth extraction later in life...All 4 of mine are impacted, and the bottom two have damaged the 2 molars in front of them, so I am scheduled to have 6 teeth removed... So...I have a few questions still...

Were yours all impacted? What kind of medicine did they give you for recovery? How bad was your swelling and how long did it last? When were you able to function normally again (like going out in public, driving, etc.)? Why did you have to sleep sitting up?

Any info you have is greatly appreciated! Thanks!!!

 

[bresle]

I did it!! 4 wizzies under general

Well I did it! I was very nervous in the weeks leading up to my wisdom teeth extraction. I had anxiety over many aspects of it, especially the idea of my whole mouth being numb for an extended period of time. Finally, the day before surgery I talked to the surgical coordinator about my numbness fears and she had the dr use a shorting acting agent. This helped me a lot. I was terrified when the moment came down to sit in the chair and I bawled like a baby. They put the monitors on me, started my IV and I think they put meds in it then told me I'd be feeling relaxed soon and the once nurse said "when you see my ceiling move I'll see you when you wake up".Everyone was very supportive and nice and before I knew it I was out and the next thing I know I was in the car with my husband. Pain has been tolerable and really not too bad. No swelling so far but it's been only about 24 hours. Thank you all for your support this website helped me leading up to my surgery. Overall I am so immensely happy that I faced my fear and got it over with. I feel like a million dollars if anyone has any questions please feel free to ask

 

[SavedbyGrace]

I canceled 4 appointments to have my wisdom teeth removed because of pure and utter fear. When the last time I went to the dentist he told me if I did not follow thru this time my molar was also going to decay and worse. So I knew I had no choice and immediately got sick to my stomach. He had to schedule it 2 weeks out. The 1st week I tried dealing with it on my own, like a real man, big tough guy right? WRONG. After the 2nd week I had to see a doctor and he prescribed me anti anxiety meds. I also found this site and the success stories put me at ease. I am a man of my word and I swore to add my story if I made it through. The doc told me I couldnt take my meds the day of so I took them at 1159pm the night before and figured I would tough it out or go screaming right out of the office if I made it there. I spoke to the receptionist the night before and said I do not want to see anything, feel anything, or hear anything when I got in the room. I took my mp3 player and listened to music. As soon as I got in the room they sat me down gave me the iv and I woke up. I didnt feel anything. I was still listening to music and it was the best experience I have ever had. Believe me if I had to I would go back right now and do it again. Im recovering so well it doesn't even feel like anything happened. It was better than a cleaning and I like those. Thank you all for posting yout testimonials, they truly helped me and I will never be scared to go to the dentist again.

 

[mijitninja]

Wisdom Success! major phobia...

This friday on the 10th i chose the worst weekend to get my 4 wisdoms removed no thanks giving supper fo rme I have a petrifying fear of dentists and needles and dentists. After talking to my dentists we decided IV sedation was the best way to go! The day of when i went to the dentist my boyfriend brought me there and when i got into the chiar i was a grown A$$ women crying in a chair because i was about to get them removed and get a needle. I barely felt a thing for IV and when he put the sedation in the next thing i can remember is waking up in my bed at my house with a ton of post sedation selfies on my phone. 3 days later i am feeling great eating smoked salmon with no pain. Getting them removed was alot easier simple and painless then alot of people were telling me. Now to recover and get back to rugby!

 

[scottie]

Wisdom tooth extraction!

Hi guys, I stumbled on this site in my search for reassurance. I have had my top right wisdom tooth giving me some trouble for about a year, and have been "making do" with it, convincing myself that I can deal with it, instead of the alternative, which "to do" something about it.

I spoke and asked everyone that would listen about wisdom teeth extractions, and looked on every site possible, finding all the "horror stories", and making myself even more frightened. Sure there are rare situations that can happen but there are usually many other factors related to why things can go wrong etc.

So after such a long time, I had to make a decision, and the first thing I did, was to speak to a few different dentist to find one that made me feel comfortable and took the time to explain what and how he would treat the problem/extraction.

By this stage I had worked my self up into such a state that in my mind it had become a really big deal, as I think most people who get anxious about these things do.

So here's the think. This morning I had my wisdom tooth extracted!

I went in and saw my dentist and he gave me a local. (No IV, Did not get sedation), I took a small dose of Valium before it to calm me down. Then he reached in, and wiggled my tooth with his metalic spatula thing, while I kept my eyes closed. He then turned around, and I thought he was reaching for another tool, so I asked "What's happening?" And he said "it's done!" That was it! The extraction took about 45 seconds.

It hurt less than getting a filling. I cannot believe I got so worked up! So guys, I know it sounds scary but it's seriously ok. You don't need to be a "make do", you can be a "to do".

Mine was done about 6 ours ago, and the local has well and truelly wore off, but it's managable pain. It's not horrible pain, I just took some over the counter painkillers now.

I hope this lessens someones anxiety just a little.

Thanks

 

[lola42]

Wisdom Teeth After 40

I am 42 years old and had all 4 of my wisdom teeth removed yesterday without any problems. I put off doing the procedure out of fear for many, many years! My biggest concern was that the procedure would be more difficult and/or have complications due to my age. The reason I had to have them removed was that 1)I had a infection in the gum near one a few months ago and 2) two had a cavity.

I am writing to let people know the procedure was not that bad! I had the option of listening to my iPod or the Pandora station in the room - I opted for Pandora. I tried using nitrous oxide in the beginning, but did not like the feel of the tube on my nose. So instead the procedure was done with Novocain only. I felt small pinches when they administered the Novocain, but after that did not feel ANY pain. A dental dam was not used and I was grateful, as I don't like the "claustrophobic" feeling of too many things on my face/mouth. There was some pressure at times, but the Dr. always let me know before it would happen. My top two teeth were fully erupted, and therefore were removed very quickly. The bottom two were not impacted, but were not fully erupted either. The bottom two teeth were a bit more involved and required a tool that sounded a bit like a drill to ease them out - not painful at all, just could hear the sound of the tool. All in all, the teeth were removed and sutured up in about 45 minutes!! Yesterday I was numb, slowly got back feeling during the day. I took it easy, iced my face and used some gauze in my mouth. Today, the pain is minimal, along with the help of Ibuprofen (600 mg) every 6 hours. My face is still a bit puffy, but I expect that to go down in a day or so. I return to the Dr. in a week to have the sutures removed.

In preparation for the procedure I read A LOT of stories online, most of which heightened my fears. I am writing today to let you know the procedure is not bad at all and you will be relieved when it is done and not have to worry about any future risks!! Hoping to share a positive story with those looking for advice, especially those in their 40s.

 

[bratsche]

I've gotten a lot of useful info off this forum, so I figured I'd just contribute a success story to help reassure other people that I guess often nothing goes awry.

I had all my wisdom teeth taken out 2 weeks ago under IV sedation on a sunny Friday morning. The lower two were horizontal and partially impacted, the top two fully erupted but the right one was extensively decayed and had cracked and broken down in at least 3 places, giving me an on and off toothache, and the left one was slightly broken as well (which was why my dentist had told me I really just had to have them out, and if I was doing it I might as well do the lowers too). I'm 35 years old, and had put off having them out earlier because the top two had been healthy previously, and the lower two had been completely impacted rather than partially impacted. But it seems that once you have partial eruption there is access to the mouth and it's likely to lead to trouble, and I decided everything should go.

I remember absolutely nothing from the procedure. A very mild prick from the IV, and one moment the dentist was counting to 20, and the next moment I was waking up with lots of gauze in my mouth. I was slightly groggy but not loopy or anything. Since then it's been a textbook recovery, I was on ibuprofen for maybe the first week. I only tried taking the oxycodone once, and it just made me nauseous so I didn't use it again. I don't think I really needed it anyway. The holes on the top seem already pretty well filled in, and I never did have any holes on the bottom because everything was stitched closed and seems to have healed up pretty much the way they were put back together. I had no hint of a dry socket, though I had my fair share of paranoia and insane googling. About the 6th day or so I went back on solid food, though I suspect I probably could have done that earlier but I just didn't want to risk disturbing the blood clots too early.

So, it's really nice not to have that on and off toothache anymore (which also came with heat and cold sensitivity), and I'm just really glad it's over and everything went well. Best wishes to everyone getting their wizzies removed!

 

[CheapLabor]

4 impacted wisdom teeth removed under GA - not so bad!

Hi all,


One of the big curses and blessings about the internet is the amount of information that's available. Leading up to my extraction yesterday I did the same thing a lot of us do: read stories on the internet, which didn't alleviate any anxiety I had. In fact, it may have made it worse! I wanted to share my story with you. I'll tell you up front: it’s a positive story and the whole debacle turned out to be an incredibly easy experience. Hopefully this will make you feel better about an extraction you may be scheduled for.


A brief history: I hadn't been to the dentist for four years. I was self-employed at that time and, right or wrong, I couldn't justify the expense of an individual dental plan. The costs for those are nuts! My dental hygiene is only fair. There is a definite room for improvement. I brush and rinse regularly but flossing is extremely sporadic. I could definitely do myself several favors by reducing my sugar intake too, which I have begun doing more recently.


Anyway, after some occupational changes, I'm now working for an employer who provides a nice dental package and I contribute money into a Health Savings plan. I was waiting a few more paychecks before starting to schedule necessary appointments since I didn't want to pay out-of-pocket for any co-pays or deductibles, but then...


Last week I developed a toothache in the upper-right corner of my mouth. It was far and away the worst tooth pain I'd ever experienced. I couldn't concentrate, couldn't eat, and couldn't sleep. It was the kind of toothache that made you WANT to go the dentist, which says a lot. I called off work the next day and went to a dentist who gave me a panoramic x-ray. Here's what he found:


The crowns of my top two wisdom teeth had decayed to the point of falling off and the gum had grown back over. The dentist said this was rare and potentially dangerous as the decay and bad bacteria were now "sealed" into the gum. He prescribed an aggressive regimen of Amoxicillin to begin combating the pain-causing infection, and the toothache disappeared in less than a day.


My lower-right wisdom tooth proved not to be so wise - it was sitting horizontally underneath my gum line. My lower-left wisdom tooth had protruded just fine, amazingly enough, but my dentist said it had a "BAC." BAC, by the way, stands for Big @$$ Cavity. Ultimately it was decided that this tooth would come out too. And that's how I got my recommendation to the oral surgeon!


This Monday I had a consultation with the oral surgeon. They explained the pros and cons of the oral surgery. Like any surgery, there are normal and unusual risks for complications. Like any doctor, these risks are explained to you in full. Hearing these risks will probably elevate your blood pressure. However, the surgeon said something at the end that was strangely soothing, "All surgery has risks. I'm required to educate you on those. Anything is possible, but that doesn't mean it’s likely. A vast majority of my patients do NOT experience ANY of these potential complications and, if they do, I address them quickly and appropriately. I just need you to call me if you think something is wrong. Even if it’s not, it’s better safe than sorry. You'll be just fine."


We also discussed numbing methods for surgery. The options were local anesthetic (numbing the area but staying awake for the procedure) and general anesthetic (where they operate while I take a doctor-induced nap). General anesthesia cost about $500 more but the doctor recommended it. He jokingly said, "I'm recommending this for two reasons: one, you don't have to be traumatized about sounds, smells, or by anything else you might see me have to do. Two: I don't have to deal with you if you freak out." This may have come off as crass, but this doctor and I shared a similar personality - we're sarcastic folks. Despite the extra cost, I opted for the general anesthesia because it sounded a lot easier for everyone involved.


My dental insurance through Guardian covered 80% of the entire procedure up to a maximum of $1,000. The out-of-pocket cost still ended up being $1,100. My invoice stated that all my wisdom teeth were impacted with three being "soft tissue extractions" and one reading "Difficult - Bony." That last extraction cost twice as much as the other extractions did individually. For the record: I live in extreme southwestern Michigan / Northern Indiana and I did not price shop for other surgeons so I don't know how this compares locally or nation-wide. Costs be damned, I'm not sure this is something you'd want to go to the "lowest bidder" for.


The surgery was scheduled for Thursday morning at 10:20 AM. I wanted to wait a week but that didn't work out well with my families or job's overall planning. Scheduling the surgery sooner turned out to be a positive thing to do. It gave me less time to develop anxiety, less time to freak myself out with internet stories, and less time to second-guess the decision.


The doctor said I couldn't eat or drink anything 6 hours prior to the procedure because this eliminated a vomiting risk under the general anesthetic. Scheduling in the morning proved wise as I was only awake for a couple of hours with having to feel hungry and thirsty.


When I arrived to the doctor's office we handled the payment, they had me empty my bladder, and they sat me down in a surgical room that closely resembled any other dentist office I'd been in. The dentist made casual conversation with me while he prepped for the general aesthetic. He applied some topical numbing gel to my arm where the needle would go, told me to clench a fist, and apparently he inserted the needle. Didn't feel a thing!

The dentist and I both turned out to casual drummers so we were discussing that while he prepped. He had just told me about this drum set he had recently purchased and I remember responding in an impressed fashion, and then I felt my eyes get unexpectedly heavy.


"Hey, doc. Did you juice me up already?"


"Little bit," he said.


And then I woke up in the recovery room. It was almost a shock. Was I done already? I could have sworn he didn't even put the needle in my arm yet! The recovery specialist told me to stay lying down for a few minutes as some folks develop nausea from the anesthetic. Luckily, I didn't experience anything like that. The bottom half of my face was still completely numb. I felt like I my bottom lip was sticking out in a pouting fashion but it wasn't. My tongue was numb, too, which was an odd sensation.

They gave me a damp cloth and some chap stick to clean up some dried blood on my bottom lip. The ice pack they provided didn't feel necessary with the intense numbness, but I used it anyway. The recovery specialist went through the after-care instructions with me and my girlfriend, which will be detailed in the next couple of paragraphs. After the instructions they sent us on our merry way. I almost biffed it upon standing up. Apparently I was a little groggier than my brain chose to believe. Anesthesia can be tricky that way.


After-care instructions were this:

• Change gauze in mouth about 30 minutes, as needed, until bleeding has subsided.
• In order to stop the bleeding the gauze must be bitten down on to apply pressure, which will allow the blood to clot.
• Primarily a liquid diet for the first day. Soft foods for the next day and as long as needed. If feeling comfortable, can return to "normal" foods by day three. Hard foods such as candy, brittle, and chips should be avoided for at least the next week.
• No brushing, rinsing, or spitting on the first day. Brushing and rinsing can be resumed on the second day but the extraction sites should be avoided while brushing.
• Starting on day three the extraction sites must be regularly rinsed using lukewarm salt water and a plastic syringe with a curved "nose." This is to flush out food particles from the sites. This is only required for the bottom extraction sites but the doctor recommended doing the top extraction sites too.
• No straws or smoking for at least three days. Up to a week if possible.
• Self-dissolving stitches were used so no follow-up would be needed for removal. Hooray!

Medications prescribed:

• The doctor encouraged me to finish my Amoxicillin regimen.
• Hydrocodone for pain, as needed, every 4 - 6 hours.
• Methylprednisolone to be taken as directed for 6 days. This was to curb / prevent swelling.
• An antibiotic mouthwash to be used twice daily (after breakfast and before bed).

We stopped on the way home to fill the prescriptions and grab some lunch. I ended up getting a Frosty from Wendy's, which soothed my throat. I was a little bit of a drooling idiot trying to each ice cream with a spoon while my tongue and bottom lip were numb, but what else is new? I popped a painkiller, which was recommended by the doctor to "stay ahead of any potential pain. The painkillers did NOT make me sleepy, which was appreciated.


The numbness in my tongue lasted about 4 more hours and my bottom lip finally regained sensation after 6 hours. The gauze had to be changed regularly for about 6 hours before the bleeding stopped. Devoured some tomato soup, a Greek yogurt, and some applesauce. I popped another painkiller in the afternoon just to be safe and then one more before going to bed about 10PM last night.


Woke up this morning and felt just dandy. No pain or swelling to speak of so I passed on the painkillers. Used the oral rinse for the first time (with only hints of blood upon spitting out), brushed as normal (avoiding the extraction sites), took my Amoxicillin and also my swelling prevention pill, and then hopped on the computer to write this journal.


I do NOT have constant pain following the extractions. If I contort my mouth a certain way there is definitely "tenderness" at the extraction sites, which is to be expected. It is not severe. I'm still sticking with soft foods for today, as recommended, because I don't want to put the cart before the horse and end up inhibiting progress as a result. Told my girlfriend this morning that I could have easily gone back to work today if I hadn't taken the day off already.


The whole procedure took about 60 minutes from start to finish. I credit the doctors for doing such a great job and for making the process as easy and comforting as possible. The operation may have been made easier too by the fact my mouth was actually big enough to accommodate my wisdom teeth had they been healthy and come in properly. If only, right?

Here are my recommendations to hopefully make your procedure go as smoothly as possible for you:

• Don't delay the procedure. Get it done and over with! Don't give yourself more time to become anxious.
• Get all four extracted at once if possible. It saves cost and means you won't have to go back later.
• General aesthetic is amazing and worth every penny of the additional cost.
• Follow the doctor's instructions to the "T." Don't cheat.
• Keep a positive mindset. I'm a big believer in "mind over matter." You can do this!
• Know that any discomfort you feel afterward is NOTHING compared to the pain you would receive if the condition went unattended. You may have experienced this already.

As you can probably tell, I'm an overly talkative person. I'll be happy to answer any questions and, if requested, provide additional updates over the next few days.


Good luck with your procedures, everyone!


- Joe

 

[eenieves]

Thought I'd add my success story here as well. It's a bit too long to post verbatim here, so I'll just link to it:

https://www.dentalfearcentral.org/f...undergo-general-anesthesia.19343/#post-155337

I'm 26 and had all four removed under local anesthesia and it was one of the easiest things I've done in my life, despite two of the teeth being impacted!

The surgery took about 40 minutes total, I had no pain during, and little pain afterwards!

 

[ds680]

My Wisdom Tooth Extraction Story with I/V Sedation: E-A-S-Y

Like many others before a big dental procedure, I've been lurking these forums for quite a few months. After nearly a decade of not visiting the dentist (massive-dental phobic), I initially was told back in December that I would need to get all four wisdom teeth out. I also have pretty severe health anxiety, so I've been filled with panic, dread, and an undying urge to Google everything I possible could. After getting two separate consults from oral surgeons, I finally settled on getting them out today.

In both cases, they emphasized that my age (almost 35) and my teeth positions put me at an higher risk for complications (nerve damage, sinus damage etc). I had two erupted and decayed tops and two partially bony impacted bottoms, one of which was severely cracked and decayed. That decayed tooth is actually what finally drove me to the dentist in the first place, as I was constantly getting food caught back there and experiencing intermittent pain and uncomfortableness. In terms of the surgery itself, I ultimately chose IV sedation, as the first oral surgeon said point blank, "You do not want to be awake for this procedure." The second oral surgeon told me that my teeth were a "time bomb." Obviously, hearing nothing but scary risks was bad enough for a health-anxious person; however, considering I've never had any level of anesthesia in my life (besides local), my freak-out meter was at about a 2000 (on a 10 point scale).

Surgery day was finally today. I slept maybe two hours last night, as my mind just raced with every conceivable worst-case scenario. To make matters worse, I was actually only initially getting the bottom two teeth out, since that's all my insurance would cover and the out-of-pocket was pretty significant. However, the oral surgeon was adamant that he was vehemently against only getting the bottom two out and that I'd have to sign a waiver if that's what I elected to do. After taking about 10 minutes to decide, I opted to get all four out and eat the cost. So now, I was nervous and mentally drained, because I had to make an unexpected decision in a short amount of time. Suffice to say, I was a wee bit of a wreck.

Finally, they started hooking everything up. First, they took all my vitals, and then they started to strap me into the chair (assuring this was not for any purpose but to prevent me from sliding). They put the I/V into my arm, which definitely pinched, but was not unbearable. The OS then said he was going to give me some nitrous to calm me down. As they're doing all of this, I kept thinking to myself, "I am feeling nothing -- WTH is going on??"

Then I woke up in the recovery room. Seriously, every story you read on here about IV sedation is 100% true. It literally felt as if it was five seconds later, and I was lying there with a mouthful of gauze. But I was told the whole procedure took about an hour. I remember absolutely zero about the procedure. In fact, my Mom and the OS apparently had a full conversation in front of me that I have no recollection of, though I do remember almost everything from when the nurse came in shortly afterwards. I was definitely loopy, but not completely out of control. They gave me my scrips for the pharmacist, wheeled me out to the car, and away we went.

In terms of the first 10 hours or so since the procedure...

• The pain has been completely manageable with 600 mg Ibuprofen and Tylenol. I have not yet felt the need to take the Vicodin (which is an absolute last resort for me). There was some initial throbbing after the local wore off which was painful, but I've experienced worse.
• The numbness probably wore off within about four hours. So hopefully, this means no nerve damage.
• I did have to change my gauze more than I expected, as it seemed like I was bleeding for quite awhile. I later figured out that I was not placing the gauze far enough back in my mouth. I finally bit down in the right place for about 45 minutes, which admittedly was pretty uncomfortable (but not intolerable). Afterwards, the bleeding has seemed to stop.
• Diet-wise, I've just been eating ice cream and drinking cold liquids. Not a complaint.
• Most importantly, I feel great overall and I truly see how much worse the anticipation than the reality is. I know I still have a few days where things could become "un-good," but I'm just amazed that the whole thing is over. The dread was truly a million times worse than anything I've experienced so far.
• To steal what I've seen said on here before, IV sedation truly is a "miracle." I was so, so, SO scared beforehand, and so so, SO relieved when it truly was over just like that.
• In terms of my dentists, I wrote it more as background and certainly not to make anyone afraid. Find an Oral Surgeon that you trust, and don't feel obligated to go with the first one you see. I think you do have to trust your surgeon. I personally didn't like how my situation was handled, but I also know it was CYA on his end. And at the end of the day, he did his job and I knew he had a great reputation for his surgical skills.

I know that was a long one, but I wanted to "pay it forward" to encourage others who need to get this procedure done. You can ask anyone around me; I was pretty much an anxious basketcase for the better part of five months. Now that's it over, I promise you can do it. I'm happy to answer any questions anyone has!

 

[Rachel25]

Wisdom Teeth Success Story: First Appt to Last.

Hi everyone. I decided to post my experience on here to hopefully help anyone else who is feeling as anxious as I was before my procedure! It really was not bad at all. I know before my surgery reading success stories helped me feel better, so hopefully you will too

First things first, I'm a 25 year old female who had all 4 wisdom teeth removed at once. One was fully erupted, 2 were partial bony impactions(partially erupted), and the last was a full bony impaction. I decided to undergo IV sedation because I have anxiety and also because I really just did not want to be awake during the procedure!

For the past few months I've been on kind of a life-bettering journey(I've lost 30lbs so far). One thing on my list was to finally take care of my wisdom teeth/teeth in general. Only one of my wisdom teeth had come through fully and 2 others were starting to make an appearance. I made the brave decision to just go for it and get them all out so I can get my dental health back on track.

Now, the first step to getting your wisdom teeth removed is to see your dentist for a referral. I hadn't been to the dentist in 7 years(bad, I know) so I was definitely not looking forward to that. So, I called and made an appointment with a local dentist I've never been to before and told them the reason for my appointment, which was to get my referral. I was worried they were going to make me get my teeth cleaned and stuff before giving a referral, but that was not the case so don't stress about that!

The day of my appointment arrived and I was reasonably nervous. I have anxiety as it is so forcing myself to do something like this took a lot of guts. It was honestly a piece of cake! All that happened was the dental assistant had me get a panoramic x-ray(panorex) done of my teeth. The x-ray was easy as well. You stand up with a little plastic peg between your teeth that you bite down on gently. Then the machine goes around your head and takes the x-ray. No big deal. Then I went back to the chair and the dentist came in and just looked around inside my mouth with a mirror and said "welcome back to the dental world!" since I had expressed it had been awhile. Then he took a look at my x-ray with me and explained what I was seeing. Next he recommended I get all 4 removed and gave me the names of a few oral surgeons around. And that was it! No poking around, scraping, or discomfort!

After that I made an appointment for a consultation with the oral surgeon for 2 days later. I really wanted to get this all over with as quickly as possible. I had the dentist office e-mail my x-rays to the oral surgeon so I wouldn't need another x-ray.

So 2 days later it was consultation time. I was nervous yet again, but also excited to be getting this over with. The oral surgeon appointment went just fine as well and I shouldn't have worried so much. Before being seen I needed to fill out forms asking about my medical history and insurance information. After that was all filled out I got called back and had my blood pressure taken. It was high, but that's not a shock considering where I was! Next I met the oral surgeon, who I really liked because he was very nice and put me at ease. He discussed what type of impaction I had on the different teeth and we decided I would have IV sedation. I think this is very common for people having all 4 removed at once. He also gave me a quick run down on how surgery day would be and gave me pre-surgery instructions. Then that was it. I went to the front desk and made an 8am appointment the following week.

Naturally, I spent that whole week worrying and Googling everything like CRAZY. I was looking at all kinds of stories and explanations just so I could get a good feel for what it would be like. So some of the pre-surgery were things like "don't eat or drink for at least 8 hours before surgery." "remove all facial jewely/piercings" "Wear short sleeved shirt and close toed shoes that are easy to walk in." Just general stuff like that.

Surgery day. I was a mess. Even though I hadn't had anything to eat or drink in 8 hours I still threw up before hand because I was SO nervous. This isn't uncommon for me in high-anxiety situations though. So I arrived with my mom(you need someone to stay with you and take you home after surgery if you're having IV sedation). This was when we had to pay, and then I sat and waited a few minutes before the dental assistant took me back. I told her I wanted to be as unaware as possible and soon as possible. So first I laid back in the chair and she put a heart rate monitor on my finger and a blood pressure cuff around my arm that would take my blood pressure every 5 mins or so. Next she put on 3 of those electrode things. Two on my chest and one on my stomach. Next came the oxygen and nitrous(laughing gas). At first I was like "oh my god I don't think the nitrous is working and I'll be so aware the whole time." But within a minute I started feeling the effects and it was AWESOME. It made my body feel tingly and sort of heavy. I guess I would describe it as feeling very drunk.

After about 5 minutes breathing that stuff in the oral surgeon came in. I cracked some stupid jokes but was feeling completely calm. I was still aware of what was going on and still had control over what I was saying. It's just that with that stuff you don't care. It was nice. So then I was time to put in the IV that would sedate me. My oral surgeon did this part, some places it might be the assistant, I'm not sure. He had trouble finding a vein in my elbow crease area and I remember him saying my veins were small. (This is when I said "hopefully you have an easier time finding my teeth than you had with finding a vein!" hahaha)When I'm anxious I get cold so my arm needed to be warmed up a bit. Then he ended up finding a good vein by the side of my wrist. Now, I know I was scared for this part because I had never had an IV in before or had blood drawn. Nothing. But I can tell you with confidence that it really doesn't hurt. It's a slight pinch and it's all over. There is no need to worry!

After about a minute I was out. It feels like you're falling asleep. You are completely unaware of the whole procedure. The next thing I remember was the assistant walking me to the recovery area. I was still feeling a bit loopy but I was just fine. After about 10 minutes or so I was walked out to the car and my mom drove us home.

I know some people feel very tired after their surgery but I really didn't. I didn't end up napping until much later that day. I came home and just watched TV. The oral surgeon prescribed me oxycodone as well as an anti inflammatory. I decided I wasn't going to see how much pain I was in so I took the pain meds every 4 hours on the first day. I didn't feel any pain. The most annoying part was waiting for the feeling to come back into my face, which took about 3 hours. My bleeding wasn't severe and I stopped using the gauze after about 4 hours.

The rest of the day I just chilled out, iced my face, and ate pudding, ice cream, and jello. Over the next few days I cut back on the frequency of taking the pain killers and was off the hard stuff in 3.5 days. This whole time though I was wondering if I was going to get dry socket or some other such complication. I'm just paranoid like that I guess. But I am happy to report that I didn't get dry socket and everything is just fine.

One thing that I found the worst about this experience is that some food got stuck inside one of my healing sockets. It started to rot, smell, and taste revolting! That was by far the worst part of the whole thing. It was painless, however.

I am now 1 week after surgery and just had my follow up appointment a couple hours ago. After being taken back the oral surgeon just takes a look at inside your mouth and asks if you have any questions. This was also when mine finally gave me a syringe thingy so I could get that horrible food out of my gum hole! Boy was that a relief!

And that's all there is to it. The whole thing will not be nearly as bad as you're thinking it will be. The pain is easily managed by pain medication and the healing process isn't so bad either.

Sorry this is the length of a book. I know when I went looking online for stories I liked detailed accounts!

Also, since I'm a worrier here are some things that I came across during healing that are normal and nothing to be worried about.

-Dry socket only occurs in 2-5% of patients. So follow your aftercare instructions and be gentle with your mouth and you'll be fine.
-Getting food stuck in the hole is okay and normal. It can be rinsed out with a syringe.
-If you have slight bleeding the day after, gently bite on a wet tea bag for 45mins and the bleeding should cease.
-Unless you have severe pain that cannot be managed by pain medication, you probably do not have dry socket!

I really hope this can help some of you! Feel free to ask any questions and I'll answer them to the best of my ability!

 

[brooke cole]

wisdom teeth extraction

It was back in 2013 but want to share this story anyway I had two impacted wisdom teeth and had to get them out by an oral surgeon. He asked if I wanted local anesthesia (novacain) or laughing gas so I told him to use the local. I was nervous about it all but got it done with no anxiety problems. To this day I'm still proud of myself.

So if anyone wants to talk about their wisdom teeth expierience im here to listen n help out

 

[suzannek]

Four wisdoms out. That was IT?

Since this site helped me immensely in preparing for my wisdom tooth extraction I want to post my story here in thanks. It's long, so if you just want reassuring bits you can skip straight to the end!

My story started about a year ago. I had been having some pain in my upper right jaw and I thought I felt something going on in my wisdom tooth so I went to the dentist to have it checked out. "Yep," he said. "You have a rather large cavity there." Crap. "So... Can I have it filled...?" I said in what must have been the most pathetic voice ever. "No, we usually have them extracted. But don't worry! You'll be out like a light for it all!"

Great. So I'll be doped up while some surgeon roots around in my mouth? The thought of that didn't help at all. See, I'm a control freak. I've never been drunk in my life and I hate even being tipsy because I dislike losing self control. While the thought of being sedated may comfort some people, to me it was absolutely TERRIFYING. I immediately started fantasizing the worst about the procedure.

The first surgeon I went to didn't make me feel any more comfortable. He was very brusque and never smiled and seemed to be at a loss with my nerves. He essentially gave me a list of all the horrible things that could go wrong, took me to tears, and then sent in the financial manager to explain how much the torture/possible loss of life/limb/all happiness would set me back. I left the office hyperventilating and in tears.

After a lot of thought I decided to cancel the extraction appointment with him. My reasoning was that I didn't want to patronize someone with whom I didn't feel comfortable: $2,000+ is a huge amount of money and I wanted to give it to someone who earned it.

So in the year from then to now I had a large amount of dental work done, including a root canal, so I got to be pretty blase about injections and the like. (I had taken poor care of my teeth while working overseas. Damn you Japan and your sugary coffee... Never again will I slack on dental hygiene or put off x-rays and checkups! Plus I switched dentists- I blame my previous one for scaring me by not sufficiently numbing my mouth.)

Meanwhile my upper right wizzie was decaying badly. I had intermittent REALLY REALLY BAD toothache and, a few months ago, the entire thing cracked in half leaving a pointy edge that abraded my cheek. Isn't it funny how we can tolerate all this pain just to avoid some pain we perceive coming in the future? I'm sure all of you here know what I was going through this year. The thought of the unavoidable surgery was hanging over my head always. I'd lie up at night thinking about it. I must have wore out the patience of my family and friends hashing out all the things I thought would happen. (Even though every single person I talked to said the procedure was no freakin' big deal I still was terrified.) Basically, I felt like I was living out time before I was due to be executed.

So: a few months ago I had a dental checkup (all clear! yay!) and he really pushed me to get the teeth out by my next appointment, which is this June. That pressure and me finally getting fed up with not being able to chew properly properly, sick of the stress and fear, pushed me to make an appointment with a new surgeon. I first booked with a doc who wasn't board certified, but after a little thought switched to one that my father had seen and liked, and who was certified, even though the wait was longer. The only info on the Internet that seemed to say your docs should be board certified came from the boards themselves, but I figured it couldn't hurt. (I had this thought in my head: what if the reason this guy's so easy to get an appointment with is that NO ONE WANTS TO SEE HIM???)

So I saw Dr. L a few weeks ago. He was friendly but a little distracted, because he had a patient waiting in the next room over. The assistant wasn't very friendly, either, which I didn't like. But overall I liked him a lot more than the first guy, so I made my appointment. He said my teeth were pretty straightforward. The top two were fully erupted and would slide out easily, and the bottom two were partial bony impactions and might need a little digging, but he assured me that if they needed drilling in the bone that this would actually make recovery time easier. I also asked if the fact that one was halfway broken would make his job more difficult and he said no.

Cut to Tuesday. You're not supposed to eat or drink for eight hours prior to the appointment, but for me it was more like twelve so I woke up with a massive headache and grouchy beyond belief from hunger and thirst. Even though I'm 29, both parents were kind enough to escort me to my appointment, although my father used it as an excuse to take a trip to the hardware store. Thanks, Mom and Dad! My family is big on gallows humor, so I on the way there I joked that it would be worth the risk to eat a bagel even though I might choke on my vomit.

I arrived 10 minutes before my time and filled out the form absolving them of any potential injury. I was pleased to note that Death wasn't on the list. Then I waited. For like half an hour. A lady sitting next to me had awful powdery perfume on so I couldn't breathe deeply, but I didn't want to leave the room either. I did see a lady walking out of the surgery kind of unsteadily but not looking traumatized, which comforted me a bit.

I was actually so eager to get the whole damn thing over with that by the time the surgical assistant called my name I stood up and practically cheered. She showed me to a room that looked like any other dentist's room with a little more machinery. I got hooked up to an EKG (two leads to the chest and one on the stomach), an auto-inflating blood pressure machine, and a finger heart rate monitor. This beeped out loud and since my heart was up at 120 BPM it drove me crazy with the noise. She asked me my height and weight, asked if I had an escort home, and when the last time I ate was. Then she let me stew until the doctor came in.

He asked me how I was doing and I said, "Well, I've been better." He said he hears that a lot and that he had my heart rate up pretty high. Really quickly he adjusted the headrest on the chair, leaned me back, stuck a wedge between my teeth to prop them open, and had me stick out my arm for the IV. Now, I'm not a needle-phobe, but the stick wasn't bad. He also stuck a rubber oxygen mask over my nose that I fancy made me look like a Star Trek alien. So I was there thinking my best "chill out" thoughts when I heard him say "Now we'll make you sleepy," and tell the assistant to give so and so many CCs of Versed. I immediately smelled/tasted a rush of chemicals to the nose and became heavy in the limbs. I actually said "Whee!" because I was so thrilled to be on the edge of sedation but not be freaking out like I fantasized.

Basically, all my fears came from being terrified of struggling within the sedation. It seemed too much like death to me. Like, I imagined being drugged up and fighting against it and being scared and wanting OUT but having no escape. I was also nervous about the aftermath, and feeling nauseated or loopy and losing self control. I am happy to report it wasn't like that at all! Seriously, I'd do it again tomorrow if I had to.

This is what happened: I remember him giving me two injections, one in the top and bottom of the left side. Then I was sitting upright with cotton in my mouth, fully alert, in no pain or fear, and the doctor was handing me my teeth.

I've heard it described as missing time, but I wouldn't even say that. Missing time implies that there was something to be missed. It was like that 45 minutes had never existed. I thought that this sensation of coming to would be strange and fearful, but it wasn't at all! Literally, like every other story on here, it was like the procedure happened in the blink of an eye. I had given myself panic attacks for nothing! It was nothing like sleep in that I wasn't even aware I'd been out and there was no "drifting" or dreaming. I remember nothing that happened after the first injections.

I had seen all the videos on YouTube about teens going crazy in the recovery room and panicked about whether that was going to happen to me. Nope! My mom was brought in and I was alert, but a little sleepy, as the assistant explained the recovery. Not babbling like a lunatic.

I felt good enough afterwards to take a trip to Sam's Club for my prescription and some soft foods. I was groggy, like I had taken some Benadryl, but otherwise perfectly fine. Then we stopped at Burger King for a milkshake which gave me no end of trouble with my numb mouth and I went home for a nap. Two hours later I woke up feeling great. Seriously, I would have gone for a run if I wasn't afraid of losing the stitches. The only minor thing was that I was still bleeding and had to change the cotton a few times. I didn't fill the prescription for the Percocet, and only took the 600 mg of ibuprofen, which worked for me.

So two days in and the only discomfort I have had is a slight jaw ache. I had braces and that ordeal was infinitely more uncomfortable than the recovery. My toothache was thousands of times worse than the whole procedure. Basically, it's on the same inconvenience level as a minor cold. Heck, I'd rather have my wisdom teeth out again than go through the awkwardness that a visit to the gyno involves!

Overall I'm so glad I decided to do it. The day of surgery was actually a great day: I felt a little like a hero for being so brave, I got rid of the nagging fear that's been haunting me for a year, my teeth are now perfectly healthy and pain-free, and I got to eat ice cream and take a nap and have people baby me a little!

Are you still frightened? Don't be! Why?

1. It's literally the shortest dental visit you'll ever have. All of the freaky scary "dental stuff" is done in that period that gets erased from your life so the worst you have to deal with is sitting in the chair for a few minutes.

2. Everything you've heard about IV sedation is true. I didn't believe it myself. I was SURE I would be the one person to have a reaction and run screaming in fear from the room. But no, it worked. Funny, that.

3. Rotten teeth suck. Having them out is awesome.

4. You will feel SO GREAT when it's all over. The relief was amazing. Almost worth the months of terror. Well, not really.

5. The recovery isn't that bad. You won't be waking up in pain because your mouth is numb. You might have more discomfort that I had but I'd call it that: discomfort, not acute pain. Medicine and rest helps.

Thanks for listening, and I hope I helped! If you have any questions I'd be happy to answer them because I know how scary it can all seem. You can do it!