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Getting my Wisdom Teeth out on Friday...

T

Taylor C

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
May 27, 2007
729
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Hey guys. I'm scheduled to get my wisdom teeth out at 11am this Friday and needless to say, I'm pretty nervous about it. I'm 20 years old and perfectly healthy, but I've never had surgery of any kind before, and certainly not anesthesia.

All four of them are coming out. They're not causing any problems or pain currently, but are unable to fully come in which could lead to infection under the gum tissue that would grow over them. I've decided that I'd rather just be out for the procedure and get them all out, as opposed to having to come back multiple times. Luckily, the roots haven't grown down to my nerve yet, so nerve damage isn't a concern.

The main thing I'm concerned about is that when I met with the surgeon (who I can't say I trust), he said that because he would have to cut the gums to get the bottom ones out, the muscle that allows me to open/close my jaw would be partially cut and would take awhile to heal. This freaked me out. All but one of the sockets is being stitched up, so I'm not too worried about just feeling uneasy about gaping holes in my mouth.

Onto my questions: How long will this muscle take to heal? How long will it be before I'm pretty much back to normal? I've heard it can take anywhere from a week to 6 weeks. Also, I'm very anti-drug of any kind, so I'm not looking forward to being prescribed Vicodin. I'm hoping I can deal with the pain with Ibuprofen and the medication they give me to reduce swelling.

So, what's everyone's experience with this? I've been searching around on the internet (which most likely hasn't aided my nerves), and I realize there have been several threads on this topic before. Anyway, I'd appreciate any advice.

- Taylor
 
I had all of mine out not that long ago. I dunno anything about the muscle getting cut, but I'll tell you wasn't nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I was pretty freaked out about it, had put it off for years. But it was easy. My jaw was kind of stiff for a week or so afterwards, I never even had to take the vicoden (vicoden doesn't seem to do much to me anyway). honestly, I wasn't really in any kind of pain for more than a couple of days, and it was never that bad. Everyone has different experiences with this kind of thing, but mine was a pretty positive experience overall.
 
I had mine done about a year and a half ago and I hate to tell you that it was the worst thing thing ever! Of course I was 29 at the time and it gets harder as you age. So it should be different for you.

They meant to take all 4 of mine but couldn't get my top 2 to budge. Ended up giving up on them annd leaving them in. Said that if they absolutely had to come out I would have to go to the hospital and be operated on! HA! I ended up with dry sockets in my bottom teeth and that hurt like a biotch! It was over christmas and I went for a week without drugs. Would rather have been kicked in the balls then go through that. My wife was surprised because I have a fairly high pain tolerance.

Hope you have a much better experience then I did. Good luck!
 
Summer is the worst time for tooth extractions - 68% of dry sockets occur in july/august.

Your jaw will be sore real good for 7-10 days - think Tylenol 3's

YOu will have to be very careful with keeping everything clean.

Do NOT use straws for 3-4 weeks afterwards.

The muscle will heal in 4-6 weeks. No gum chewing.
 
Don't worry. Really, it's not as bad as it seems.

They removed mine about 2 months ago, and I was also quite nervous. But I didn't felt a thing during the operation.

As for healing, after 1 week you'll be much better. And in 2 weeks you'll be back to normal. There would still be healing for some weeks, but at the second week you'll be able to eat everything without worrying.

Leareth said:
Summer is the worst time for tooth extractions - 68% of dry sockets occur in july/august.

Your jaw will be sore real good for 7-10 days - think Tylenol 3's

YOu will have to be very careful with keeping everything clean.

Do NOT use straws for 3-4 weeks afterwards.

The muscle will heal in 4-6 weeks. No gum chewing.
Click to expand...

Where did you got your info?

I was sore for only a couple of days. Maybe 3. Just put ice and you won't have problems. And I found myself being able to use straws after the second week.

But yes, the operation would keep healing for a long time, not that it would hurt you or anything, but it takes its time.
 
I had mine removed about 20 years ago. In my lower jaw the molars were impacted so they had to cut deep. The surgeon ended up cutting one of the cranial nerves that runs along my jaw on the left. I lost all sensation on the left side of my tongue, gum area, and a little in my cheek. It felt like the novocain never wore off for months afterward. It took a year for the nerve to grow back and feeling to return but I have no sensation of taste on most of the left side of my tongue. When I floss on the lower left of my jaw I get sensations on my tongue when I touch the gum, like the nerves got a little crossed when they grew back. My tongue kind of tingles a little on the left side when I move it around but still works fine.

Only if I put sugar, chilli, or something directly on the left of my tongue I notice I can't taste anything but if I eat normally I can't tell the difference so as far as I'm concerned it's OK.
 
I had mine removed I think 4 years ago. I believe I was 20 at the time or about to turn 20. For me the first few days where the worse and I only took the my pain pills I think for 3 days. the first day I took the max allowed and only slept because the pain pills knock me out.

Other than being taken a lot of anti inflammatory I didn't really take anything. I do recommend you take those to keep the swelling down.

I think for me it took about a week before I was eating normal food and it may of taken about 6 weeks before I could not feel where they where removed but I stop really paying any attention to it a long time before that. I want to say with in 2 weeks I was back to normal.
 
yea its no big deal. i had my four taken out when i was fifteen. i was back in action the next day. no pain killers or anything (i dont feel comfortable with taking drugs of anysort) the only thing that scared me was the fact the oral surgeon sounded like he was coming on to me everytime we met. haha i was afraid of what might happen when i was unconcious :eek: you'll be fine.

oh and drinking things afterwards was really amusing. because my lips were all numb so i didnt know when the cup was touching them, and i would spill everything everywhere haha.

ive also heard people say that its a lot better to be put out, instead of just numbed. because you can hear the teeth popping out and stuff. they said it was disgusting.
 
I had mine taken out about five years ago although I did them two at a time with a six month span inbetween. My dentist performed the surgery and I would have liked to been knocked out because despite all the injections and NOS, it was still very painfull. Fortunately these things don't grow back so once they're out, it's over. Be prepared for your face to swell up to the point you look like you've been through a fight.
 
I got mine out a few years ago, and it wasn't bad at all. The anesthesia makes the whole operation feel like it's 10 seconds, it's quite an awesome feeling. I guess I was lucky, but I never felt any pain at all after the operation. Never did I need to take the prescribed Vicodin. There was just a lot of bleeding for a couple days or weeks and I had to watch what I ate, but other than that it was fine for me.
 
Yours must have been growing in straight so extraction must've been easy for your surgeon. All mine were growing in crooked so they had to cut wisdom teeth into fours to get them out.
 
kymac said:
yea its no big deal. i had my four taken out when i was fifteen. i was back in action the next day. no pain killers or anything (i dont feel comfortable with taking drugs of anysort) the only thing that scared me was the fact the oral surgeon sounded like he was coming on to me everytime we met. haha i was afraid of what might happen when i was unconcious :eek: you'll be fine.

oh and drinking things afterwards was really amusing. because my lips were all numb so i didnt know when the cup was touching them, and i would spill everything everywhere haha.

ive also heard people say that its a lot better to be put out, instead of just numbed. because you can hear the teeth popping out and stuff. they said it was disgusting.
Click to expand...

Well part of the reason you teeth came out so much eaiser was because of your age at the time. They are not fully developed so it easier to take them out.

My uncle (who did my surgery) said that I had a some harder teeth to do and he can to break up 2 of my teeth and take them out 1/2 at a time. Add in to the fact that I am one of those "special" cases in my dental work makes things worse. I believe I was written in about in at least one orthodontist journal and am used for examples for future work. All that added up to make oral surgery getting out my wisdom teeth a little harder to do.

My sister when she had her removed (15) she recovered very quickly.

Oh as for the surgery itself it be quick and easy. You will be out on there in under and hour. The part being knock out really makes it fly and most of the first day you will just be sleeping. I have had oral surgery 2 times in my life and both times early morning. From that I proceeded to sleep it off.

The pain pills it be the first 2 days that you really will need them. Just make sure you pop the anti inflammatorys that your surgen should prescribe to you.
 
Rodimus Prime said:
Well part of the reason you teeth came out so much eaiser was because of your age at the time. They are not fully developed so it easier to take them out.
Click to expand...

they said that they devoloped early, and needed to be taken out, so thats why it happened at a yound age.
 
Roco said:
Where did you got your info?

I was sore for only a couple of days. Maybe 3. Just put ice and you won't have problems. And I found myself being able to use straws after the second week.

But yes, the operation would keep healing for a long time, not that it would hurt you or anything, but it takes its time.
Click to expand...

Canadian and US dental Association, working in dental office for 5 years. With my mother working in the field for 17 years.
About the dry sockets - its right on the first page of the US dental association website. the bottom line of the article is that try to avoid doing dental extractions during the summer because of the high rate of dry sockets.

For the healing time - I bet they did not have to break bone and cut the muscle to get teeth out? - takes longer to heal that way

Straws- its not about being able to use them - you should not because of the vaccumn they create in mouth is perfect for ripping half healed flesh and stiches apart.
 
kymac said:
they said that they devoloped early, and needed to be taken out, so thats why it happened at a yound age.
Click to expand...

I doute they where fully deloped yet. Really it a good time to take them out earily. even if they devopoed eary taking them out very quickly justs means it is easier to do.
 
The one thing that's kind of creepy is the anaesthetic. You don't realize it, but you're subconsciously aware of the passage of time when you're sleeping normally. You wake up in the morning and you "feel" that a number of hours have passed by. Most obviously is when you're aware that you're dreaming.

Not so with being put out for the surgery. In my case the doctor put the needle in my arm and asked me to squeeze a ball while counting to 10. I think I got to 3 and the VERY NEXT THING I was aware of was me lying down in darkness with a mouthful of cotton.

A strange feeling (imagine being teleported?), but scary when you realize that this is how date rape drugs work... anything could have happened and you'd have no recollection at all.

On my way out, it occurred to me to ask the doctor how he managed to move my 230 pounds from the dentist's chair to the recovery room next door. He said he had a few people helping!
 
Thanks for all the info guys. It's been helpful so far. I was told I was going to walk myself into the recovery room. Which I'm nervous about. I doubt that I'm just going to be awake/attentive enough to get into the recovery room.

I'm still concerned about this whole muscle thing. I don't recall exactly how long my surgeon said it would take to heal--I plan to ask him that tomorrow morning before going under--but I thought it was something like 5-6 days if I recall correctly. It still irks me and makes me nervous, though. I sound like such a wuss but I'm actually losing sleep over this whole damn ordeal.
 
Taylor C said:
Thanks for all the info guys. It's been helpful so far. I was told I was going to walk myself into the recovery room. Which I'm nervous about. I doubt that I'm just going to be awake/attentive enough to get into the recovery room.

I'm still concerned about this whole muscle thing. I don't recall exactly how long my surgeon said it would take to heal--I plan to ask him that tomorrow morning before going under--but I thought it was something like 5-6 days if I recall correctly. It still irks me and makes me nervous, though. I sound like such a wuss but I'm actually losing sleep over this whole damn ordeal.
Click to expand...

Chance are the surgen is right about the having to cut you mussel a little. It more than likely the best option to with that does the least amount of damage.

Also don't stress over it. Wisedom teeth removal is something they do all the time. The recovery room part yes you will be able to walk it. They will have some one their to guild you and make sure you do not fall over. Now you remembering how you got their or even got home is another story.
I have very spotty memories of both times I had oral surgery. I remembered very well the morning before the surgeries and what I did but after the surgery I remember very little on how i got home or really moved around. Best way to describe the feeling is like when you are so tired you can not keep your eyes open.
 
I'm going Monday for the consultation. I guess where they tell you everything that can happen and how bad it is. I'm really scared. I'm 34 years old, adn I've heard it's worse the older you are. I had my top ones pulled about 10 years ago. That wasn't too bad. Sore for a day or two. I'm having my 2 bottom wisdom teeth cut out. Both of them are impacted. I've read and heard from my friends how bad it can be. I'm just hoping they give me enough pain killers, and that they are strong enough. A friend of mne had his done and the pain killers wouldn't working. He called the pharmacy to see if he could get something stronger. They told him they couldn't, and to take 2 if 1 didn't work. I'll be glad when it's all over.
 
'Morning. About to leave for the oral surgeon, I'm pretty nervous. Just wanted to thank everyone for their advice/stories/support. I'll try to update you guys as soon as I'm well enough to sit at my desk or use my MBP in bed without getting blood all over it. I didn't sleep very good last night, but I feel rested. This whole thing feels very surreal, I just want it to be over and to be normal again, heh.
 
I had my top ones taken out when I was 19, so about eight years ago.

All four of my wisdom teeth were in just fine, but my lower jaw has shifted slightly forward over time so my lower wisdom teeth weren't meeting my upper wisdom teeth. Because of this shift my top ones would have been just sitting there collecting cavities and not being of much use, so out they came!

I didn't get put under or anything like that, they just numbed me up, I felt some pressure and out the went.

The funniest part was when I went up to pay my bill I started getting woozy and nauseous, I looked around for a sink because I thought I was going to throw up, and the next thing I know I'm being picked up off the floor by the dentist!

Everyone was really worried because I guess my face was white as a ghost. I had to sit in one of the dentist chairs for about 30 minutes before they would let me drive home. When they did finally let me leave, I told them it was the sight of the bill that made me pass out. ;)

Anyway, I'm sure you'll be fine. After a week or two you'll probably be close to 100%. Good luck! :D
 
I hope you got on alright, Taylor C. I'm glad I didn't see this earlier and make a comment...

Reading your post made me feel pretty sick :( I hope it all went ok. I don't think I could go through it... especially not unless I was already in agony. IMHO a lot of dentists will tell you anything if it means they can slice up your mouth (ok, I feel sick again now) and charge you for the 'privilege'. Yeah, I don't like dentists. Ain't nothing but a family thing!
 
Just got home from surgery. Not in any pain at the moment, but the novocain hasn't worn off yet. I had some ice cream (Coldstone<3) and am going to lie down a bit with some ice to help the swelling (none atm). It went really smoothly from what I hear. The worst part was right before you go out and they're hooking up all that **** to you, then you're just sitting there as you feel the medicine go through your veins.

Anyway, thanks for all the support, I'll try to keep you guys up to date. FrontRow ftw.
 
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