Wisdom Teeth Extraction Recovery
I've never had surgery except getting my wisdom teeth pulled a week ago (3/8/12) so, it was tough to prepare for. Pretty much, i was scared about this entire procedure because i already knew how painful and inconveniant it is to have any procedure done to your mouth due to when i had four teeth extracted when i was like 10 which by the way is like taking a walk in the park compared to getting your wisdom teeth being extracted.. First off, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE COMPANY TO ASSIST YOU THE FIRST 3-4 DAYS! You can barely talk, at least I couldn't. So, I was writing things down, lol. & boy was it annoying when i'd need help and could barely talk so it was like very low mumbling and my mom or boyfriend would ask, "what?" lol urrrrrg. have a pen and paper or TEXT! ha Anyway, the procedure it self maybe took 20 minutes tops (according to my mom) ..the oral surgeon had to help my mom get me in the truck bc i was still a little sedated lol then we actually ran a few errands, lmao..but lets just say, that was the easy part. as the day went on i was o.k taking the meds (oxycodeine and acetametaphine) drinking smoothies and attempting mashed potatoes were the first of it all... there also these little jello-ey fruit squeezes i used. (at walmart, publix a,nd/or starbucks) i suggest no grits, no cottage cheese (there little peices can get stuck in open wounds) Also, bite on that guaze until your not bleeding anymore, this part is crucial because after your done bleeding the most important part forms, BLOOD CLOTS. Well, into the night, it got worse. sleep was impossible & only bc i had a complicaton with the meds, assuming i took too much 3 total the first day - 1 every 4-6 hour.. im guessing i didnt drink/eat enough. i almost passed out and my hands were cramping up and i couldnt feel my feet and could barely walk...basically REALLY scary. my mom sat with me and helped me breathe in my nose and out of my mouth because based on the symptoms there wasn't enough oxygen getting to my brain..i was better in 15 minutes after calming down and breathing correctly and so i attempted sleep again.. you have to sleep propt up because its too much pressure to lay side to side or flat on your back and can ignitiate the blood to flow. The second day i was sketched out about my meds so i refrained from taking it UNLESS i really needed it and towards the end of the day my mouth got really painful for some reason for at least the first 3-4 days. I was VERY swollen and one side was more swollen than the other and in fact, my left tonsil had felt like they extracted that too. It was horrendous. i couldnt swallow bc it was so painful so i was basically drooling everywhere.. the pain in my tonsils were far more worse than my teeth.. it cleared up in about 2-3 days. i cant stress enough to get as much food/smoothie/fluid/ect in your stomach before you take the meds BC nausea was dreadful & i couldnt imagine throwing up during this recovery - gross - unsanitary.. on the third day my best friend was ramen noodles bc i just slurpt them up and was occassionally full. Nutella, peanut butter, squeeze it cheese (i know random but when you are deprived of actual good food you do whatever you can to get a taste with out affecting your surgery) sweet potatoes were okay, i ate milkshakes with a spoon, frozen yogurt, greek yogurt, sorbet, asparagus (3-4th day), drink gatorade, jello (the kind in the box as PUDDING- yum 3-4th day bc added milk) i also drank a lot of protein shakes with water to get some more nutrition.. no dairy for those under local for 24-48, i believe... Ok, by the 2nd day i started researching DRY SOCKETS.. do it.. but dont bug yourself out like i did, just take precaution.. i did whatever i could to avoid this bc dry sockets can prolonge your recovery to 2,3,4 weeks >_<. warm water and salt rinses constant after i ate and when my teeth felt a little throbby or sore!.. cold compresses are only needed within the first 24 hours.. then WARM/HOT COMPRESSES from there on out to loosen up the cheek muscles.. i even stayed in the shower extra long to let the warm water run on my face. i also read about acetametaphine (a part of my pain med) and wasnt please with it so i discontinued it my 3rd day and stuck to advil and ibeprofen when needed. when it came to showering, it was a pain in the beginning but you feel so much better afterwards.. brushing teeth was so hard because it was really hard to open my mouth bc of the pain.. but it is really important that you contribute to the healing process atleast by 3rd day & beyond bc it speeds up healing process by trying to open your mouth, stretch it out, smile, try to brush very softly (with a soft brissle toothbrush) in the back and ON YOUR INCISIONS. its important to keep it clean back there because it is SO prone to infections. whatever you do AVOID any little peices of food that can lodge itself back there.. rinse (not to hard n the beginning bc u dont want to dislodge a blood clot. try not to sneeze, blow your nose, breathe to hard through your mouth, touch your incisions with your tounge being that any of these can dislodge a blood clot. ALSO, i was on birthcontrol and i discontinued it ON PURPOSE due to the hormonal effect it has on our body can actually STOP a blood clot from even forming leaving your entire bone EXPOSED. (no bueno bc that makes your chances of a dry socket sky rocket) today is day 6 for me. a stitch (dissovlable) (only in three of my incisions the ends of stitches were exposed, the other im guessing is under the skin that grew over the holes) fell out yesterday but i accidently tore it 2 days ago and it has been trying to hang in there but came out today when i was rinsing. But as long as its after the 3-4 day and a stitch comes out, it's okay. there is no pain where the stitch came out either. there is no pain in any of my teeth. if your surgery doesnt progress then a trip to the doc is necessar! ive been eating pasta's ( my first real meal was last night) one side of my cheek still seems to be a little swollen inside (you cant see it on the outside) and is lodged a tad on my bottom right molar and is taking its time to heal (its as if i bit my cheek, thats it) other wise the healing process is going swell!! i am brushing 2-3 times on incision softly and keeping it very clean. My trip back to the oral surgeon was 5 days after my surgery and he said everything was okay, no infection, but that i just needed to really brush on the incision, even if it bled a little. So, i did and they actually felt a lot better, less pressure and achy.. im drinking protein twice a day now.. it takes a whole week for a layer of skin to form over the holes but i like to be sure so i have still refrained from little peices of food; ground beef, chicken, anything hard, fruits with seeds, ice cream with nuts.. ect. but yesterday and today i ate thin mints and a granola bar with extreme rinsing (bc i am at work & i dont have my tooth brush) i also lean my head a little down and use only one side to chew just so i dont lose control and it wanders in the back of my mouth..i also was able to drive the 4th day i believe.. so i hope this all has helped with sombody! you really do heal quickly if you take the right precautions and listen to your oral surgeon, even research the heck out of it like me!..
Good Luck!!!
