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The most important thing is not to drink from a straw or rinse your mouth during the first 24 hours! The sucking motion causes negative pressure in the mouth which can loosen the blood clot that forms over the open hole. Don't even spit because that produces a similar pressure!
This is probably one of the most important things.

I haven't had my wisdom teeth removed (I don't even know if I have any), but I did have a molar removed a couple months ago. I just had shots (I didn't want an IV and the surgeon was allergic to nitrous oxide (laughing gas)). The procedure wasn't bad, the main part was that it bled for a day, and the gause was really annoying.

Pain was gone after about 2 days.
 
Mine were impacted and it required surgery in a hospital. They came out but I was swollen and sore.
 
I got mine out last May. I went to my Dentist, and he did an awesome job. There was hardly any pain, and I was eating "normal food" the day after.
 
I took the easy way. I paid them about a hundred bucks for a combination of anesthesia and antibiotics. They put a mask on me and asked me to count back from 10, and then I woke up in another room with four less teeth and a weird feeling in my mouth. There was no significant pain and I was back to eating solid foods within a week.
Considering the stories I heard from my older sisters before, the investment was well worth it.

$100!? I paid $500 WITH insurance. Heck, the novocain only extraction cost me $200 (no insurance).
 
I had to get mine out a while ago. it was easy and stress free. I did not go to sleep either. Ate mozzarella sticks the next day and only had minimal pain. Did not take any medications besides penicillin. You will be fine.
 
General Anesthesia freaks me out. For no reason; it's a personal phobia.

My wisdom teeth were impacted, and the oral surgeon strongly suggested I use heavy sedation of some sort, but I assured him local would be enough. Honestly, it was by far the easiest dental procedure I've had to sit though. As far as the procedure went, I'd much rather get my wisdom teeth out than get a cavity filled. Truly. ...If you're able to distract yourself from what you know they're doing, it's not much worse than a teeth cleaning.

Specifically, for me, they had to remove small pieces of my jaw to break out the teeth, which required stitches. It sounds pretty significant, but recovery wasn't too bad. I immediately took a strong dose of Advil (let your Dr. decide the appropriate dose), and began icing the sides of my face. I didn't have any swelling, and my pain was moderate at worst (ironically, all from the stitches).

The Vicodin was all but helpful; I found Advil worked better (and it also helps with swelling). I didn't eat for a day or so (not even soup), mostly out of fear rather than inability.

Follow your doctor's advice explicitly. Don't hesitate to call them if you have any questions or problems after, either.

Good luck! It'll be easier than you think. :)
 
I had all four of mine out in one shot (done by an oral surgeon). I was given a cocktail of Valium + Demerol. I did wake up for a few seconds during the procedure, and I did feel a little pain, but I was quickly knocked out again and didn't wake up until I was in the recovery room. Afterwards, I didn't have much pain at all. I was given some Tylenol w/ Codeine, but I didn't really need it. Just lay off tough foods and full contact rugby while you are recovering. ;)
 
Had all 4 removed at once. Dentist knocked me out for the surgery. I actually woke up half way through the procedure. I could see smoke and bits of teeth flying out of my mouth. Quite an experience. Didn't feel anything but just weird that I woke up in the middle of the extraction.

Mouth was swollen and sore the next couple of days. Only had penicillin to take as well as ibuprofen.

FORTUNATELY, i paid nothing for the procedure so I guess I can't complain.
 
Get the job done by an oral surgeon, not by a dentist. I don't want to freak you out, but without entering too much into details, my sister needed morphine after having her teeth removed by a dentist due to some complication.
 
I have all 4 out. 2 in one session, 2 in another. I only had novocaine, and aside from having to stuff my mouth with gauze from bleeding, there was not much pain at all. However everyone is different, as well as the conditions (mine were not severely impacted).

I would guess today it should be relatively pain free as even root canals today are a "go back to work tomorrow" deal.
 
Hi everybody. Thanks for the replies. I will be on my laptop later tonight to address people specifically. I am on my phone right now and can't do a bunch of quotes.
 
For those afraid of anesthesia. An anesthesiologist told me his insurance is less than $1000 a year ( a few years ago now) because there are so few problems and lawsuits. Evidently the stuff that is used is very safe.

Anyway, no matter what the problem the art of tooth extraction has been practiced for thousands of years and they have the procedure perfected and there are few problems and no pain.
 
I am having all of them taken out, both top and bottom. The bottoms have broken the gum line but the tops haven't.
I'm a student dentist (graduate in a few months). I extracted several teeth this past week, including a few 3rd molars (wisdom teeth).

Are your thirds fully erupted? i.e. can you see them when you look into your mouth with a mirror? If so the extraction is much easier and if your dentist is confident he/she can get them out, you're good. If they're impacted (can't see them) then you may just want to get them removed at an oral surgeon's place.

Thirds with a lot of decay are tougher to remove. Do they hurt? Super sensitive to cold, painful when chewing? Can you see a large hole on the tooth?

Upper thirds are much easier than lower thirds.

If your thirds are impacted and you have the cash, general anesthesia (going to sleep) at an oral surgeon's office is your best bet.

If your thirds are erupted and not falling apart, and your dentist is confident in his/her skills as they pertain to your particular case, just save $$ and get them out under local anesthesia.

I hope that helps. Let me know if you have any questions. I'm happy to help.

p.s: Good job on getting them out ;). IMO, EVERYONE should get them removed in their early 20's. They're hard for people to keep clean so they just serve as a nidus of infection, leading to periodontal disease that begins to spread to your other healthy teeth - especially if your hygiene isn't awesome. And, they suck for dentists to work on ;).

p.p.s: Their eruption does NOT leading to crowding of your other teeth. Common myth.

I am going to the oral surgeon that did my last surgery. I had braces and they had to pull one of my teeth down from inside my gum. I will be put to sleep, I know that. And I was told by either my dentist or my orthodontist that my wisdom teeth are causing crowding because they are coming in sideways. They aren't coming up like normal teeth. They are not sensitive to anything either.

Why do people get their wisdom teeth taken out? Mine are starting to come out of the gums, bu i have no problems with them being there, actually it would help, as i sometimes find i haven't got enough teeth to chew with and find my self sometimes chewing with the gums where the wisdom teeth are.

I am getting mine out because mine are coming in sideways (completely sideways) and they are pushing on my teeth making them crooked on the bottom. So I am going to get them removed and go back to my orthodontist and either get braces put back on or just a retainer.
 
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Have you made out your will??

Lol.

I would recommend an oral surgeon and to be put under. I went to sleep and when I woke up, all of my wisdom teeth were removed without feeling anything. I took only one painkiller a few hours later and that was it. The whole process was a lot less painful than I was expecting.

It's only been 30 years since I had mine removed. I went to a regular dentist. He did a great job of numbing me although it was a little disconcerting when he was standing on my chest tracking my molars in half to extract them. Afterwards I took codeine and remember floating around campus that day. I agree that an Oral Surgeon would be better cause they put you out. Although can't a regular dentist put you out-of-it, but not unconsciousness?
 
I elected to stay awake for an impacted lower removal. Doh! The sound effects are the worst part.

Does it sound like a tooth being pulled. Whenever I got a tooth pulled you could hear everything including the roots ripping, im assuming. I don't really know what I heard but that's what it sounded like to me.
 
I remember being incredibly nervous last summer when I had to have my wisdom teeth removed... And I wouldn't want to do it again.

I took my pain medicine at the right time intervals and spent quite a few days on the couch sleeping. I really don't remember a large part of it due to the pills/sleep. I do remember it was bloody for a few days... Not gushing blood, but still a weird feeling to stick gauze in your mouth and still have some blood on it.

The first day really wasn't bad at all, besides not being able to eat thanks to my cheeks being sewn to my gums (I'm assuming) and the holes where all 4 of my wisdom teeth had once been.

The days that followed really hurt, and I mean really hurt. But I have had people tell me their surgery went fine so I guess it's all how you take it. My pain tolerance isn't very high to say the least.


Just pray that you don't get a dry socket! :eek:
 
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