Tell Me About Getting Wisdom Teeth Removed

[Hazel]

The day is drawing ever closer that my wisdom teeth will be removed. They have not even come in yet, but my dentist plans to cut them out this summer. I'm getting really freaked out about it. What exactly is going to happen? Will I be put under? How bad will the pain be during/afterwards? I'd rather know now so that I can I can prepare myself.

[lucidreamsavy]

I haven't have wisdom teeth removed, but I have had 11 teeth pulled out before (4 of which were adult teeth). It's not really THAT bad, but don't worry, I'm still a wimp about it too. They'll probably give you a couple of shots in your gums. The shots are the worst part, you don't feel the tooth come out. It mostly hurts because the feeling is unreal. It's in a place that doesn't get hurt much. Your lips will be numb for a couple of hours after. You don't even feel your chap stick on! Bottom line, it's horrible, but not as bad as lots of things

[Ynot]

still got all mine 3 came through, one didn't

[DuB]

My mom didn't have her wisdom teeth removed until they started giving her problems, which was in her thirties. When they finally did start giving her problems, they ended up pushing against her other teeth and making them permanently crooked (a little bit, anyway). This has made me a bit paranoid, and although mine only give me some slight, infrequent discomfort, I am considering having them removed over the summer.

[Kamikaze]

I know when I had mine removed (all 4, and they hadn't come in yet) I had the option to have my mouth frozen or be put under. I chose put under. the drug was pretty good haha. Afterwards they gave me a prescription for some strong Ibuprofen and Tylenol 3. I had next to no pain. I think I had 2 periods each lasting a couple minutes of pain and that was it. I didn't even need any of the tylenol 3 and I stopped the Ibuprofen after the minimum time the doctor required meto take them. I think I had one of the better experiences though. I think it differs from person to person and it can also depend on the orientation of the wisdom teeth. Mine were just up and down and I think I had one that was one a bit of an angle.

[Hazel]

I haven't have wisdom teeth removed, but I have had 11 teeth pulled out before (4 of which were adult teeth). It's not really THAT bad, but don't worry, I'm still a wimp about it too. They'll probably give you a couple of shots in your gums. The shots are the worst part, you don't feel the tooth come out. It mostly hurts because the feeling is unreal. It's in a place that doesn't get hurt much. Your lips will be numb for a couple of hours after. You don't even feel your chap stick on! Bottom line, it's horrible, but not as bad as lots of things I've had 8 teeth pulled in all (4 of which were adult teeth, like you) but I assume that having wisdom teeth pulled/cut out of my jaw will be much worse. I know when I had mine removed (all 4, and they hadn't come in yet) I had the option to have my mouth frozen or be put under. I chose put under. the drug was pretty good haha. Afterwards they gave me a prescription for some strong Ibuprofen and Tylenol 3. I had next to no pain. I think I had 2 periods each lasting a couple minutes of pain and that was it. I didn't even need any of the tylenol 3 and I stopped the Ibuprofen after the minimum time the doctor required meto take them. I think I had one of the better experiences though. I think it differs from person to person and it can also depend on the orientation of the wisdom teeth. Mine were just up and down and I think I had one that was one a bit of an angle. Thanks, that helps my nerves a bit. None of mine have come up yet, but from the x-rays they all seem to be at an angle.

[Odd_Nonposter]

My older brother had his taken out a year ago. He didn't complain too much, I don't think, but they gave him stitches that were supposed to dissolve after a few weeks, and he had an alumni band performance a few days after they were taken out. Blew them out into the mouthpiece of his tuba. He said that that hurt more than the surgery to take them out.

[Robot_Butler]

They put me under to remove my wisdom teeth. It is definitely the way to go. I have some friends who are dentists and oral surgeons. Digging those puppies out can be a real bitch. They literally need to pry them out of your head with pliers and a hammer. You don't want to be awake for that. It doesn't really hurt. The drugs will mess you up for the entire day. You will be high as a kite, and likely not remember the whole day. There is some huge discomfort while your head is packed with gauze, but it shouldn't hurt too bad. Just an ache, or throb, which painkillers can numb. Your mouth heals really fast if you keep things clean, and there really are not a lot of nerves back there to cause real pain. Be sure you have someone to watch you, and not leave you alone while you sleep it off later. You don't want to sleep with a mouth full of gauze without someone to make sure you don't choke.

[Hazel]

My older brother had his taken out a year ago. He didn't complain too much, I don't think, but they gave him stitches that were supposed to dissolve after a few weeks, and he had an alumni band performance a few days after they were taken out. Blew them out into the mouthpiece of his tuba. He said that that hurt more than the surgery to take them out. Haha, found that funny for some reason. They put me under to remove my wisdom teeth. It is definitely the way to go. I have some friends who are dentists and oral surgeons. Digging those puppies out can be a real bitch. They literally need to pry them out of your head with pliers and a hammer. You don't want to be awake for that. It doesn't really hurt. The drugs will mess you up for the entire day. You will be high as a kite, and likely not remember the whole day. There is some huge discomfort while your head is packed with gauze, but it shouldn't hurt too bad. Just an ache, or throb, which painkillers can numb. Your mouth heals really fast if you keep things clean, and there really are not a lot of nerves back there to cause real pain. Be sure you have someone to watch you, and not leave you alone while you sleep it off later. You don't want to sleep with a mouth full of gauze without someone to make sure you don't choke. That does not sound promising, seeing as I have this horrible phobia of choking to death...

[Zhaylin]

I was going to slowly back away from this thread without traumatizing you, but it seems others have already written some hard truths so I'll add my 2 cents. Ask for a Valium before you go or something else to relax you. Ask to be put under for the surgery. When I was about 22 years old or so I had moved from Florida to WV to stay with my grams. Some of my teeth were in horrible shape. My molars were actually crumbling. Some canines had been eatten away by cavities in the area between those and other teeth which formed gaps. While in WV I qualified for a degree of assistance. But my grams still had to pay out of pocket for a lot of it. She worried that when I returned to FL, my teeth would get worse and I would have no help. So she found a shady dentist who agreed to pull out each and every one of my teeth over the course of about a month. I still have nightmares about that time. Every week I went in the dentist had to use more and more medicine to numb me. He eventually ask my grams if I abused drugs lol because he used enough meds to knock out an entire football team plus the coach and I was still FEELING the extractions (and no, I wasn't on drugs). He had to stand on the lift to the chair a couple of times to use the full of his body weight to remove my healthy teeth. A was picking bone fragments out of my gums a year later. That said, I would advise you to have all of them removed at the same time so you don't build a tolerance to the numbing agent like I did. Don't drink any alcohol or do any drugs a couple weeks before hand. And once they're pulled, do NOT drink out of a straw of smoke anything like cigarettes (the "sucking" action dislodges the scabs and prolongs healing). Eat soft food or nutritious shakes. You will be in my thoughts and prayers!!! But you should heal quickly so long as you follow the advice given by your dentist. (I never had any cut out. All were pulled, so the Dentist may have extra tips to help you).

[Hazel]

I was going to slowly back away from this thread without traumatizing you, but it seems others have already written some hard truths so I'll add my 2 cents. Ask for a Valium before you go or something else to relax you. Ask to be put under for the surgery. When I was about 22 years old or so I had moved from Florida to WV to stay with my grams. Some of my teeth were in horrible shape. My molars were actually crumbling. Some canines had been eatten away by cavities in the area between those and other teeth which formed gaps. While in WV I qualified for a degree of assistance. But my grams still had to pay out of pocket for a lot of it. She worried that when I returned to FL, my teeth would get worse and I would have no help. So she found a shady dentist who agreed to pull out each and every one of my teeth over the course of about a month. I still have nightmares about that time. Every week I went in the dentist had to use more and more medicine to numb me. He eventually ask my grams if I abused drugs lol because he used enough meds to knock out an entire football team plus the coach and I was still FEELING the extractions (and no, I wasn't on drugs). He had to stand on the lift to the chair a couple of times to use the full of his body weight to remove my healthy teeth. A was picking bone fragments out of my gums a year later. That said, I would advise you to have all of them removed at the same time so you don't build a tolerance to the numbing agent like I did. Don't drink any alcohol or do any drugs a couple weeks before hand. And once they're pulled, do NOT drink out of a straw of smoke anything like cigarettes (the "sucking" action dislodges the scabs and prolongs healing). Eat soft food or nutritious shakes. You will be in my thoughts and prayers!!! But you should heal quickly so long as you follow the advice given by your dentist. (I never had any cut out. All were pulled, so the Dentist may have extra tips to help you). That sounds very traumatizing, but it actually calmed me down a lot. As long as I am put under (and I don't choke on the gauze) I think I'll be fine. The no smoking/drinking/doing drugs won't be a problem, considering I don't do any of that anyway. But that's good to know about the straws, I'll be sure to remember that. Thank you so much! That last part put tears in my eyes. :')

[lagunagirl]

The surgery is easy. Even if they don't put you out, you'll probably be so relaxed it won't matter. They just gave me an IV and didn't actually mean to put me out but I just fell asleep anyway cause I felt so relaxed. Even when I woke up and could feel them tugging at my mouth, I didn't even care, I just half dreamed/daydreamed and waited for it to be over. Getting home sucks, cause you're all swollen and have to keep changing your gauze even though you're in a total daze from the meds anyway. It's not the surgery, it's the aftermath that's really not fun. After you sleep it off though, it's totally fine. I was eating dinner that night and outside playing volleyball with my cousins, and I got all four of my impacted wisdom teeth out. But my brother was on the couch for two days after he got his, and I don't even think they were impacted. It effects people differently but in all, it's one of those things that you just go into thinking "alright, let's get this over with", you deal with it, and then you're glad when it's over even though it's not too horribly terrible.

[TweaK]

My bottom 2 are coming through now. A friend of mine got them removed because they were pushing against his other teeth making his entire denture crooked. However, when he got them removed, the rest of his teeth got fucked up even more. Now -that- is messed up.

[r0ck3t3r]

I had all four of mine removed on the same day. The drugs they gave me were so good, I don't recall any of it. I'm glad I forgot what those pills were called.

[Conforming Non-Conformist]

From experience, things could be a lot worse than a bit of gum pain. Imagine having your jaw removed and then compare that perceived pain to the pain of having a few little teeth pulled. I had four taken out...two protruded and two under the gum. I was given the "laughing gas" , then a shot of demerol to put me under. I told them before surgery that tylenol 3 hurts my stomach (maybe it doesn't...heheh) and they prescribed me percacet or oxycocet. They were a lot more powerful and numbed the pain. In comparison tho, i smoked a joint about a week after surgery and the pain relief from that was notivcable in 10 minutes where the oxycocet took 40 mins. The oill lasts longer but then you kinda come down weird where a joint doesnt last as long but then you just get burnt out. The only advice i could give is just to go with it. You have to get it done wether you worry about the pain and experience or not, that will not change. Just keep positive about it. Its an experience that you will have once and never again. (unless you are some sort of mutant freak that can re-grow wisdom teeth??! )

[Jhony]

Can you actually go through life without having to remove your wisdom teeth? My orthodontist said I needed to remove mine (I'm 15), but my dad didn't do an oppointment.

[lagunagirl]

From experience, things could be a lot worse than a bit of gum pain. Imagine having your jaw removed and then compare that perceived pain to the pain of having a few little teeth pulled. You have to get it done wether you worry about the pain and experience or not, that will not change. Just keep positive about it. I don't even recall it being painful at all. Maybe a little bit, but the only part that sucked was having a big glob of bloody gauze in my mouth for a few hours and trying to get up to change it when I was so drugged up and dizzy! haha that sucked, but the pain was nothin

[Odd_Nonposter]

Can you actually go through life without having to remove your wisdom teeth? My orthodontist said I needed to remove mine (I'm 15), but my dad didn't do an oppointment. My dad still has all of his. On a side note, one of mine is just starting to erupt from the gumline. Doesn't feel weird at all.

[Amethyst Star]

It doesn't really hurt. The drugs will mess you up for the entire day. You will be high as a kite, and likely not remember the whole day. There is some huge discomfort while your head is packed with gauze, but it shouldn't hurt too bad. Just an ache, or throb, which painkillers can numb. Your mouth heals really fast if you keep things clean, and there really are not a lot of nerves back there to cause real pain. I was put under and honestly it was rather anticlimactic. The IV went in, I was sitting there completely aware of what was going on, and then all of a sudden I heard the words "Okay, you're done!" I looked up at the dental assistant, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. I stood up from the chair without a problem and then walked out to the car. My mom would have liked to have stopped by the mall (as it's an hour away from where we live) and I felt up to it, but we figured it was in my best interests to go home. The gauze didn't bug me too much, but I think we had to buy a little more than he gave me as my upper-left gum cavity decided to bleed just a little bit longer than the rest. No big deal. I was starting to eat normal food again after about two or three days, though nothing I really had to chew on. I had a little bit of discomfort, but as long as you keep the ice packs on your mouth, you should be fine. It's a standard procedure, so you'll be fine. You can ask the surgeon any questions at the pre-op and you'll most likely be glad to have them out. All my teeth came in to some degree and they grew a little outwards (if that makes sense). I'd end up biting the inside of my cheeks and oh that hurt! Since I had my teeth extracted, I haven't had that problem since It was the cold I contracted three days later that killed me. I took the pain killers I'd received for my sore throat rather than any mouth pain. Ugh!

[Specialis Sapientia]

While I was brushing teeth today I saw something, It was the wisdom teeth growing up from the gum, I see a little of the tooth, like tip of the iceberg I hope they won't become a problem

[Licity]

I had three removed last summer. I asked to be put under for it, and to be honest, the worst part was the needle. I hate needles. Anyway, I freaked out as they gave me some nitrous oxide and hooked me up to an IV, but I sat there with saline solution for about 10 seconds, and the next thing I know I'm in a recovery room with my mouth full of gauze. Don't worry about choking, the blood from the cuts helps the gauze stick in place. Also, don't be shy about painkillers. I think I was prescribed hydrocodone? and took it as often as the instructions said to. I felt almost no pain throughout the whole thing, the most discomfort was from the amnesia and dizziness I got from the general anesthesia(which you should definitely ask for, my insurance refused to cover it but was worth every penny).

[Xox]

Mine grew out a couple of years ago, which was painful. I didn't get them removed however, they don't bother me at all. I doubt I will. Some of the stuff you guys said has got me paranoid though.

[GySi]

Mine were growing sideways, and ruining the 3 years of braces I had prior, as a result I needed to get braces for a second time after the big pull. So, I was knocked out and the surgeon got to work with some big pliers I suppose. I woke up, got given some drugs and went home. That night and the next day my cheeks were kind of puffy, but I had no pain and kept to soft foods like yogurt, ice-cream and jelly. I think the worst part was waking up the day after with a huge blood clot rolling around my mouth lol.