Wisdom teeth *update pg2*

[monarchsfan16]

Search is not working, so although I know all this stuff has been asked before I'm asking again.
I've got 4 impacted wisdom teeth coming out Thursday morning. This will be my first time under anesthesia so I'm kind of nervous about that. Well, the whole thing in general.
Any advice on anything that goes along with wisdom teeth extractions? I've gotten all the presurgery instructions from the oral surgeon's office, but any advice to make recovery go more smoothly? Any helpful hints?

 

[christineann]

My daughter had hers out this summer, and she had excess bleeding about 12 hours later. We soaked tea bags in ice water for a few minutes (last resort for her - she doesn't like tea) and then she put them over the areas and closed her jaws. Immediate relief!

Good luck to you. It can be tough at first, but then it's over.

 

[Pop Daddy]

just make sure your dentist anit one of them Pervs, you read about them, they get you under and who knows what , this is why only women dentist can work on my teeth

 

[momrek06]

FIRST AND FOREMOST....NO STRAWS AT ALL!!! Very important but sorry to say I forget why...My DS had his out last August and this was most important...something about the clotting factor....anyway your Dentist will tell you if you ask....NO STRAWS!!!

Get some ICE PACKS from CVS before Thursday and have them all ready when you get home.
Take the meds from the Dentist exactly like he/she says. My DS had pain pills and an antibiotic!
TIVO allot of good shows NOW and when you get home, lay low and do not get on the phone. REST! My DS slept allot but did sit outside on our deck one hour to two hours a day the first two days. Know your limitations and go back to the couch or your bed. You will be fine in about 5 days. DS had allot of pudding and milk shakes.

GOOD LUCK! Post us when you are feeling up to it!!!

 

[ColoradoBuffaloMom]

My 16 DD had her wisdom teeth out at Christmas time. She ate lots of Jamba Juices (no straws though) and raman. Applesauce and pudding are good too.

Follow the schedule for pain medicine the doctor gives you even if it is around the clock the first day or so. That's what Mom's are for We want to help our babies even if you are teenagers.

Keep ice packs on as much as possible-it helps with swelling.

It will be a rough few days but you will be ok. Let us know how you do.

 

[Lisa_Belle]

Alternate hot and ice packs as directed and you won't have much swelling or bruising.

Also, in addition to the NO STRAWS (very important advice), you will get a little syringe thingie to fill with water and clean the gunk out of your teeth. Use this often and well so you don't get dry sockets. You DO NOT want to get dry sockets. Under any circumstances. I had a male friend who did not heed this advice, and woe was him.

If your surgeon didn't give you a detailed instruction sheet, get on WebMD and search for one. Just follow it to the letter and you'll be OK.

Oh, you will need to have someone stay with you for a couple of days, especially if you're on good pain meds.

 

[musicotb]

I had all 4 removed last summer. Took PERFECT care of them and still got a dry socket. At first they said it was jsut food stuck in there, so they gave me a syringe to clean out to wound, but it turned out to be a nasty dry socket. AWFUL pain, and to fill that they don't put you under anesthetic. Turned out that if you're on birth control, it WAY ups your chance to get dry socket, but no one bothers to tell you until after the fact =-(
Avoid anything with lettuce - even after you think it's started to heal, it get stuck in there. I am trying to think what else helped... the straws thing is accurate - don't use them. brushing them with very warm water does help after a few days. Oh - if they put you on a painkiller (APAP) and it doesn't work well enough, you can take 4 ibuprofens at a time (800mg) and it does WONDERS! you can only take 800mg every 8 hours, though - not more than 2400mg a day or your liver with freak out.
I've hear people who have no problem with it, and then there are people like me who take perfect care and things still go wrong. Oh, and you become VERY honest when you are coming out of your anesthetic... I guess I told my surgeon that my friend who was my driver was a terrible cook and I wouldn't be letting her make me anything to eat. whoops. At least my friend thought it was funny, though.

 

[dcfromva]

monarchsfan16,
My DS-17 just had all 4 of his wisdom teeth pulled this past Saturday. He did not go under, just used the novacaine option.

If you do a search on google, you will find a lot more recommendations to aid in your recovery.

The reason they don't want you to use a straw is to avoid disturbing the blood clot that forms--for some reason (they don't know why exactly), this increases your risk of dry socket--a complication which is an infection of the bone from where your teeth were pulled. So, no sucking or spitting for that reason.

Be prepared for your face to be swollen. The swelling peaks at day 2-3 post surgery. The ice packs help with the swelling.

In addition to having ice packs, you will want to check with the oral surgeon on which type of anti-inflamitory drug they will want you to use post op and make sure you have some. They had DS use OTC Motrin in addition to a prescription for a pain killer (just a 2 day supply for that). It would have been great if we could have had that prescription filled in advance, but I'm not sure they do that. The pain was most accute on the first day and decreased each day. DS said the pain was well managed with what he received. Today (day 4) he was down to 1 Motrin every 5-6 hours today for pain relief.

You will also want to make some Jello--the recomendation is for a clear diet at first--clear broths, popsicles, and then moving to a soft diet--puddings, mashed potatoes, ice cream et'c. I made a pumpkin pie for DS which he enjoyed on the 2nd day. You want to get these sorts of foods in advance. Depending on your pain medication, you may not be able to drive for a couple of days.

DS enjoyed watching DVD's with his Dad over the weekend. DH could keep an eye on him and make sure he was doing okay. DS went back to school today, but he was pretty wiped out when he came home.

-DC

 

[lyeag]

For everyone it is different. I took pain pills the day they came out and went to school the next. I even went out with friends the next day. ( I was 17 at the time) Follow the instructions to the letter and take it slowly. I didn't have any problems other than some swelling and discomfort for a few days.

On a lighter note... I remember when they woke me up and asked me how I felt. Everyone cracked up when I answered, "Like I am sucking on somebody's sweatsock!" My mouth was full of packing and it was really dry. Yuck!

 

[KarenAylwood]

The best advice I got about getting my wisdom teeth out:

Once you get home, take two long tube socks, fill each of the bottom part with ice, safetypin the bottoms (toes) together and then tie it around your face (tie the open ends of the socks together on top of your head, the safety pin will be under your chin).
This way, I had ice on my jaw constantly and had hardly ANY swelling. I had slight bruising that showed up a few days later but you could hardly even tell.

You also look completely ridiculous which is a plus too.

Also, if you're still bleeding once you're done and plan on going to sleep when you get home (which, plan or not- you probably will), prop yourself up and keep moist tea bags or cotton in your mouth.

I thought I was done bleeding, slept an hour and when my mom came in to check on me, I sat up and blood POURED out of my mouth all over me (and yes, mom went in to PANIC MODE). I had been bleeding the whole time but was so numb I couldn't tell!!

 

[Cindy B]

DAre I even say this? I did not go under (my health insurance did not cover it) but got four yes four novocaine shots.

Getting my wisdom teeth out hurt more than having my two children. I am not a baby pain wise and my kids were almost 10 pound babies.... but the wisdom teeth hurt more!

 

[we3disneygo]

I got mine out in Jan. just follow the directions the dentist give you, keep ice on it, I lost about 5 lbs. that week!!

 

[mskani]

I just wanted to say that the advice that you have received is very good. I had two wisdom teeth taken out on 5/20 and then had to go back in on 5/24 to have some bone removed from my gum. The second procedure hurt like h***!!

My jaw is just now returning to normal--as in I can open my mouth without having any discomfort. Of course my dh liked the fact that it has been quiet around the house lately.

Good Luck!

 

[wdwfam]

I'm sorry to hear all the horror stories here. DS21 just had all four out a week ago. He slept most of the first day, and the next we went shopping and ate out. He had very little swelling, no bruising. In fact, in less than 24 hours, his pain level was controlled with Advil. He was actually ready to go back to work but had taken the weekend off just in case. He ate whatever he felt like after about 36 hours. I had the same experience 20+ years ago. No problems whatsoever. Everyone is different. Good luck and try not to worry too much. The dreading part is usually the worst.

 

[lisajl]

Def. get the pain meds, just in case. Everyone has different pain tolerance levels.
My DD used a hoodie to help her. She put on the sweatshirt/we put ice packs on either side of her face/she pulled the strings tight/ice packs stayed in place while she slept.

A friend came to see her the next day and decided she was never getting her wisdom teeth out. DD had very minimal bruising, I mean very minimal and her friend just about fainted.

 

[thinkerbell]

Originally posted by wdwfam
I'm sorry to hear all the horror stories here. DS21 just had all four out a week ago. He slept most of the first day, and the next we went shopping and ate out. He had very little swelling, no bruising. In fact, in less than 24 hours, his pain level was controlled with Advil. He was actually ready to go back to work but had taken the weekend off just in case. He ate whatever he felt like after about 36 hours. I had the same experience 20+ years ago. No problems whatsoever. Everyone is different. Good luck and try not to worry too much. The dreading part is usually the worst.

Ditto.
This was my son exactly except he is 20 and he had his out this past Friday. He has had no problems at all. We made him stay overnight with us just so we could watch him but he did great. I also had mine out about 20 years ago with no problems.

 

[monarchsfan16]

Thanks everyone!
Virtually all of my friends have had some sort of horror story with theirs. Everything from dry socket to abcesses to allergic reactions to meds that had them throwing up for weeks. You get the picture.
I'm sort of a baby with dental procedures. I've been through braces, a root canal, cavities, and having a tooth capped, but it takes a lot of effort to get in that chair. Tomorrow should be interesting I had a hard time sleeping last night so apparently I'm more nervous about this than I thought
We stocked up on soft foods over the weekend. Lots of pudding, jello, applesauce, popsicles, etc. Felt like I was out shopping for braces tightening again

 

[monarchsfan16]

Well people asked for an update
I'm home, and have been for about an hour. They all said I did great. I sort of woke up part way through, but the next thing I knew everyone but one nurse was gone, so they must have noticed I was coming to. I'm all done with the gauze, the bleeding is pretty much over. My tongue is finally regaining feeling; it was really numb and felt like it weighed about 10 pounds for awhile. My top lip is normal, but the bottom one is still numb and swollen. They have me on penicillin, vicodin, and something to keep swelling down. It was a blast trying to swallow all the pills when I couldn't feel where they were in my mouth I'm getting pretty sleepy so it'll probably be naptime soon, but for now I'm in the recliner watching Gilmore Girls reruns and surfing the net (Love my laptop) So far no real pain, but then again everything is still numb, but I took the pain meds with everything else like I was supposed to. Icing every 15 minutes for 15 minutes.
I'm really glad to have this over, even though I know there's still pain in my future

 

[Lynn CC]

to you. I'm glad it's over for you and that you won't experience any problems. I and DS who had them out a couple of summers ago had an awful time, DS a little more than me it took him 8 days of in-bed recovery.

Take it easy!