Wisdom tooth …not so wise!
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read in this article. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor, go to the emergency department, or call 911 immediately.
Hey there!
I hope you are doing well and grateful for being healthy and fit during this pandemic.
Today, I’m sharing my experience with my wisdom tooth removal surgery.
Yes! I know it's something almost everyone has to go through and hopefully its a once in a lifetime experience.
This might be a bit detailed, but I have tried to cover all the things I didn't get to view or read anywhere. Here was my pre-surgery thought process:
Do I really need to get my wisdom tooth removed?
Depending on your condition, are you experiencing pain, infection, or any kind of swelling with discomfort? I was having some swelling and a proper X-ray showed signs of infection too. This came up during my regular dentist appointment, so I would say keep a regular check on your dental health.
Can I push the surgery any further?
Depends on what the oral surgeon says after looking at your condition. Many factors might want to make you re-think if you want to get this done right away or wait for some time. Some people get one set of their wisdom teeth out and then go for the other set. I was mostly wondering if I can postpone the surgery for my harmless wisdom tooth, until when I'm 40 or so. The thing with teeth removal that I gathered from reading and taking my dentist’s opinion is that “You’re the youngest you are ever going to be, now” :( The recovery process is much easier when you are younger as compared to getting them done later. Having said that, most people go for it in their teenage years, which is the best thing they can do for themselves.
I was trying to postpone due to fear mostly and others reasons like cost and my availability to take few days off. That brings me to my next point.
What can I do to prepare myself for the surgery?
I know this is a big one and it saved me a lot of trouble, so bear with me. There are a few things that you need to plan ahead of time.
- Prepare yourself mentally for the surgery.
Ask questions to your oral surgeon about the procedure, make choices that benefit you, and clarify your concerns. Some questions that I asked my surgeon were:
What does the procedure look like?
Would I be awake (local anesthesia) or given general anesthesia?
What would the recovery process look like for my case?
How many days should I take off from work?
What do I need to do before the surgery?
How much does it generally hurt?
Specify ahead of time, if you are allergic to any medications.
2. Clear your calendar for at least 4–5 days to rest post-surgery.
Some people feel better in few days while others can take a while to heal. The one thing I wasn't aware of was the fact that the 3rd, 4th, and 5th days are the hardest! I thought that after my second day I would start to feel better, but that wasn't the case. Coincidently, another friend of mine was going through the same procedure and enlightened me about this fact. The pain and swelling are hardest on the 3rd, 4th, and 5th day. Being mentally prepared for this would avoid the shock I went through. My procedure was a bit more complex than usual wisdom tooth removal surgery, so I took 2 weeks to come out of taking my pain meds.
3. Have all the prescribed medicine collected from the pharmacy beforehand. They usually tell you to do that, but in case they don't, I would rather avoid stepping out in that condition.
4. Stock your fridge with liquids, since you won't be able to eat any solids for at least 1 week or more.
I stocked my fridge with these and it really helped me get some energy to digest all the medicines I was taking.
Greek yogurt, ice cream, soups, lentils, mashed potatoes, meal replacement smoothies, slushes, pudding, or any other kind of soft food.
5. Don't go through this alone! Ask a friend to help out or take care of you before you even book the date for your surgery.
I was given general anesthesia and I had no idea what happened once I was put out. After waking up, you are usually not in the best state to make rational choices like driving, walking, or even talking. They also tell all the post-surgery instructions to the person you come with since you won't be at your best listening capacity at that point. Hence, most places require you to come with a friend or family member to escort you back home and wait in the office during the surgery. Even after going home, they recommend you not take any kind of stress, or work, or even lock yourself in a room since there is a possibility you might still be under the effect of general anesthesia or even faint.
Given the change your body is going through, it really helps if someone takes care of you in terms of providing food and medicines on time.
6. Gauze!!! Get some extra gauze!
Now I know that I'm calling it a surgery, and that's because it is one. They have to make incisions based on how your wisdom teeth are positioned and in any kind of surgery, some blood needs to be controlled before and after.
They generally send you home with some gauze to control the bleeding. From my own experience, I had to change my gauze every half hour. That means I was going through 4 pieces of gauze per hour. I ordered some from Amazon, but my oral surgeon sent me home with a bunch too! So that really helped.
The bleeding generally reduces in 24 hours, but you can always stay in touch with your surgeon just to make sure you are doing well.
Post-surgery
1. Avoid smoking, straws, and rinsing to avoid dry sockets.
Your dentist will educate you about this, so I would recommend not reading or googling images as they can make you feel uncomfortable. My oral surgeon strictly prohibited me from rinsing, smoking, or eating food with small particles for the first few days to avoid dry-socket.
2. Do not delay taking your medicines on time.
This is one of the best pieces of advice I can give because the repercussions are extremely painful. Usually, they advise you to take the pain meds every 6 hours, which should be followed strictly. In my case, there were few days when I went past the 6th hour and woke up in the morning with scorching pain and could not even take the food needed to take medicines. Of course, I had to push through that pain to take my meds but that was not a pleasant experience. It would be best if you wake up around the 5th hour, eat and take meds by the time the 6th hour starts.
3. Rest…Take it easy on your eyes and body in general
Tooth extraction hurts. Not just in the mouth but it affects your nerves running through your eyes, throat, and head. I had severe swelling in my throat and chin area for the first 4 days, and then pain then translated to my ear, head, and throat. Apart from taking your pain meds, you can help your body heal better by resting and not stressing your eyes. I used to dim the lights and usually take naps when needed to help with the pain.
4. Pamper yourself!
Having gone through such a drastic event, lower your expectations from your body when it is already doing its best to heal from the surgery. Since you cant run or exercise in general, don’t give yourself a guilt trip every time you eat an ice cream or drink a smoothie or any food that you wouldn’t usually take. You can always make smart choices by getting non-fat, low sugar, healthy drinks, but that’s not my point! There were times when my mind was frustrated with the pain and could not take it any longer. At such times, taking care of yourself and pampering yourself with what makes you feel good, works wonders!
5. Prepare a sedentary todo list
I was prepared to take some time off and apart from taking rest, I planned for some activities that would keep me entertained and busy to distract from the pain. Some examples are, painting, coloring, binge-watching a series or movie, online games, journaling, and so much more.
There were a few things that I experienced and some tips that helped me and they might not be applicable to everyone, but I would share them anyway.
Around the end of my first week, I started feeling a tingly sensation in the teeth that weren't a part of the surgery. There would be some pain around them that would make me uncomfortable. I wasn't sure why it was happening but, my friend and I did experience that.
I noticed that keeping a pillow under my neck helped me reduce the pain I felt when I woke up the next morning. Might not be helpful in everyone’s case.
A cold compress helps with the swelling and even though it feels good, the hot compress helped me with the soreness past week 1.
I visited my oral surgeon exactly after 1 week just to make sure everything looks good. I would recommend doing that, as it gave me a sense of surety that everything looks good and I am progressing towards healing.
Having a friend go through the same stuff kind of helped me, as I had a buddy who would get how painful it really is and exchange some great tips. Well, my point is that you can always speak with people around you and communicate your thoughts with someone who makes you feel better.
Since you wouldn't be speaking for quite a while, I recommend using a suitable app from the play store that converts text to speech. I used such an app, and it was a life-saver! I would say all the things I want to, and it did the basic job of speaking for me. I also used a buzzer to call someone in case I needed some help and I wouldn't be able to call out their name. These things seem silly but are really useful when you cant speak easily and have not many people around.
Well, that's it for now. If you feel differently about your experience, or feel like adding to this please feel free to comment and share your own experience with me. Hope that article helps with preparing for the surgery better.
Take care!
