Fear of Wisdom Teeth extraction

[Brittany93]

I can't bear to go through with it I "need" (there opinion, not mine) to get all four out, under general anesthesia. But I would like to know what my options are...and I would like to find a really good surgeon...

I'm thinking of switching dental providers first. And then asking my new providers about it.

It really freaks me out, can I have a family member in the room with me? My teeth aren't hurting me. They said my teeth may get crooked...but still ugh!! I'm looking at other threads on here, and some are using ibuprofen instead of the vicodin they give you. What are the downsides of vicodin?

Did anyone not do it? I don't want to be X number of years down the road, and have it bite me in the a**. How do I get over this fear?

P.S. I need to go in for a cleaning, but don't want them bugging me about the surgery.

[palmgal]

I went years ago and as I recall I was under twilight sedation so I was not totally under. When I was in graduate school I had two emergency root canals and it was absolutly the most awful nagging pain. When they said I had to have the wisdom teeth out I had them removed for fear of potential future pain and problems with the wisdom teeth. Mine were pretty badly impacted when they were removed, it is always fun to hear the surgeon say, "well, I have seen worse, but not many" before operating lol. But the actuall surgery and recovery went far better than I expected. I had them removed Friday and was back in classes Monday.

Good luck!

[Traceround]

I had all four of mine done under general. Mine were coming in sideways and pushing my teeth out of alignment which meant that my bite was getting wonky. It was causing more jaw pain (I have TMJD) and so it had to be done.

Not too bad. I hurt for about a day but the Vicodin took care of most of that. I was swollen for a bit. I had some aches for about a week or two afterward that was controlled with Ibuprophen.

The downsides of Vicodin is that it is a narcotic and some people are sensitive to them. It makes most people dopey and sleepy and some people feel pretty silly on it as well. I wouldn't take Ibuprophen at first because it just isn't strong enough to kill the pain. Plus it could cause extra bleeding. However, once there is healing it is fine.

Also, don't use straws. You can do it! It will be aokay.

[deditus]

My wisdom teeth messed up my pretty darn (naturally) straight teeth and I wish I had gotten them out as a teen. They moved a lot two years ago, when I was 28, and caused my other teeth to turn. They haven't bugged me since, nor ever even slightly moved out of the gums. I will not get them pulled as I am now deathly afraid of GA, having had a bad reaction to anesthesia before and as far as I know that is my only option as long as they stay in the gums.

[LDSmomma]

I had all four of mine removed under general anesthesia, and it was a cinch. I was totally conventional back then (not crunchy at all), so I didn't think twice about any of the drugs. I was in high school, and my mom was with me 'til I fell asleep. I had NO pain whatsoever afterward.

DH had his removed a few years ago, and they wouldn't let me go back with him.

[Mommymama]

Originally Posted by Brittany93

I can't bear to go through with it I "need" (there opinion, not mine) to get all four out, under general anesthesia. But I would like to know what my options are...and I would like to find a really good surgeon...

I'm thinking of switching dental providers first. And then asking my new providers about it.

It really freaks me out, can I have a family member in the room with me? My teeth aren't hurting me. They said my teeth may get crooked...but still ugh!! I'm looking at other threads on here, and some are using ibuprofen instead of the vicodin they give you. What are the downsides of vicodin?

Did anyone not do it? I don't want to be X number of years down the road, and have it bite me in the a**. How do I get over this fear?

P.S. I need to go in for a cleaning, but don't want them bugging me about the surgery.

I would not have the wisdom teeth removed unless absolutely necessary. Wisdom teeth removal may cause cavitations in the future. Besides you may need the teeth in case you need a bridge in the future. Go to a good biological dentist for a second opinion.

[prothyraia]

I had all four of mine out at once, under local anesthesia.

It wasn't the most terrible thing in the world (once I was all numbed up, anyway). The hardest part was keeping the swelling under control afterwards; if I took my ibuprofen when I needed to things weren't too bad.

Still not fun, but not utter misery.

Edit to add: Two of them were impacted. I also had codeine on top of the ibuprofen, but I really noticed it if I slacked off on the ibuprofen.

[Shellie]

If they aren't giving you trouble, I would get a second and third opinion (or more!) before going through with it. I've had two out, without sedation, and I had to have them out because they eventually decayed since they were only partially erupted. I had them out a few years apart and the one that was actually bony impacted was a very difficult recovery and I have some sort of weird bone fragment/scar tissue thing going on there. No way I'd want to be going through this if I hadn't absolutely needed it out.

My dh was recently told by a new dentist, after years of being told they are fine, that he needs to have all three out (he only got three...silly boy!) due to a couple cavities. They said "we just don't fill cavities in wisdom teeth...we take them out." Not what I've been told in the past. My mom has several fillings in wisdom teeth and prefers that to the one she had extracted. I even had a dentist offer to do a root canal and reconstruction on my first abcessed (adn chipped) WT. There are alternatives to yanking them.

But...even if you have to change dentists...please do NOT neglect cleanings and exams to avoid their pressure about it. I did that for about 5 years and am currently regretting it. I wish I hadn't let the constant nagging and negative talk keep me away from taking care of my teeth!

[russsk]

I avoided the dentist for years because I was afraid of having my wisdom teeth out (I only have two). I finally did it after I went for a cleaning and xrays showed bone loss in my jaw behind the teeth. They had also started causing me some mild pain. I had them out under general anesthesia. Don't remember a thing. They gave me narcotic pain medication, but I didn't really need it. Tylenol was good enough and didn't make me nauseous. DH made me potato soup for a day or two and I was good to go.

[karika]

I had mine removed at age 14. I am sure it was just about $s. mom had insurance... I now have only a few molars that meet to chew with and wish I still had my wisdom teeth. If you think you will be losing any teeth due to cavities, I would say to keep them. Definitely get other opinions if you can, though I don't imagine any dentist would say anything other than 'take them out'. I am of the mind now that they are here for a reason and it is to replace teeth lost as we age. I guess if you have perfect teeth and do not anticipate having some pulled or decay, then the crowding they mention can be for real.

[jeninejessica]

I am absolutely terrified of the dentist, needles, IV's... basically everything involved in having your teeth removed. I had four impacted wisdom teeth taken out about a week and half ago now, and honestly, I am still in shock and amazement about how easy it was. I was lucky enough to find a dentist that I really liked and understood my fears. I asked for a general and he actually persuaded me away from it, due to the longer recovery, complications and need for a breathing tube, which scared me.

We ended up doing it under conscious sedation- I believe the drugs used were fentanyl and Versed. Beforehand I was *freaking* out- I was hyperventilating, and almost crying in the waiting room, to give you an idea of how terrified I was. But the staff were very good, and I was allowed to take my husband in the room with me until I was "out".

As for procedure, i was taken into the operating room, laid down, and the anethesiologist started tapping my hand to get the vein for the IV, he then inserted it while I looked on in wonder- never had one and was terrified. It felt weird to feel the saline, but after 20 seconds or so, someone motioned to my husband that it was time to go- I got nervous thinking that this meant I was as sedated as I was going to get. Turns out he hadn't even started it yet. Once he started the actual meds in the IV drip, it took just seconds and then the next thing I knew, I woke up in recovery.

I was sedated, but not under a general, so technically, I was awake throughout the entire procedure, but I have zero memory of it. No anxiety, no fear, no horrible memory of the sounds in my head, which is one of the things I was most worried about. I woke up and actually *laughed* to myself that it was over and that was it.

It has been the HUGEST relief to have it done and over with. It's so funny to think how much stress I placed on myself for literally years, because I was so scared, when in fact, it was easier than even a cleaning.

Recovery has been twofold- I expected to be more groggy and out of it, like my husband was when he had his out under a general. I was completely alert fro mthe time I woke up onwards, which was good, but also made me more alert to the pain. For pain I was given T3's, as well as an antibiotic and an antinflammatory. There were definately times when the T3's did not completely take away the pain, but it was enough to make it definately bearable, and that's all I need. I would rather that, than be out of it and loopy. I found that taking an extra strength tylenol and an advil at the same time was enough after the second day.

The worst part of recovery is not being able to eat, but I have it harder than most, as I don't eat a lot of the standaards such as yogurt and jello, etc. I ate a lot of soup, eggs, things like that.

I feel so much better now- because the teeth were impacted, I was having a ton of jaw pain allllll the time. It's been years since I didn't feel pressure in my mouth, and I forgot what it was like! IMO, it's definately worth having them out if they've been bothering you.

[ph42295]

I live in PA and had my impacted wisdom teeth removed by Dr. Schelkun and was amazed at how effortlessly he and his staff put me at ease. I was very nervous but Dr. Schelkun obviously knew what he was doing and that definitely made a difference. I had no complications after surgery whatsoever.