Wisdom teeth

[JamesM]

FTR...my experience was all good, and I had it done a few years ago...in my early forties.

 

Glad you are doing well. Follow all rules and you will heal in a short time.

[sweetkiwi]

My good friend and his father have a very prestigious practice back in my hometown. I told him I needed to get my wisdom teeth removed and he seriously told me that it was a bunch of crap.

 

I haven't gotten them out. If they effect me beyond the discomfort of growing in I will consider removing them. But for close to 5 Gs and my DENTIST friend's assurance that it was just a ploy to get money, doesn't sound like a smart thing.

[pink_sugar]

Your situation sounds quite common. Usually there are slight risks with any surgery and the doctor is legally required to disclose all rare scenarios to you before providing the procedure. I remember being freaked out about the slight chance of not waking up from the anesthetic...but these are all things they are legally require to tell you. 1 out of 1000 is extremely slim. The benefits out having them out now to prevent further issues down the road definitely outweighs an extreme scenario.

[anne1707]

My good friend and his father have a very prestigious practice back in my hometown. I told him I needed to get my wisdom teeth removed and he seriously told me that it was a bunch of crap.

 

I haven't gotten them out. If they effect me beyond the discomfort of growing in I will consider removing them. But for close to 5 Gs and my DENTIST friend's assurance that it was just a ploy to get money, doesn't sound like a smart thing.

 

This is not neccessarily the case. I live in the UK and had all 4 wisdom teeth taken out under the NHS - i.e. at no charge to me. On that basis, I would say they thought that there was good reason for having them taken out.

[sweetjasmine]

This is not neccessarily the case. I live in the UK and had all 4 wisdom teeth taken out under the NHS - i.e. at no charge to me. On that basis, I would say they thought that there was good reason for having them taken out.

 

Yeah, basically.

 

And in my case, it'd have been hard to argue that it was useless to remove them when the X-rays clearly showed the practically horizontal wisdom teeth making a run for my back molars. Some people's jaws can accommodate wisdom teeth, but for those of us who can't, it's a very bad idea to just leave them there.

[Eclypse]

Thanks people! Yep I've been icing up my face, and look even better now that I've woken up. I'm anticipating a big blow out soon, but fingers crossed maybe it won't happen. Still no pain either, after only taking 1 pain tablet before going to bed. Hopefully that will skip too, gonna take more meds now after breakfast. I was worried I'd had some sort of nerve damage since half my face was still numb but I woke up with that side tingling and increased sensation. I'm so happy about that. That was my main concern really. Potential nerve damage is what I was freaking out about in the months leading up to this and I read a lot of horror stories before the op. and watched horror movies like The Dentist!

 

My operation cost $1900 for the actual surgeon ($500 was refunded by health insurance), $500 for anaesthetist ($250 refunded) and a couple of hundred for the hospital itself, but that was fully refunded. I could have gone on the public waiting list for free but we decided to just get it done ASAP before the pain got worse or any complications occurred.

 

Thanks for all the useful advice! Even though I feel really good now I'll be taking it easy and monitoring swelling and pain and dry socket. I don't smoke, spit or use straws but I did have to clear my throat yesterday. Hopefully that didn't dislodge the clot.

[sweetjasmine]

Sounds like you're doing just fine!

 

Tomorrow you'll probably look like a chipmunk, but it'll pass. Ice is a great idea. And Arabella's advice on Vicodin is spot on.