|
A visit to the dentist can be traumatic enough, but what if he tells you that your wisdom teeth have got to go? Before you descend into a blind panic, and take a vow to eat baby food for the rest of your life, take heart: you can survive having your wisdom teeth pulled, and it certainly helps to know what to expect and the best ways to deal with it.
How much will it hurt?
The answer to this question varies from patient to patient. Find out if your teeth are to be extracted under general or local anaesthetic. If you're just having a local anaesthetic, it means that you will have an injection and undergo the procedure in the dentist's chair. This is the approach usually taken when there are only one or possibly two wisdom teeth present, and it is not expected that the extraction will be complicated.
If you're having a general anaesthetic, you're in for a short hospital stay. This is the option which is more advisable in cases where there are either three or four wisdom teeth causing problems, and where the teeth are impacted or growing at complicated angles.
Whichever category you fall into, rest assured that pain relief is simply a part of both procedures. Your dentist is an experienced professional who can gauge the level of discomfort, and prescribe or recommend the appropriate pain relief accordingly.
It's also important to remember that different people have widely varying pain thresholds, and what is painful for one person is mildly irritating to another. If you're still worried, get yourself a stock of some strong pain relievers, and have them on hand in case you need them.
The bottom line is that even if you DO feel some pain after the operation, you won't experience the discomfort for long, as you will have the proper medication made available to you .
Will I look like the Elephant Man afterwards?
Not necessarily. The amount of facial swelling and bruising varies incredibly and is difficult to accurately predict. As a guide, though, the fewer teeth you are having out, and the less complicated the procedure, the less swelling you will experience.
If this aspect really worries you, it's a good idea to schedule the operation when you can take some time off work, or, alternatively, work from home for a little while, until the swelling subsides and you don't feel quite so self-conscious.
What are the consequences of NOT having the teeth out?
If you're thinking it would just be a lot easier to NOT go through with the procedure, think again. There are always good reasons for recommending having wisdom teeth extracted, and it would be wise to discuss the consequences of not following his advice with your dentist.
Here's a classic example of the potential downside of not attending to those troublesome wisdom teeth. Maybe you've endured the discomfort and irritation of braces for years, and finally have the straight teeth you've always wanted. If you have just achieved the perfect smile and now have wisdom teeth looming below your gumline, be warned that all that good work could be undone in a matter of months.
As the new teeth break through the gumline, they'll force your other teeth to move forward, out of their way, to allow them the space they need in your mouth. The result is that the other teeth rearrange themselves to acccommodate the new teeth - you could very easily find yourself with a mouthful of crooked teeth once again. The idea of starting again with the braces is simply not very appealing, is it?
Once the process of having your wisdom teeth pulled is demystified, you can see that the whole process is not that traumatic. Just like any operation, it may involve some pain and swelling. But, in that scenario, you need only to take some medication and a couple of days off work. And, as the above example shows, the consequences of not following your dentist's advice are potentially much more serious.
| 
