Wow, great response - many thanks to all of you who took the time to relate your experiences. Even though a couple of the stories made me feel rather queasy :dizzy: none of you seem to have sustained long standing emotional or physical damage!

Seems like the most important things to remember are: don't use straws or smoke, learn the art of meditation beforehand, demand lots of drugs and get in a good supply of pudding (Hunts fat-free, sugar-free chocolate fudge sounds good)!

SAPF - You're at a higher level on the evoluntionary scale! Since wisdom teeth are no longer required, nature is simply phasing them out. I don't know what that says about Gretchen though...5? :p

Sandi - the appointment with the Oral & Maxillofacial surgeon is November 15, so I still have a couple of weeks of stomach churning. :(

EVERYONE, I really want to thank you for showing compassion - those of you who share my phobia (or dislike) of dentistry and those who can't understand what all the fuss is about, yet still extend *hugs*, its much appreciated. At the other message boards I visit the advice was pretty much "suck it up and deal" :lol:

Jill -

I have a huge dental phobia. So, I'll say--the right surgeon matters.

I had a talented man who (while I was completely knocked out) extracted 4 impacted teeth (which required a mouth full of stitiches). I had one little bruise and no swelling, no pain. I was a bit nausous a couple days later because of the pain pills prescribed but I just switched to over the counter stuff.

I also recommend becoming educated on the subject. It will make you feel better knowing a million other people have gone through this same process:

http://my.webmd.com/hw/health_guide_atoz/tm6328.asp
http://www.tooth.net/info/wisdommain.htm
http://www.animated-teeth.com/wisdom...th_removal.htm

I see we posted at the exact same time Jess! Thanks for the links, you thoughtful wench ;) xox

OK, this is slightly gruesome, but there's a moral attached. When I was 22, I was told I had to have all four severely impacted wisdom teeth out, or else risk having all my orthodontically-improved straight teeth be re-squeezed into a mangled mess. So they told me I could have the procedure done with general anesthesia or the gas, but they *strongly* suggested the G.A. because of the level of impaction (is that a word?).

So the day of, I waltzed in, ready to be in a state of semi-unconsciousness when I left. I sat in the chair, and they stuck me with needles. Then again, they stuck me with needles... Oops, looks like that person can't find a vein! Let's try in the hand. Nope, can't find one there, either. Back to the other arm. No usable vein. Finally, the dentist says, "we're going to have to do this with just the gas."

Now, at this point, I should have protested... "You people are professionals, now find a freakin' vein -- I know I have them!!!!" Instead, I acquisesced and regretted it immensely. I'm a mild dental weenie. I'm not crazy about going, but I don't fear it too badly, either. HOWEVER, being awake during this procedure was not something I'd ever do again. They literally had to break the teeth apart to get them out of there. The smell, the pressure, and the noise was so intense that I had tears streaming down my face the whole time.

The after wasn't so bad, except for mild-ish pain and bruising (note: bags of frozen corn and peas make for great icepacks!). But I would never, ever, advise anyone with severely impacted wisdom teeth to do this without general anesthesia. That's the moral. Make them put you under!!!! Otherwise, the whole thing would have been not-so-bad.

Jilly, sweetie, you can do this! I've never had mine out so I don't have any advice or wisdom to share, but if the posts from your fellow dental weenies are any indication, it really shouldn't be all that bad, as long as they put you out, of course. And the pain afterwards sounds to be pretty manageable. All in all, it needs to be done, so just get it over with and I'm sure you'll be glad you did when it's done, or soon thereafter, at least. Be strong, be brave, and you'll be fine. Good luck!!

Beverly

I agree. You've hiked up a mountain or two and back down, this should be no problem for you.

As for me, I guess I was lucky. My four back molars rotted and had to be pulled when I was in junior high so all 4 of my wisdom teeth came in on their own and just took the place of those molars. Of course I wish I took better care of my teeth because all 4 of them have had cavities and are now crumbling and will probably have to be pulled anyway.

dawnyal. my teeth are in horrible shape too. i had 2 baby teeth left over and i just lost one of those a few weeks ago. i had never had a cavity so i had no idea what they even looked like and this tooth that came out was all sorts of cavitied up. it was nasty. i'm just waiting for the other one to come out now. when i get through school and can get insurance i'll get them taken care of.

Eeeek, Jennifer, what an experience! :fr: I'll be sure to insist on total sedation. No doubt I'll have a couple of veins bulging from my forehead by the time I take to the chair and they can use them if need be! :lol:

I've never heard of grown women still having baby teeth Shelley, what happened to the permanent teeth that were supposed to replace them? Did they just not grow in? :?:

Dawnyal, its rather a mixed blessing to have lost your molars and have the wisdom teeth grow in, only to have them at risk now. I don't understand why I have problems with my teeth - goodness knows I take care of them and have checkups religiously, yet there's always a cavity or root canal waiting (I have so many crowns I cringe when I look at my x-rays and see all the little screws). Yet, my brother Jack (I kid you not) never has a problem! Its just not fair :mad:

My dear supportive Boiaby - as usual you're the voice of reason. Yes, it does need to be done, so I'll just get it over and done with and savour the opportunity to play the drama queen to the hilt afterwards :devil:

i had never heard of it either.... but i guess it happens. it also happened to my mom. she still had her 2 baby teeth (hers were on the bottom though) when she had to get dentures. LOL

according to the dentist my permanent teeth for those teeth just never formed.

Hi,
I'm so so about dentists. I don't enjoy going but my dentist is the best ever! I had 3 wisdom teeth taken out 5 years ago when I was 28. They were impacted and needed to be drilled off my jaw bone so I went into hospital for the day and had a general anaestetic. I have a low pain threshold - I'm talking big baby! I had no after pain at all and hardly any bruising. When I went back to have my stitches out the doctor said "did we do anything with you?" I was told to use a salt and water mouthwash and I also put a few drops of tea tree oil in water and used that. My mouth bled a lot for a few hours after the surgery. I had the next day off work but should have had more as I was really really tired.
People told me horror stories but it was fine. Its different for different people.
Hope it goes well!
love Annie

I know you've all been on the edge of your seats waiting for a dental update :D

I was supposed to see the surgeon for a consultation on November 15, but I've been in agony so he agreed to see me this morning. He was very nice and reassuring (he sort of looks like Captain Kangaroo, which was strangely comforting). Anyway, one of the teeth is severely infected, which explains the pain and swelling. He gave me a prescription for some newfangled antibiotic called Ratio-Clindamycin (the warning label says "This medication should be used only for serious infections because infrequently there are severe intestinal problems that can ocur" - nice). More importantly, he gave me painkillers (I took one about half an hour ago...me is happy now). ANYWAY, he says the teeth have to come out as soon as the raging infection has subsided a bit - so he's ripping the suckers out this Thursday morning at 11 a.m.!! GULP.

Deep breaths...everything will be just fine...the anticipation is worse than the actual event...the horror stories are few and far between...be grateful I don't have 5...note to self: throw out straws...Don't be such a wuss!!!!

You'll do fine, you'll do fine!! Just think--this time next week you won't be in agony anymore, and you'll be wondering what the heck you were worried about.

Good luck Jill. I learned the hard way a few years ago that a bad infection for some reason or another can prevent an anesthetic from working to its fullest so waiting for the infection to go down is a good thing.