Having Teeth Out

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mwic1985
Posts: 70
Joined: Sat Mar 14, 2009 3:02 pm
Location: Reading, UK

Having Teeth Out

#1 Post by mwic1985 »

I have to have 4 teeth out before I get my braces... never had an adult tooth out before... what's it like?? I don't like dentists at the best of times!
--
Marc

blindboarder2008
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Location: in a house that has 4 walls, with lots of rooms!!! in Canada!

#2 Post by blindboarder2008 »

welcome aboard
I have had to get 4 of my wisdom teeth out before, I got them out last june and really it wasn't as bad as I would imagine it was going to be. was there pain after? yes there was but not very much at all. Swelling? for a few days and then it starts to get better! They say swelling usually peaks on the 3rd day and then will usually start to subside from there. eating? its tough for the first little while and you have to be really careful, they suggest to keep to a soft chew diet for at least or 2 weeks depeinding on how things are going and how you are feeling. Recovery? abouta week or 2 to get back to normal acitivites (this also depends whtat means of anesthetic your dentists decides to use, I had ga).

so all in all its not to bad, I had myself thinking that it would be horrible and I'd be in a lot of pain but now that I look back on it, it wasn't really that bad. Good excuse though to relax and hang out at home watching tv or movies!
Braced: March 19th 2008
Impacted wisdom teeth extraction surgery: June 20th 2008 1pm (13 hours of fasting)
Jaw surgery (upper and lower)Lefort 1 with Madable Advancement: June 2nd 2009 @8am!!!! 1 surgery down 2 surgeries to go!!
debrace day: jan 18th 2010!!!! *has 2 fixed retainers and an essix retainer for night time now!

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JHova
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#3 Post by JHova »

i had 8 teeth out before braces. My mouth was numbed and although i could see and feel everything going on during the procedure, i told myself to suck it up and dealt with the pain. It wasn't too bad.

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mwic1985
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Location: Reading, UK

#4 Post by mwic1985 »

8-- ouch, did you have them all out in one go?
--
Marc

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JHova
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#5 Post by JHova »

mwic1985 wrote:8-- ouch, did you have them all out in one go?
haha yeah i had them all out in one go. 4 wisdom and 4 premolars. I couldn't put myself through the pain twice.

Takako
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#6 Post by Takako »

I had 4 premolars taken out before braces. I already had my brackets on at the time - my ortho and my dentist know each other so coordinating stuff is fast!

Your whole mouth will be numbed - this is probably the second most painful if not the most painful part of the procedure! Why try to sugar coat it? For me, the needles were very painful. I had to get a total of 13 shots in my mouth! I have a high tolerance for pain (red head) which unfortunately means I also require a lot of painkillers. I found that it helped to press one of my nails into my fingers during the injections to distract myself.

The specific anesthetic I had can cause your heart to race... I really didn't notice that myself, but I'm not prone to heart problems. I was nervous anyway so how would I have known if my heart was beating fast from the medication or nerves?! lol!

Don't worry if half your face is numb up to your temple and the other half isn't; it just depends on if certain nerves are hit when you're being numbed. This happened to me. I mumbled to him that I could still feel part of my cheek on the one side. The dentist with poke you in the gums as a test: if you can't feel it, everything's good!

After you're numb, the actual extractions don't hurt. You feel a LOT of pressure though, and that can be a little frightening I suppose. It felt like he was going to knock out some of my other teeth at some points! But it doesn't hurt - because of those 13 shots you just got ;) There is some crunching which I guess bothers some people too.

When my first tooth came out I went "Woo hoo!" and the dentists laughed. I guess people don't normally cheer during extractions ;) But I was sooo excited because they were one last step before I could get my wire on!!

IF YOU FEEL ANY PAIN, let them know and they'll inject you more. That's where my 13th injection came from.

I got to keep all four teeth which was cool.

However, there is more to the story: going home. Once your teeth are out of your mouth, you will sit in the chair and bleed for a while. Then they will spend 15 minutes shoving your cheeks so full of gauze you feel like a chipmunk. They'll send you home - with their home phone numbers for emergencies if they're really good like my dentists are. You're still feeling pretty good, if a bit shaky, because your face is still numb.

The drive home wont be bad. Once you get home though, you'll lean over in your seat without thinking, because of course that you think your numb lips are closed... and drool sticky, thick bloody spit all over your pants! Which, if you are like me, you didn't like anyway so this just gives you an excellent reason to be rid of them! lol!

You will use up all of your gauze if you are like me, and bleed for nearly an hour an a half. Seriously, gauze is nasty. You're all drooly, and numb, and it's icky and slimy and bloody... Blech. By now, sadly, the anesthetic will be wearing off and, if like me, you didn't take a dose of that vicodin your kind dentist prescribed, you will now be in considerable pain as your nerves relive the thing you just did to them. I found that watching House alleviated my pain, ironically.

So now you will have four lovely clots! I was scared to even run my tongue over them at first. Watching your gums heal over the socket is pretty cool too.

So that's what extractions were like for me!

cathykay
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#7 Post by cathykay »

I had a very bad experience with getting a tooth pulled but that was due to me not being familiar with the dentist (I didn't like him at all - he had very poor bedside manner), having a previous history of anxiety and panic attacks, and getting queasy at the sight of blood.

My advice to you is:
- Go to a dentist that you are familiar with. Explain that you are nervous, don't like getting dental work done, etc. If he's a good one (unlike the one I went to), he will be very kind, reassure you, and make you feel more at ease.
- Bring an iPod. Ask the dentist if you can listen to some music while he extracts the teeth. It will help keep your mind off of things. There is a cracking sound when he's extracting the tooth, so having headphones in would ensure that you don't have to hear it.
- Have extra gauze at home. They give you some but if you want to change it more frequently, then it's a good idea to have extra. -- When it comes to gauze, I was freaking out because I felt like so much blood was coming out of my mouth. Then my brother came over and told me that it looked worse than it was because it mixes with the saliva in your mouth. Makes sense.
- Have soft foods ready to eat at home.

I'd also like to say that the actual extraction did NOT hurt.

Try not to worry about it! I hope my post didn't scare you!
Image

Ceramic on the top, metal on bottom

My Braces Story! (with pictures!)

Laura1985
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Joined: Mon Jun 01, 2009 6:32 am

#8 Post by Laura1985 »

I had to have 4 teeth out, too. Two wisdom and two molars.The experience varies with everyone- and depending on how it's done. There are two options- general anesthesia and local anesthesia. The first is when you have an IV and are under and completely unaware/sleeping. The second is when you get novacaine snd are awake. I chose local anesthesia and did two teeth at a time, 3 weeks apart- as well as taking valium the night before and right before the procedure, and also had nitrous oxide. For me, local was fine. Between the valium and the NO2 I was completely in lala land! Also, getting shots in the mouth were fine for me because each spot was numbed before the needle.

Recovering is pretty crappy the first and second day- but it gets better! Even though your mouth is aching, in a perverse way I enjoyed getting to lay around at my parents house for several days and it being acceptable to do nothing! :)

Anyhow, your experience will very depending on how you get them out. But just do your best not to freak yourself out. If you find a dentist who sincerely cares and you trust it doesn't have to be a terrible experience!

P.S.- if you do opt to do local, make sure to take an ipod/headphones and just keep your eyes shut and relax. But if you opt for general you won't have to distract yourself- you will wake up and it will be over! :)
Upper: Damon3mx on 6/1/2009
Lower: 7/27/09
4 extractions done in May
Canine exposure eventually

arieswithbraces
Posts: 59
Joined: Wed May 27, 2009 12:06 pm
Location: North Carolina

#9 Post by arieswithbraces »

Takako- I'm pretty sure I'll have my brackets on before my extractions also...so that's make me feel better because at first I thought that sounded out of order!

And Laura1985 is exactly right...every experience varies. I'm TERRIFIED of the dentist so once I went the first time..they kept the appts coming to not let me get a chance to change my mind :D I have to have 2 premolars and 1 wisdom out on the 18th and I will have general anesthesia. It's my OS and I've been to him once before for 2 other wisdom teeth and had a WONDERFUL experience...I remember nothing but the IV in my hand and 100 then someone was calling my name. I didn't have any pain afterwards either, but I did take those painkillers EVERY 4 hours on the dot. I actully don't remember having any pain at all after everything was over. So it's all about who makes you comfortable...and the anesthesia :lol:
1st consult: 4/28/2009
Top Brace: 6/03/09
Extractions: 06/15/09
bottom braces 1/13/2010
**FAST FORWARD**
March 16, 2011 Upper Jaw Surgery~Lefort I 2-piece, BSSO, Genioplasty ( UNC hospital~Dr. Timothy Turvey)
April 19, 2011~Removed splint!
April 20, 2011~1st ortho appt since surgery...back in ligatures and got elastics

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mehl
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#10 Post by mehl »

Having the teeth taken out isn't pleasant, but it's not sore. The worst part is waiting for it to heal before you can eat normal food, which can take days. How long it takes to heal depends on how easily they come out, with more bruising and come trauma taking longer to heal up.

888A
Posts: 7
Joined: Tue Jun 02, 2009 1:29 pm

#11 Post by 888A »

I had 4 bicuspids taken out last Friday, surprisingly it wasn't painful during or after. The oral surgeon was done in about 5 minutes, I couldn't believe how fast it was.

I'm left with 24 teeth now and I'm wondering how many teeth do you guys have after your extraction?

Takako
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Joined: Mon Feb 16, 2009 7:50 pm

#12 Post by Takako »

888A wrote:I had 4 bicuspids taken out last Friday, surprisingly it wasn't painful during or after. The oral surgeon was done in about 5 minutes, I couldn't believe how fast it was.

I'm left with 24 teeth now and I'm wondering how many teeth do you guys have after your extraction?
I have 24 as well. I think you're really lucky you didn't have any pain... It took 5 minutes for one tooth in my case!

embraces
Posts: 6
Joined: Fri May 22, 2009 5:29 am

#13 Post by embraces »

I would've preferred no extractions, however I guess I'm lucky compared to others that I only had to get 2 teeth out (upper 4s - bicuspids).

I wanted it to be over and done with cause that meant a closer step towards my braces but I was scared of the pain I'd have to deal with after the extractions.

So usually they don't give you numbing cream, but because my dentist could see how nervous I was she was nice enough to just give me some however it didn't do ANYTHING though I mean something is better than nothing.

I was scared of needles to begin with and I'll be honest with you, but the needles hurt the most! I just remember thinking to just deal with it because sooner or later it'll be over. So after the million needles I had each hurting less because it was getting numb around the area they got cracking on pulling out my teeth. It felt like an eternity but they got it out and I was like thank god but then I felt dripping blood come down onto my tongue and I tried not to swallow it. Then my second tooth, I remember sighing and the dentist asked me what was wrong and I said that it was taking too long LOL!

So yeah you hear this cracking sound in your jaw and I thought the roots were shattering so I was a bit scared. After the teeth are removed rolled up gauze were put in my mouth and I was told rules like how to avoid a dry socket (which I was scared to death of).

I used up all my gauze in like an hour and had to come back for more. I don't even remember when the anesthetic wore off because it didn't really hurt. I just went to bed and woke up with a puddle of bloody saliva on my quilt. Too much drool so I did spit which isn't recommended but it did nothing to me! Then a few days you just see black in the holes kind of a scary site and in no time I got braces and now I don't even notice I have gaps there.

Sadly, I didn't get to keep my teeth though. Shame cause I've got all my baby teeth saved.

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mwic1985
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Location: Reading, UK

#14 Post by mwic1985 »

Hi all just thought I'd update this thread since I started it.
Thanks to all those who replied... some useful insights.

Well I've had them all out, and as has been said, it really wasn't that painful. My dentist is very good and explained it all so I knew what to expect, he also recommended against having 6 out at the same time, for which I am glad because it meant I could eat on a separate side of the mouth for a few days afterwards.
The first visit I was very nervous, dreading it. I sat back in the chair and thought well it's too late to stop now. The injections weren't that painful - I closed my eyes, because I am a strong believer in the "nocebo effect" (believer - yes, ironic I know) and that seeing a large needle heading towards my gum would make it feel more painful. As it was, there was a small prick. The taste of the anaesthetic was actually worse, it's horrible!

So the dentist had to pull pretty hard to get them out, but they came out OK. A friend of mine had a complications with a wisdom tooth extraction where it broke up while coming out, and he ended up needing stitches. Thankfully, this time it was OK. I went out, gums were bleeding. And boy were they bleeding. The teeth came out about 3:30 - at 5:30 they were still bleeding. I was worried, I'd done what they said, put pressure on it for 30 minutes, but when you have potentially three bleeding gums in a bloody, saliva-filled, numb mouth, that's easier said than done - I got a family member to phone the dentist (I still could hardly speak!) and he said, quite rightly, that it looks worse that it is. Anyway eventually it did stop and I had chicken soup for dinner. The next day I went to the orthodontist and had moulds taken. I have a very over reactive gag reaction so I always hate this and I was worried it would irritate the newly toothless gums. All was OK.

A week later I had the other 3 out. I asked the dentist if it would be OK to start eating on the other side I'd previously had teeth out from (I am paranoid about getting an infection, so I avoided it totally) and he gave me a very long diplomatic answer that said yes, before laughing and saying well you wont have much choice after today, which was correct! The wisdom tooth this time took a tremendous amount of pressure, it really was like tug-of-war inside my mouth. But eventually it 'popped out'.
This time the dentists waited 5-10 minutes for all the bleeding to fully stop before letting me go. This made such a difference! Hardly any mess, and the next day much less pain or blood. A weight off my shoulders that it was over with... well for a day....

That was 4 days ago. Since then I had had an upper brace fitted, part of the lower brace fitted.
--
Marc

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