Back on January 18th I got all four of my wisdom teeth removed. Although none were impacted, one was growing on an angle and difficult to clean. Plus I eventually wanted to get orthodontics to correct my smile, so I mustered up the courage, made sure I had proper dental coverage and decided to take those suckers out. Here’s my day-by-day account to how it went down for the first week.
Day 1:
My sister came to the dental surgeon’s office with me as my chaperone, as I didn’t want to end up aimlessly on the streets of Toronto, high of pain pills and Novocaine.
Got to the office on time (around noon), filled out the appropriate forms, tried not to have a panic attack in the washroom minutes before my surgery after thinking about having parts of my body removed while I was knocked out.
Once I was sitting in the chair, the dental assistant informed me of how I’ll feel after the drugs were administered. She asked if I was nervous at all. I told her a little, so she gave me some laughing gas to calm my nerves.
The surgeon walked in and greeted me, then they gave me the anesthetic. The last thing I remember was asking, “Am I supposed to be feeling this dizzy?”.
Next thing you know I start coming to. I distinctly remember my legs twitching as they were finishing off extracting my teeth.
When everything was complete I was gently walked into a separate room and my sister came in and asked me how I was feeling. Obviously I felt like I just had 4 teeth extracted from my mouth (which was full of gauze).
The dental assistant gave me and my sister the rundown of what to expect now that my teeth had been removed, and how to use the syringe to clean out the gaping holes that were now left in my mouth. I was told that I had a few stitches that would dissolve/come out over the next few days. She gave me a care kit and my wisdom teeth! Then I was off. I wonder how much money I’ll get if I put these under my pillow?
I told my sister (through mumbles) to drop me to the grocery store so that I could pick up the food that I’ll need to eat to fit my new liquid/mushy diet. I’m surprised I wasn’t more groggy than I was. I managed to locate the soup aisle quickly, and also got a box of instant mashed potatoes. Also picked up my Tylenol-3 prescription.
Unfortunately, I couldn’t go straight home and rest, so I had to follow my sister to an important meeting at a community center, so I spent the next hour and a half watching kids dive in an Olympic sized swimming pool until she was done (thank goodness I had my laptop with me).
Stayed at the family’s house that night so that I wouldn’t choke on my own blood while sleeping. I was super hungry, as I wasn’t supposed to eat or drink anything prior to the surgery. Managed to down some tomato soup and some baby food (custard is so yummy), with a little baby spoon, while my sister and our friend chowed down on a hearty meal of chicken and rice.
It was around 9pm when I tried to eat a tiny piece of chicken, as I was still hungry). I knew I couldn’t chew it, tried to swallow it whole seagull style, but it wasn’t working, so I just rinsed my mouth out, put in some new gauze and went to bed.
Sleep was uneasy. Woke up a couple hours later and was talking to my sister about a conversation I thought we had, but was really a dream. Turned out it actually did happen. Felt like I was living int he Matrix. Had trouble sleeping as I didn’t want to choke with the gauze in my mouth, yet didn’t want to take it out b/c I was still bleeding from one of the extraction sites a bit.
Day 2:
Changed my gauze again and brushed my teeth in the AM. It’s strange opening my mouth and not seeing teeth where there used to be. Surprisingly there was hardly any swelling. My left side was just puffed up a tiny bit, but I was happy that I didn’t end up looking like a chipmunk. As for the pain, my mouth felt sore, like I was trying to recuperate after being punched in the face. As per the doctor’s orders, I was taking the pain med and the antibiotics alternatively.
I got a nice call from the surgeon’s office asking how I was feeling and again giving me tips for my recovery. I changed my gauze multiple times that day. As for eating, I had some more baby food and mom made me some mashed potatoes. Headed home later and looked forward to eating my pre-made Jell-O-filled ramekins I made prior to the surgery. Jell-O has never tasted so good.
Day 3:
Mouth is still a little sore, but the swelling is pretty much gone. Still on a baby-food diet, as I’m afraid to attempt to eat real food lest it get lodged into one of my mouth holes and cause dry socket. My cheeks still have the faintest tinge of numbness. Had to go into work today, but at least the weekend is here. I found out that pieces of brie inside tomato soup is quite a delicious dish! Still not feeling any major pain (more like discomfort), so I stopped taking the Tylenol-3, lest I became an addict.
Day 4:
I’m not sure how much more soup, baby food, Jell-O and mashed potatoes I can eat. I’m wasting away here! I had a charity auction party to go to at a friend’s house tonight. My awesome friend made me some red pepper soup on account of my condition. :-) Slurped that down as I was bidding on items that I didn’t really need (but it was for charity). I also managed to eat some veggie noodle stir fry. Yum!
Day 5:
The numbness in my cheeks are finally gone! That was my main worry before even having my wisdom teeth removed. Using the syringe is a bit tricky. But I got to make sure that the gums heal properly. Still staying away from drinking anything with a straw, as I heard that the suction can dislodge the needed blood clots in my gums.
Day 6:
Eating real food more regularly now! Although trying to chew with your front teeth is a bit tedious. I think I felt one of the stitches slide out, so I opened my mouth and lo and behold there’s a string hanging from behind my molar. I didn’t dare pull it out (I thought they would dissolve).
Day 7:
I have my follow-up appointment tomorrow. I hope all goes well. Still gingerly eating, syringing, gargling (non-alcohol mouthwash, and with salt water) and brushing! I lost about 5lbs since the procedure (since I’m practically afraid to eat) so I guess that’s a plus!
Day 8:
The follow-up appointment went well. The dental assistant took a look inside my mouth and told me that my gums seemed to be healing well. Although there was a tiny bit if bleeding still in one of the sites. Reason was I wasn’t using the syringe properly: I was supposed to put in right inside the gum. I guess I was still a bit doped up after the initial surgery to remember that tiny fact. I was under the impression that the pressure of the water would be enough to squirt any food out, and that putting it inside my gum would lengthen the healing time. Whoops!
Today:
After a recent visit to my dentist, my mouth has healed great. Looking in the mirror myself, I no longer see the gaping holes that were there just over a month ago. I also was able to get fitted for my Invisaligns… but that’s another post.
