This post is possibly not for the squeamish, in fact if you are a bit delicate then I’d recommend against scrolling down as there are some photos of teeth you might not enjoy.
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| I even got a neat little presentation case! |
A couple of years ago the mystery of why my gums and the insides of my cheeks blew up like painful balloons sometimes was solved. My dentist told me that I needed my top wisdom teeth removing; because the bottom ones are growing in a different direction nothing was impeding their growth, and they were getting a bit large.
Like most people I take dental advice on-board, and then kinda really mean to action the advice, but never quite get round to it. My dentist assured me that the extraction would be painless, and despite the fact this dentist has never caused me any pain what-so-ever (even although I’ve had repairs, fillings and root-canal surgery) getting my wisdom teeth removed never quite seemed like a priority.
By the start of this month I could no longer eat properly, and if I didn’t keep up my regime of painkillers the pain was almost unbearable. I was taking painkillers late at night and being woken up by acute dental pain when they wore off some time around 3am. Every night.
F U wisdom teeth
By the time I booked myself in for the extraction I was in a considerable amount of pain 24 hours a day, with the dual-dosed paracetamol and ibuprofen only just taking the edge off. The time had come to say goodby to Mr. Lefty (only the left tooth needs to be removed at the moment).
On the big day I sat in the waiting room focussing on the positive outcome of this extraction; the biggest being the ability to eat and drink without feeling electric shocks of pain ripple through my face.
Warning – this bit contains graphic dentistry details
As soon as I was in the chair the dentist informed me that he would ‘start getting me numb’, and started using a mirror to look at my gums, and just as I was wondering when he was going to start the injections I tasted the anesthetic in the back of my throat. Oh my, I literally didn’t feel the injections at all, that’s AMAZING!
My dentist took a quick x-ray and showed me the roots of the wisdom tooth on a screen in front of me, reassuring me that this helped him know which direction to apply force. Then it started. He very gently lent on my chest and warned me that I’d be able to hear some strange noises due to the fact the wisdom tooth was so close to my ear. About fifteen seconds of what I can only describe as ‘mild pressure’ the dentist asked me to bite my teeth together. Whyever would he ask that I pondered to myself. Then he asked me if I wanted to keep the tooth, which of course I did! I lay there waiting for whatever it was that he had just placed in my cheek to take effect, and was a bit surprised when my dentist started returning the chair to the upright position. WHAT? That was it? I was relieved I got a bit giggly! I’m writing this the day after and while I do have some discomfort it’s nothing compared to the pain this damned tooth has given me for so long. Happy days!
So if you’re reading this because you’ve been putting off getting a tooth extracted then I hope I have offered you some reassurance that with a good dentist there really is nothing to fear.
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| That’s a teeny tiny filling in the top! |
I measured the tooth with my vernier calliper and it’s 20.4mm long and 12.8mm wide!
Last Updated on February 18, 2023
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