I had four removed all at once, under a local. I could feel them pulling and it seemed like there was a lot of blood, but except for the stupid shot, there was no pain. I had them done on a Thursday and by Sunday I was almost better. I did look ridiculous the first day, and was embarrassed to find out the ice cream I’d been eating was drooling down my face and I couldn’t even feel it. 
I had all four of mine out in my mid-20s, under general anaesthesia. I gather they were pretty bad. The worst part of the whole experience was signing the release forms, honestly. They were filled with all kinds of terrible, terrible things that could happen and releasing the oral surgeon and his staff from all responsibility if they did. I think it started at losses of smell and taste and escalated up to death. None of those things actually happened, though.
I went back to the surgery suite and was amused by the staff wandering in and out, looking at the X-rays, then leaving to get more equipment. Really, that’s the last thing I remember until I woke up halfway in the recovery suite; then another big gray area until about halfway through the car ride home.
I had taken Friday off from work to have the surgery, and had warned my boss that I might not be in on Monday if things were bad. By Monday, though, I was in fine shape and back at work. I don’t recall when I started eating solid food or any of that as it was about 15 years ago, but I don’t think it was very long as these things go.
As to swelling and pain, I did not notice any of either, really. The doctor did not give me Percocet or anything, just a small bottle of Vicodin. I took exactly one of them, mainly out of fear that there would be pain if I didn’t. It did not materialize, so I did not continue.
Wow some of these stories make me feel not so lucky…
I had all four of mine removed at the same time back in 1994. I figured best to get it over with. They gave me the twilight cocktail (N2O & Fentanyl I believe) which knocked me out. Unfortunately, I woke up in the middle of the procedure. I didn’t feel any pain, but could feel them pulling my tooth. They promptly knocked me back out.
One mistake I made was trying to get up too soon after I was in the recovery room. Bad idea. I crumpled to the floor like a house of cards.
Another mistake I made was trying to eat real food the next day (hey, I had a hot date). Big no-no. While I was able to eat fine, later on the burning pain was horrible. After that it was Jell-O, applesauce and soft-boiled eggs. It was a good month before I could eat solid good again and I was crazy for a real meal the entire time.
I swelled up but didn’t bruise. If you follow doctor’s orders on ice, pain meds and changing the gauze pads, you should be fine. Don’t expect to be able to do much for a couple of days afterwards. You’ll be grateful for your prescriptions.
Good luck and may it be painless!
Bri2k
I had all four out at once under nothing more than novocain. I could have gone back to work the next day - I was really feeling that well enough, and had no swelling or untoward bleeding. OTOH, a co-worker went to a different dentist to have just one pulled and they looked like a lopsided chipmunk for a couple of days.
I do have to give credit to three things - first was my dentist. He took x-rays and studied how to cut the crowns of the teeth so he could unscrew the pieces in just the right way to ease them out of my jaw. Second, I took an Ultram (I’m allergic to codeine) on the way into the dentist’s office and followed whatever the recommended schedule was for the next day with it so pain didn’t have a chance to get a toehold on me. Third, I apparently have a freakish pain tolerance. I’ve had doctors look at the MRI images of my tortured spine and ask how the hell I was able to stand upright and walk into their office.
I did have a sliver about a week after the extraction that was utter agony because it was so small and sharp. I went back to the dentist and he sat me down, took a look and in about five seconds reached in and grabbed the culprit, yielding immediate relief. It was amazing how something not much bigger than a grain of sand could hurt so bad.
Good Luck. Everything will go fine.
Had them done when I was 20-ish. Total non-event.
See Wisdom teeth extraction: calling dentists and patients - Factual Questions - Straight Dope Message Board for more commentary
Wasn’t a big ordeal for me 20 years ago, I just dropped in to suggest eating lots of good yogurt before, during & after. I did so and my dentist was shocked at my healing rate. I told him what I was doing under the layman’s theory that the yogurt would get my body’s defences up and running, and regardless as to whether there was truth to it, it appeared to work, and he said he would suggest it for his future patients.
Also, yogurt is yummy. Eat more yogurt.
I was 28 when I had all four out at once, local anesthetic only. One was coming in sideways and had to be carved out with a saw. Also, the surgeon knew I worked at the Medical School and assumed I would be knowledgeable about the procedure, which I was, and interested in watching it, which I wasn’t–but every so often he would stop and hold up a mirror so I could inspect the work in progress. I’d taken off my glasses so they wouldn’t get spattered, so I would pretend to study the reflection, grunt politely, and he’d get back to the slicing and dicing.
I interrupted him a few times, once because I was gagging (I’ve got a touchy gag reflex), once because I really needed to pee, and a few times to get more Novocain–if the procedure even felt like it might be starting to get painful I’d grunt and he’d needle me again. The only downside to that is that every injection site was another little bruise to ache the next day.
I had the procedure on Friday and was back at work Monday, a bit puffy and bringing microwaveable pasta for lunch, but otherwise fine. Saturday was kind of rough–the swelling and aching are maximal the day after, and the bleeding restarted briefly–but ice cream and ibuprofen pulled me through. (Having your wisdom teeth out is an excellent excuse for making a meal out of ice cream.)
It was a good thing the ibuprofen worked, because I took one of the Tylenol-3s I was prescribed and became so horribly dizzy I didn’t dare take any more. I’ve since been advised I shouldn’t have taken it on an empty stomach. So, if your narcotics bother you or you’re worried they might, try getting something in your stomach first (milk might suffice).
Another tip: Tea bags do stop the bleeding. Dampen a bag with cold water, pack it against the bleeding spot and hold it there as long as you can stand it–a half hour or so is good–without moving it. The tannins in tea are astringent; they pull moisture out of the wound and tighten the clots. (That’s what my surgeon said, anyway; all I know is it works.)
Good luck!
You might lose weight?
my two cents: as a veteran of having all of mine removed as well, i recommend being put under as opposed to a local, lots of ice to reduce exterior swelling, tea bags on the incision sites to reduce interior swelling - and take the pain meds as prescribed. get ahead of any discomfort before it gets ahead of you - trust me. pain prevents you from healing as well as you should.
as far as the raid goes, let your body dictate how you feel. as previously mentioned, there is absolutely no way to know how you’re going to feel - until you get to that point.
and good luck. it’s not so bad.
When my brother had his out his face swelled up so he looked like Marlon Brando in the Godfather and he was pretty cranky. I had one out and having heard all the horror stories was prepared for the worst. Or at least some good drugs. Nope, it was quick, easy, relatively painless and I was told to take some OTC Tylenol if there was any pain.
I had the second one out a year or so ago. Again, no big deal and no good drugs.
Keep the “sockets” where the teeth were wet. They’ll dry out before you think about them and man, that’ll hurt. I stocked up big time on Popsicles and Jello and that did the trick.
I had all four out last spring, and I had a pretty rough time of it. I was completely knocked out, one tooth was impacted and had to be cut out. A couple of stitches were rubbing the inside of my cheek raw for a few days. I had my surgery on a Monday, and I couldn’t even stand to leave the house until Thursday. I was still pretty miserable the whole next week too. I’m a redhead, I have a low pain tolerance!
I made the mistake of going to a hockey game the Saturday after the surgery while I was still taking Vicodin. Fortunately I wasn’t driving, because every time I’d stand up I got dizzy. I think my mom thought she was gonna have to carry me out of there.
Ice is your friend. Keep the ice packs on your cheeks as long as you can stand it. My dentist gave me this nifty wrap thing with two pockets on the sides for ice packs that velcro-ed under my chin.
It was probably a week before I could eat normal foods again, I was living on yogurt and applesauce and mashed potatoes. I was craving anything crunchy, it was maddening.
I hope your procedure goes better, and that you have a quick recovery!
I had all four of mine out.
Mine were impacted, all four were growing sideways - not erupting from the gum, growing towards the roots of my other teeth. But in growing that way they also impacted some of the blood flow to certain portions of my gums. My mouth was rotting. It was excruciating pain and tasted like something had died in there. This was despite brushing and flossing and gargling.
I had them done at one time by a dental surgeon, under twilight anaesthetic. Didn’t feel a thing. Woke up feeling like a grumpy bitch. I can’t remember how long I was off solid food for, but my face was swollen like a chipmunk for a week. Because mine had to be excavated I got dissolving stitches, and I can still feel the scars from the sutures if I stick my tongue back there.
But all in all it was the right thing to do. If I had’ve left them alone, I would have ended up with a VERY very bad infection all through my mouth.
What I remember most is that my 18th birthday fell right at the beginning of spring break - Yay! (where I live, 18 is the “old enough to buy booze and go to licensed places” age) What fun we’d have, going to the clubs! (Legally, for once :p)
Then my mum informed me that the dentist office called, and she’d made the appointment for me to have my wisdom teeth pulled the day before spring break started. You know, so I wouldn’t have to miss any school. Great…
I do remember waking up in the recovery room and looking over at the person next to me (who was in a similar state). I remember thinking “I HAVE to wave at them, I don’t want them to think I’m rude!”. I tried to lift my arm to wave hello, only to find that it was restrained. So I “waved” with a weird little flop of the wrist, and the other person did the same thing. It was a very odd feeling.
It didn’t hurt nearly as much as I’d anticipated, and my face barely registered some yellowy bruises around the jaw after a few days.
Here’s my wisdom teeth story.
So my dentist told me to get them out and I ignored him. About ten years later, a new dentist requested I do it again, this time because of some cavities. I get cavities really easily and it’s hard to brush back there (they also don’t get as much cleaning from tongue action and saliva). So, sure. I got them out in 4 sessions – one each – while fixing other cavities and stuff. Have I mentioned how easily I get cavities?
Anyway, honestly, the wisdom teeth weren’t a big deal. They grew in straight so they just basically, well, yank them out. The weirdest thing about it was how much force had to be used. The dentist had to sort of hold my head down and pull really hard. It sounds bad too. However, I can honestly say it didn’t hurt me at all. For the most part, healing was a breeze, too. I didn’t really have to change my diet because I could chew on the other side (other than avoiding fine foods like rice that could get stuck in the socket). I didn’t even take the pain medication prescribed except for one particularly big one, when I think I took one or two doses. Just no biggy at all. After going through the drill for the first one, I pretty much just ignored the whole procedure except for the literal yanking-the-tooth-out part, which was a maybe bit uncomfortable one time because the dentist accidentally leaned on my throat for a second. 
Even then, except for the biggest one, the whole process of yanking it out was really quick. Like, ten seconds.
The cavities themselves were way worse to get filled, what with the drilling and the waiting for the things to set and all that jazz, and having to keep this thing in my mouth to get the composite to be totally dry. That stuff was bad enough that my dentist encouraged me to get gassed after the first one, because I kept feeling like I was going to choke on drool and sort of involuntarily freaked out for a moment (bizarre experience). Honestly, if I was considering just my comfort in the dentist’s chair and during healing, I’d ask the dentist to yank all of my teeth out instead of filling cavities and all that junk.
i had mine out about 5 years ago. 2 wisdoms and 2 regulars in the back that needed pulling. i didn’t go under for it because i’d heard too many stories of people waking up in the middle and blah. i was given two 10 mg valium and the laughing gas, so i was awake but off in lala land. procedure was a breeze. over before i know it, didn’t feel a thing. the aftermath was not as fun, i was in pain and swollen and had a hard time swallowing the pain pills they gave me. i think i took 3 days total off work. it seems like it took me awhile before i could eat things like chips because i remember my mouth stayed sore for awhile. i was given 10/500 hydrocodone/apap and that worked fine for the pain.
in short, relax, you’ll be ok. good luck.
I’m back, and I’m still alive!
Things took a little longer at the beginning because they couldn’t find a vein (they said I was dehydrated, and I have small shy veins under the best of circumstances). I was getting upset because after all that getting myself psyched up to do it today, they might have to send me home and reschedule so I could drink more water ahead of time. But no, they managed to find one.
After that, the actual procedure was easy. I went to sleep and the next thing I knew I woke up and they said, “We’re done!” Hurt a little, felt very loopy. Let them take me out to the car in the wheelchair cuz I didn’t feel like walking.
Spouse took me home and has been a very attentive “nurse” all day, keeping track of the various meds and when I should take them, bringing me things to eat and drink and refilling my anti-chipmunk ice pack. Mostly been laying around watching Harry Potter movies all day. Definitely hurts, but it’s manageable and I even managed to eat some macaroni and cheese.
Thanks for all the encouragement, everyone! This wasn’t fun but it wasn’t nearly as horrible as I was worried it would be.
I had a tooth taken out on my 21rst birthday (I can’t remember if it was my last wisdom tooth or not). It totally sucked. Instead of going out and bar-hopping with my friends, I had to lay on the sofa with an ice pack on my cheek. I looked like a lopsided chipmunk. At least I had good drugs. (Percs are niiiiiiice. In fact, I think I have about ten left downstairs from Monday.) I’m finally eating solid foods. Nothing crunchy, but things like muffins, or peanut butter sandwiches.
Wisdom teeth suck.
Your dentist is the most important factor, followed closely by your dentition.
The Army chopped mine out gratis in '88, and they did it in a “first one side, then the other a few weeks later” method. My teeth were (and still are!) in pretty good shape, relatively straight, with healthy gums.
My righties came out first, and I had a Regular Army hack who skimped on the anesthesia, and didn’t wait long enough for it to kick in before going in and yanking them out with a jackhammer and a pair of pliers (at least, that’s what it felt like!). The swelling and post-op pain was horrible, and the scrip was weak tea.
My lefties came out three weeks later, and I caught a National Guard doc who was down to Ft. Hood doing his annual bit. He had a private practice back home, and knew how to, and believed in, taking care of his patients.
He put me out. I woke up later, and felt nothing in my mouth for the next 4-6 hours. The post-op pain and swelling was mild-to-moderate, and easily handled by the generous scrip he prescribed.
I’ve heard horror stories from other folks, but most of them had mouths full of rotten, black, twisted stumps.