I’ve got yet another infection around one of my wisdom teeth. It hurts like you-know-what, I think I’m running a bit of a temp, and I feel lousy in the extreme.
Why, oh why, does homo sapiens sapiens or whatever they’re callin’ the species now, have to have 32 teeth, for pity’s sake? The top wisdoms came through just barely at the edge. But the lower two …
And yeah, I should see a dentist. ‘Cept I really hate dentists, an’ sharp stuff inside my mouth. Back to the ibuprofen and antiseptic mouth wash, I guess …
Sorry, guys. I’m just feeling miserable here, but not enough for this to be in the Pit. Damn sugary foods!
My non-scientific, pulled-it-out-of-my-butt theory is that in the past (and not so long ago at that) most of us would have lost some teeth by the age of 18, and would have room for the wisdom teeth to come in and be happy and chew some food. With modern oral-hygiene techniques, we’re all keeping too many teeth for too long, so when the wisdoms are ready, they’ve got no where to go. Luckily, along with modern dental hygiene came modern oral surgeons, so we excise the pesky interlopers!
Of course, there are some of us with room for the wisdom teeth, and a little room to spare. My sister and I have all 4 of ours and they are very healthy. I did go through periodic problems when they were coming in, though, such as a swollen jaw and inflamed gums, but they never got infected and they settled down after a few short episodes and became just another set of molars.
My BF, though, had 5 and had to have them all removed pre-eruption, under general anaesthesia. What a horrible experience that was!
Do you actually have a cavity, or is it an infection of the soft tissue? If they are just coming in and the tissue is swollen and angry, that’s pretty normal. Keep rinsing and go to see your dentist. You don’t have to agree to have them taken out, but you could at least get some antibiotics if you really do have an infection. Small comfort, I’m sure!
I hate to say it but it sounds as if it’s time for them to be extracted. The discomfort you have after the treatment will go away after a few days and then you’ll never have to worry about your wisdom teeth again. I think that it’s better to get it done and over with then having to keep thinking about how bad will it be to have the teeth removed (Not too bat, I’ve had all mine done) or is pain in my mouth ever goin go to go away. And if it does will it come back? (Most likely)
Find a good oral surgeon and get treatment.
Deep in the recesses of my memory, I know what you’re going thru. Then I got rid of mine. It was quick and easy and all-around good. Please do consider it…
… and accept a little motherly pity if that helps.
Thanks guys. It’s actually quietening down now – I’m of the theory that food particles get stuck back there, and the bacteria has a par-tay between the tooth and the gum, hence the “sugary foods” wail. Y’see, I’ve just come back from visiting friends, and a lot of sugar stuff went down sigh!
If I’m still sore by Tuesday, and my yellow streak is less than an inch wide, maybe I’ll go down “the long narrow corridor”. Uck. When I was at primary school, we used to call the dental nurse’s office “the murder house”. I can still recall the foot-powered drills.
Uck.
So, I’ve got proper dental hygiene to blame for my woes? “Damn you, Proper Dental Hygiene!” shakes fist in the air
Heh. Anyone who calls me a “bigmouth” – I’ll just turn around, give ‘em a sweet smile, an’ say, "Nah, mate – too flamin’ small!!
TLD – keep that cider handy, cobber. Dutch courage could be better than none at all …
I had not been to a dentist in 20 years… until I got an abcess. Actually, it was a blessing–the pain was so damned bad it erased 90% of my fears, my shame, my paranoia. I just wanted the pain to STOP! IT WAS HORRIBLE!! It got my butt into the dentist’s chair. I got antibiotics & painkillers that helped immediately. I’ll never forget the relief I felt when that pain started to abate. I also got an appointment to get the offending tooth extracted by an oral surgeon. And then 6 more appointments with the dentist to fix the neglect my teeth had been suffering.
But now I am all caught up, go every six months, and am delighted to not have that dental wuss-guilt hanging over me.
I vaguely remember that tooth pain. Coming as it did just a few weeks after my son was born, I’d say it was a toss up which was worse: tooth abcess or labor pains. You have my sympathy.
Hi There,
Get the wisdom teeth taken out. I HATE pain. The dull never ending pain of bad teeth is MUCH worse than going to a dentist and feeling five seconds worth of pain when the needle goes in.
I’ve had all four wisdom teeth removed and the normal amounts of cavities fixed and a crown put on and I have NEVER had pain outside of the needle to numb me. Anyone can handle five to ten seconds of pain from a needle.
I’m the biggest wimp in the world… but I am a great lover. Rande…
I blew mine off for 13 years… walked in there writhing in pain from an impacted wisdom tooth. I had no choice. Got on the anti-biotics, made the appointment, went in, sat down (valium, gas, novi, I.V… the whole nine). Next thing I’m laying in a post-op chair under a nice warm blankie. Swear to god an episode of “Momma’s House” would’ve hurt more. And lasted longer too…
I was SHIT scared but that pain brought me to my knees and also removed the cowardice. I was actually getting psyched for the surgery by the time it came. It was less than two months ago.
I may very well have the top two removed now that I know how effortless it was. The only drag now is I still have to syringe the sockets but they’re healing slowly…
The last theory I heard about wisdom teeth is that when our mouths evolved to be flatter (compare with other primates), our teeth did not adjust. If we still had monkey lips, we’d have plenty of room for 32 teeth.
If you don’t believe in evolution, go ahead and skip this theory. I don’t care. It’s just teeth, for crying out loud.
There are four ways wisdom teeth can be impacted. I had all four. One of them had also shifted the molar in front of it, too. So when they took my wisdom teeth, they took that molar, too. AND they took the one above it to even out that side of my jaw. So I lost six teeth in one afternoon.
If they are really bothering you, get them out. They could cause you more serious problems later on. Then you would have no choice but to have them out, AND you could have more damage to your mouth. They knocked me out when they removed mine. By the time feeling returned to my mouth, there was no pain. And I had a good excuse to eat soup, ice cream, and pudding for a week. (One downside: I tried to eat a Twinkie the second day. I had to squish it down with my hands and my family laughed at me.)
Another jump on the bandwagon of get 'em out. I was in the Navy, submarine service, for a buncha years. Ordinarily, they snatch 'em as soon as you show up in that program. I actually got to keep mine for a few years for whatever reason, and I was glad of it (at the time) due to fear of the deadly extraction.
However, when they finally got around to it, it turned out to be no big deal. Had them done in two rounds (left side first, then right two weeks later). Never used all the drugs they prescribed to me, even went swimming on the same afternoon as the second bout - I just kept my mouth shut while I was in the water.
I mean, the portion in the chair was kinda weird, I have to admit. One broke as they were yanking on it, and it sounded like a gunshot inside your skull, because of the bone transmission directly to your tympanum, etc. But oddly, that was the side that actually hurt the less of the two.
And this is s’posed to reassure the big sooky cowardly custard Ice Wolf?
As I’m not a flirter, I really don’t know what to say to that. ‘Cept – I hope you ain’t sellin’ yourself short, Ravi. Gee, embarassment’s great for pain control, y’know?
Okay, I’m going to stay off painkillers tonight, just go with mouth rinse. Tomorrow (Monday), I’ve got to do an interview, so things will have to wait. I’m not dying, here, just sore. Tuesday, I’ll look at my options. One o’ them is cash (sigh - that again?) so, I’ll see. If I’m in serious need, I can get finance. Tuesday’s when I’ll look at it.
Thanks very, very much for your replies and concern. This is one very cool community.
Well, I’ve never been afraid of the dentist, so I say get 'em out, and be done with the eternal pain. Of course, my wisdom teeth haven’t come in yet, and I don’t think they’ll need to come out. My normal teeth are VERY tight together (it’s almost impossible for me to floss), so I have a lot of space, so I might not be able to sympathize with you, but still, quickly ending massive pain is better than slow, lasting dull pain, IMHO.
Get the little bastards yanked, pronto! They don’t serve any useful purpose (other than to hurt like heck) and it’s not too bad getting them yanked. Unless of course, the dentist doesn’t give you enough of that stuff that numbs your gums (can’t spell it right now and i’m too damn lazy to look it up).
The dentist didn’t give me enough of that stuff when I had one of my wisdom teeth removed and that was a bloody awful experience.
The novacaine or whatever it is the dentist gives you for pain relief is pretty damn cool, though.
Another tip: go with someone else when you get your wisdom teeth out. I thought I was going to be able to drive home after having the wisdoms out … WRONG!!
Well, Ice Wolf, maybe you can luck out like I did… My dad worked at the hospital and arranged my 6-tooth extraction with an intern. He got required practice hours, I got the teeth out free. Which I meant to mention when I said I had all four kinds of impacting. The intern got a nice rounded-out practice on one patient!
Had we gone the pay a fully-qualified professional route, I would not have been able to afford school the next semester. Isn’t it great when your dad works at a HOSPITAL and yet you have negligable health insurance? That’s the government for you.
And doesn’t 6-Tooth Extraction sound like a band name?
