When it comes to recovery after wisdom teeth removal, it can take days to weeks of laying in bed and eating ice cream for a person to fully feel better.
The surgery requires a specialized surgeon to cut into the gums, remove the wisdom teeth and then stitch up the gums. Some surgeons break up a wisdom tooth into sections to make it easier to remove, according to WebMD.
According to Crest, 85 percent of adults need to have their wisdom teeth removed. The main reasons for getting wisdom teeth removed is because they are impacted, which means they will not come in normally. The wisdom teeth could also come in at the wrong angle and affect the positioning of the other teeth.
Alexis Moore, a sophomore studying biological sciences, had her wisdom teeth removed when she was in high school and had to return to her job two days after surgery.
“It was awful,” Moore said. “I was super tired and I hadn’t really eaten anything,”
Moore’s prescription caused her to feel sick, so she avoided taking it. She used Tylenol instead of the Vicodin she was given.
Thomas Hayes, a sophomore studying sport management, also avoided taking his prescription.
“(My recovery) was really only a day,” Hayes said. “(My wisdom teeth) just really didn’t hurt after a day.”
Hayes also used over-the-counter painkillers to deal with discomfort.
After surgery, both Hayes and Moore had trouble eating.
“I didn’t actually start to eat solid food until about five days after,” Moore said. “All of (my wisdom teeth) were impacted so I had a lot of swelling.”
Many surgeons suggest patients do not eat solid foods and stick to softer foods, such as applesauce and soup.
“Eating was the worst part,” Hayes said. “I just ate mashed potatoes and ice cream for two weeks.”
Both Hayes and Moore vaguely remember the affects of the anesthesia.
“My friend went and recorded it. I just said some really off the wall stuff,” Moore said.
Moore said she thought she was making complete sense at the time, but when she later viewed the videos, she realized what she was saying was incomprehensible.
“I didn’t know why (my mother and friend) were laughing at me,” Moore said.
Hayes said he tried to take multiple Snapchats of himself after surgery, but both the nurse and his mother would not let him.
“The nurse took my phone and didn’t let me post it on my Snapchat story,” Hayes said.
Hayes also said his vision was impaired and he was “seeing double” at some points during the ride home.
Dr. Peter Lovejoy, a dentist at Family Tree Dental in Marietta, said not getting wisdom teeth out could lead to complications later in life.
“(The wisdom teeth) may not be causing a problem now, but they will later on in life,” Lovejoy said. “It’s more of a preventative surgery.”
Lovejoy also said people need to get their wisdom teeth out because the teeth are very hard to keep clean.
“Even if you don’t get them out when you are young, you will need to get them out later,” Lovejoy said.
