I have one wisdom tooth

My dentist told me i had one wisdom tooth in the back of my mouth and they said it was way up in there. I'm so scared because I'm only 15 and they said i'd have to wait until 17 to take it out. I have never had anybody proceed surgery on me before and I'm afraid i'd wake up when they are still removing my tooth! Does it hurt to have only one moved out than 4 wisdom teeth? How much time will it take for them to take it out?

Is it good to keep or remove?

Idk, it depends on where it is in the gums...

I had all four removed in one session. Because my insurance was going to run out the next day.
They put me under anesthesia for it...
Didn't feel a thing. Don't worry, dental surgery has progressed quite a lot. We live in one of the better times for it. You're gonna be okay.

I totally understand why you're scared, I felt the exact same way when I went to get mine out a couple years ago. I was afraid I would wake up right in the middle of the surgery and be paralyzed in my own body. Do you only have just one? Or are you still developing three more? I only developed two, both on the bottom. I never got my top ones and never will. *phew*

My bottom two wisdom teeth were wedged underneath my molars and were turned sideways! Because of that, they had to cut them out rather than pull and since my jaw is so small, they had to file away my right side just to get to the one. I got a couple stitches on each side and had to take pain meds for 2 weeks before it was tolerable to bear. Even then it took me 6 months for the swelling to go down, making me look like a bit of a chipmunk during that time -- and that was partially my fault since I couldn't stop chewing gum and let my jaw rest.

When I was given the anesthesia before surgery, it did scare me. I actually did have a panic attack before I was knocked out, and I just want to let you know it's completely understandable. I had two aids in there besides the oral surgeon, and they held my hand and comforted me to calm me down. They were incredibly nice and that's what they're there for -- to help. Once I was knocked out, it only seemed like 5 mins. passed and I woke back up again. You might be placed in another room to rest, and you'll feel groggy, but you'll be okay. I remember when I woke up in a different room, it was a dark, square room and the door was cracked and I was laying on this single cot. My mind instantly went into panic survival mode. I wanted to just get up and run out of that place, like I was being hunted or something. Lol, I think it's funny now how I felt, but during then it was still kind of scary for me because I wasn't expecting any of those reactions or experiences at all. Please don't be scared though. What I went through was pretty specific and I highly doubt you'll have to go through as much as I went through. So again, you'll be safe, you'll be fine, and there is no need to panic.

i had four taken out in two sessions a week apart - this was in the dark ages, like 1979. no oral surgeon, just my family dentist. he used local anesthetic and laughing gas, so I was awake the whole time but high as a kite.

the bottom ones were below the surface and crooked, so the dentist couldn't pull them. he cut through my gums and broke the teeth up with a drill and picked out the pieces over the course of a couple of hours.

he stuffed the holes with cotton gauze, gave me a Vicodin, then sent me home with an ice pack and a couple of of extra-strength tylenol. i remember laying on the couch, wishing we had air-conditioning.

don't worry, they've come a long way since then. i'm sure it'll be a piece of cake!

Relax. I've had four impacted wisdom teeth for as long as I can remember, and they don't bother me a bit. There's no need for you to panic until an actual problem arises, if it does. Even if your tooth does have to come out, there's nothing you can do about it now, so why worry?

A couple years ago I had to get two of my wisdom teeth pulled out. I was nervous but my mom told me that these people (the surgeon and staff) have done the procedure hundreds of times before.

So when I got there I went to the back room and sat in the big chair that was set up for me. They applied the anesthesia and hooked up an air flow to my nose. I was told to relax while sitting in an upright position in the chair. A few minutes passed without anything happening, just me sitting upright in the chair. It went on so long that I was about to say, “Hey, are we going to get this going or what!”

Abruptly, I noticed what seemed to be two chunks of something sitting on the tray next to my chair. It dawned on me that they were my wisdom teeth, and that procedure was already over! Seems like they put me under while sitting up, tilted the chair back, pulled the teeth, and then sat me up in the same position I was in before. I couldn’t even tell I had gone under. I stirred a bit which got the attention of the attendant. She then steered me toward a big puffy chair they had in a recessed room which had the lights dimmed. I sat there for a minute or two and then told them I was okay to leave. I had to have my dad drive me home which made sense because I was under anesthesia after all.

These days’ modern surgeons have these procedures down to a science (literally). You should be fine and shouldn’t worry about it.

GraybeardGhost said:

Relax. I've had four impacted wisdom teeth for as long as I can remember, and they don't bother me a bit. There's no need for you to panic until an actual problem arises, if it does. Even if your tooth does have to come out, there's nothing you can do about it now, so why worry?

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Yes, I agree with this. If they are not causing any problems like pain, then don't bother with having them removed. I still have all of mine, only one of them is exposed and they have never caused me any pain.

I believe your dentist will use local anethesia since you only have one wisdom tooth to remove. I have two but yet to remove them due to cost. I don't think the procedure will hurt I have known people who went through it with no problems though the recovery will be a tad painful and you would have to eat soft foods for a week or two.

I don't have any, but I have heard of people having them removed in hospital, presumably under general anaesthetic. That sounds quite easy.

psych said:

Idk, it depends on where it is in the gums...

I had all four removed in one session. Because my insurance was going to run out the next day.
They put me under anesthesia for it...
Didn't feel a thing. Don't worry, dental surgery has progressed quite a lot. We live in one of the better times for it. You're gonna be okay.

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Same here. I quite regret having them extracted though, my teeth are in pretty bad condition now (they say I probably have bruxism), so I could do with more teeth. I had an x-ray recently and the dentist said I have some rest of the molar tooth still left in the jaw. He recommended I have it extracted. I don´t know what would it bring though, only I have quite pain in the ear on that side, when I touch it. Maybe it´s connected?

I have three wisdom teeth and I'm 25 years old, but I've yet to have them out. They don't bother me or cause any pain at all. I feel like I probably won't have them out unless they do start causing pain.

Lea said:

Same here. I quite regret having them extracted though, my teeth are in pretty bad condition now (they say I probably have bruxism), so I could do with more teeth. I had an x-ray recently and the dentist said I have some rest of the molar tooth still left in the jaw. He recommended I have it extracted. I don´t know what would it bring though, only I have quite pain in the ear on that side, when I touch it. Maybe it´s connected?

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I had an infection occur in my gum after getting a cavity filled once. I remember the pain from that shot up into my ear and down my neck. Those nerves all seem to be connected at points, or maybe its one nerve. I have no idea.
If you can afford it, or have the insurance for it, I say do it.
My teeth are all crowded together. My dentist wanted to pull a couple. My father stopped him and said he'd like me to keep them as I may need them some day.
I can appreciate the wisdom behind that decision, plus I'm sure it saved him a few bucks!
Bruxism doesn't sound like much fun to live with. I went through a phase of it it my teens from stress.
My best friend looks like a pumpkin from it. The teeth he has left are stubs now. He has no insurance, so he's letting them fall out.
They sell mouth guards at the drugstores here. But, that only works for nighttime grinding.

ask for the laughing gas. it's amazing.

dottie said:

ask for the laughing gas. it's amazing.

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I wish I had some right now.