If a dentist tells you to get them removed, listen. Save yourself the trouble and do it as soon as possible.
A year ago, I was told at a routine dentist appointment to get all of them removed, and that they would erupt and become impacted and cause pain if I let them grow. Well, I allowed myself to be talked out of the procedure by my family at the time. But sure enough, a year later, they came in impacted. They hurt, like the dentist said they would. Starting about two weeks ago, the pain became debilitating – I had to put lidocaine on my gums to be able to function. So, I went to a dentist last Monday, and was assured that my pain is from my wisdom teeth, and that they need to be removed urgently. Fortunately, I was able to get a consultation with an oral surgeon as soon as last Wednesday, and have the procedure done as soon as last Friday.
It’s now Monday. The healing process has been hard. The doctor had said my teeth were especially wide, and that the roots were fully formed. The bottom two had to be dug out in pieces. Evidently, wisdom teeth removal at the age of 23 is considered late-ish nowadays. I wasn’t really able to feel my bottom lip the first two days. My cheeks are still very swollen which I am very conscious about. On the upside, my pain has been managed pretty well (they gave me some strong drugs), and I am very fortunate to have help at home. I’m worried I’m not doing the post-op instructions exactly right, but I’ll probably be fine in a week or two.
The procedure cost $2,300. It’s sad that such a near-universal procedure is prohibitively expensive. I was able to cover it with my savings, and my parents will help me out a bit there, but now I’m really strapped for money. I want to continue running Uber Eats as soon as I heal – I don’t think I’d mentioned that I’ve been doing that anywhere on the blog yet – but it’s not the greatest source of income. Unfortunately, as a full-time student with the level of homework assignments I get, a “full” part-time job isn’t viable.