Scared after anesthesia/wisdom teeth?!?

Question

I'm getting my wisdom teeth out in a month or two (i know, far away) but I am already freaking out. Especially about the aftermath of it. Like, when you wake up. Are you all groggy and stuff? How long does this usually last? I am especially concerned because I have always had trouble with hospitals and tubes and all that stuff, and I am worried that when I wake up I will start freaking out or something. How long do you usually have to wait after you wake for you to leave the office? Is it common to feel nauseous afterwards? If I get anti-nausea medicine in my IV will that help? Will I be hooked up to machines afterwards?

Thanks so much

Answer 1

It is local anesthesia and you wake up fine.No groggy etc only swelling remains for a few days.Salt water gargles make for quick healing.Within a week you are fine.Dont get scared at all.

Answer 2

Call your dentist or oral surgeon and ask anything and everything that does and does not get answered here.

Everyone needs to be aware that IV sedation is not always FULL (general) anesthesia.  Many dentists try to get away with passing off "twilight sedation" as "sleep sedation".  Twilight is where you will not be completely unconscious  but so out of it that it is unlikely you'll remember anything about it.  If this is the case, then, yeah, you're going to be groggy for a bit until you sleep it off.  Only a few hours. Nausea is almost unheard of with this method but they like to put in an anti-nausea medication just in case.

Note:  If you're having your teeth pulled by a dentist and not an oral surgeon, then you will only be getting twilight sedation. Unless that dentist also happens to be or employs a fully licensed anesthesiologist.

Now, oral surgeons have the training and certification to put you completely out BUT you still have a choice as to whether it will be full or twilight.  In either case you will be "hooked up" to a machine that will monitor your heart rate, oxygen levels and blood pressure.  If anything goes amiss, your surgeon will be fully prepared to stop the IV and provide supportive measures including a reversing agent for each medication used in the IV.  It is my honest opinion that you are much safer when going with full general anesthesia just because there are much stricter safety protocols.

In general anesthesia, you are wide awake within minutes of the IV being turned off and wondering how they could possible have done anything so fast. The knockout drug used in the IV is extremely short acting and they have to keep a continuous drip going to keep you asleep. As for me, I was ready to go home and play video games in less than 10 minutes.

I recently had all my teeth extracted (yes ALL) under general anesthesia and I am here to tell you an everyone that the biggest danger lies not in the anesthesia but whether or not you have gum disease (gingivitis, periodontitis).  If so, you may want to take a short course of antibiotics before and after the surgery.  PLEASE discuss this with your dentist/surgeon.  My surgery would have been fabulous if only I had been given antibiotics to protect my heart from the bacteria that was in my mouth.  My quack of a surgeon didn't even give me the option and now I've got trouble to deal with.

All those interested, just google "gum disease" and "heart disease" together to find some spooky info.

But hey, if your gums are good to go, then you ain't got no worries, friend!  All the same, don't stop here.  Arm yourself with enough information that you can grill your doctor all about their individual procedures.  They may become annoyed with you (doctors generally dislike patients who know too much ;) but that's their problem.

You are very welcome to contact me with more questions and such as I have rambled on far too long here.  Just click on my icon.

With knowledge and sensible precautions, you really have nothing to worry about.   :)

Answer 3

YOU'LL BE FINE relax don't worry about it.  it takes about an hour after you totally come to before you leave and someone has to drive you you`ll be fine you need to relax before get so nervous you dont go threw with it.  

Answer 4

Call the office if the oral surgeon that will be doing the extraction. Tell them you are anxious about the procedure, recovery, etc Ask them the questions. They will be more than glad to answer any you have. They want you to feel comfortable. There will be a nurse with you when you wake up.

I had my wisdom teeth out, so did my husband and son. None of us had any trouble with nausea. No machine, you will have an IV to put you under. Good luck!

Answer 5

I know exactly how you're feeling, I was nervous about the same things before I got my teeth out.  Don't worry, you're going to be fine.

First of all, relax.  Focus on relaxation techniques so that when you get in the office you don't psych yourself out.

I got mine out a little less than three weeks ago.  I've never had any type of surgery, so I was wary of the anesthesia.  They gave me something called "twilight anesthesia," which is a lighter form of general.  It literally took me all of five seconds to fall asleep, I was out for about an hour.  Apparently I spoke a few times to my Mom, who was sitting next to me, during my "waking up" process-- but I don't recall that at all!  It was as if all of a sudden I woke up, and I wasn't dizzy, nauseous, or anything-- a bit groggy but really not very much at all.  In fact, it was actually kind of peaceful!

I have a tempermental stomach and my body is not at all used to being put under, and I did it without any IV anti-nausea medication.  I really think you should be fine.  They can give you something, though, and I was still nervous about not feeling well on the pain medication, so they gave me a prescription anti-nausea pill to take home with me.  I didn't need it-- the only time I felt nauseous was when I stood up too fast a few hours after coming home and almost passed out.  :) Whoops!

I wouldn't worry about going under, it's not as scary as you think!  But I definitely understand where you're coming from.  Talk to the surgeon and let them know your fears-- if you have a good surgeon, which make sure you do, they'll make you feel right at home.  I wasn't nervous at all directly before because the surgeon and assistant were so wonderful.  Just follow directions (do not eat or drink ANYTHING six hours prior to surgey-- to be safe I cut myself off a few hours earlier than that.)

When you wake up the tubes and everything should all be gone.  Mine were only there because again, I was afraid I'd be nauseous, so they left the IV in so that if I was, they could administer some medication.  Turns out I didn't need it at all, so they took it out after a few minutes of me being awake because it was clear I wasn't feeling nauseous.  If you have the same twilight anesthesia I had, though, you shoudn't be hooked up to a thing when you wake up.

Good luck and remember to relax!  Think of it as just a nice little afternoon nap. :)  

Answer 6

It's not like being in a hospital so you don't have to worry about that.  I was just sitting in a regular dentist chair the whole time. Someone gave me a gas mask or something and then asked me about my prom, then told me I would need to stop talking to help the drugs work faster.  I wanted to say "Well you were the one who asked me a question", but I fell asleep and before I knew it I was waking up and they told me they were done.  They took me to a cot where they said I could lie down, but I didn't feel like I needed to.  My mother insisted and I fell asleep instantly. The next thing a knew, 1/2 an hour had passed and my mother was back from the pharmacy with my medicine.  We went home and I spent the rest of the day lying on the couch watching TV.  

It is uncomfortable and you probably should plan to just rest for that day and maybe an extra day or two, but it's not unbearable.  I didn't have to deal with nausea or IVs or anything like that.  I just had to keep gauze in my mouth because there was a lot of bleeding.  This was several years ago so there may be some advances which make the whole process even easier.  Your oral surgeon's office might have some brochures with more details about the procedures.  You might even be able to schedule an appointment for a consultation or a tour and dry run so you'll know what to expect and how things are done at that particular office.

I know it seems scary now, but it will all be over soon, and you won't have to worry about wisdom teeth ever again. :)

Answer 7

i was extremely scared too.. but i just got my wisdom teeth out a week ago and believe me its not bad.. they put an IV in me and the next thing i knew i was walking out of the office.. i had 4 impacted teeth and i was leaving within 45 min of when i walked in. its ridiculously fast and easy. dont worry about anything! and no nausea, and you wake up with nothing attached to you.

Answer 8

When I got mine out, they put me under, and I tried to stay awake as long as I could just for kicks - I lasted around 15 seconds, so they put you out pretty well. At the time, my mom helped me out to the car and I do remember walking on my own at one point, but I just went home and slept it off. I had visitors that afternoon and remember them, even though I was still drugged more or less. The painkillers work like magic, so you really have nothing to worry about. It's a routine procedure that 90+% of people get and the only thing I've ever heard go wrong is dry sockets, which happen after the procedure, due to the fault of the patient eating too much junk before the mouth has healed.