Do You Have Your 'Wisdom Teeth' Still?

[NoahsMommy]

Poll/Voting disclaimer: I prefer that only mid-late teens and adults answer the poll as that is who my body will better relate to. If lots of pre-teen PTers vote, it'll scue the results. Thank you for understanding. You are MORE than welcome to "vote" in a post. :)

Owie! My wisdom teeth are coming in and I'm teething, how odd for a 29-year old! I've been having migraines almost every day/night in the past month or so, the right side (where one has halfway erupted through the gum - like when babies first get teeth) of my head has been a dull ache....yesterday, everything got much worse. :(

My ear hurt, my jaw hurt, my upper and lower wisdom teeth areas hurt/ached and I had a hard time keeping anything down. I’m sure it was just me working myself up, but I was soooo anxious and in so much I couldn’t sit still! It was horrible, it was like being in the hospital again – the anxiety and pain part. No matter what I did - warm coffee, my own pain meds, my anti-anxiety medication, walk around for a bit to try and calm myself – worked. The pain got worse and my body felt waves of anxiety coursing through it.

Anyway, one of the girls at work recommended her dentist (I wanted one that was gentler than mine…and David still goes to “our dentist”. So it was time to move on. I went and briefly saw Julie Anne Valde, D.D.S. on an emergency appt at 1:30 p.m. I had some xrays to show my wisdom teeth and the rest of the teeth that would be affected by them if they were growing in wrong, etc. One of her lovely and AMAZINGLY gentle dental hygienist cleaned my teeth with a sonic thingamabob and only had to scrape for about 3 – 4 minutes – it was probably the easiest appt. I’ve EVER been to! Found out my body/teeth aren’t absorbing Fluoride due to my Crohn’s Disease and also due to the amount of (sorry, not trying to be gross) vomiting I do. So, I got prescription toothpaste that I need to use twice daily to hopefully strengthen my teeth. Its surprisingly not horrible…its all minty fresh which is good, because I’m not allowed to rinse when I’m done brushing.

So, as per Dr. Valde’s real quick looking at my new records and x-rays, I’m going back in next week to have the second ½ of my appointment – where I’ll properly meet with her and we’ll discuss taking out my wisdom teeth. YIPPEE!!!

So, my question is…do you still have your Wisdom Teeth? Did you have them removed? If so, all at once or 2 by 2? What was your experience? What age did you get your Wisdom Teeth?

Thanks guys, I’ll update when I know more.

Hugs, Kelly

[cassiesmom]

I don't. I had mine out with inhaled nitrous oxide and IV Valium when I was 27 (I'm 41 now). First the left upper and lower, then about two months later the right upper and lower. They weren't actually painful, but they were impacted. I am a major wimp when it comes to anything dental. The oral surgeon also injected dexamethasone, which is a steroid, into the soft tissue of my cheek so I would not have massive swelling. Between that and ice packs I got through it without much swelling at all.

[Killearn Kitties]

:( Ooo, poor thing. Only one of my wisdom teeth ever tried to come in, the lower left. It started when I was about 25 or so from memory. Problem was it never came all the way through, so what happens is that the gum doesn't "close" properly round the tooth to form a seal. Over time tiny bits of food and bacteria can accumulate down under the gum and rot the root. After about 10 years or so of having an unclosed gum I had to get the tooth out. It came out without a problem though.

[catnapper]

Mine never came in... they're missing. :cool:

[Husky_mom]

funny thing.....

being also 29..... I still have them halfway out.... LOL..... so I might be just halfway wise... :rolleyes:

anyway they have never hurt at all..... well only when I had my kid I had to have one removed and I did had some jaw pain... but the remaining three are still there.... well halfway there anyway....

upper left removed
lower left 3/4 out still a bit skin over
lower right 1/4 or less out, a lotta skin over
upper right.... hmm....... gotta check on that one..... ok so I manuevered a bit to see it´s still not out yet... haha....

[BitsyNaceyDog]

Ouch! I'm so sorry you're in so much pain.

I have all four of mine and they've never given me any trouble... yet.

My sister had hers removed last summer. One was bothering her and they took that one out right away. The dentist wanted to take all four out, but she had new insurance they made her wait for the others to be removed. She finally got the other three out and as the dentist was finishing up her heart stopped and they had to revive her. She was fine, but the whole thing was scary.

On another note, Nathan can sympathize with you, he's teething too. He got his first tooth last Friday and I expect the second one any day.

[Flatcoatluver]

Last Feb. I had them x-rayed and my dentist said I might have to have them removed. We just have to keep watch of them. I am not good with pain at all... so hopefully I don't have to have them removed. My friend had her's removed and she was pretty much out for a week...

[Felicia's Mom]

Two of mine never came in, the other two have been pulled.

[BC_MoM]

Yes, I have all of them and have never had any problems. :)

[Russian Blue]

I had all 4 impacted wisdom teeth out when I was 19. Amazingly, I had no pain, barely any swelling and I woke up from the procedure fully alert. I actually asked the dentist to show me the teeth because I didn't think he did anything to me! Ha! :D

Also, they had to give me double the regular drugs to knock me out. For some reason, I wasn't falling asleep and he asked me to start counting. I was counting up to 20 and told him he better give me more drugs since this isn't working. You would figure, if I got double the drugs, I would be really dizzy coming out of the procedure but I woke up all alert.

The only recommendation I can give is to make sure you rinse out the sockets (where the teeth used to be) and clean them well every time you eat. Otherwise, infection can happen pretty fast. Make sure they give you an irrigation syringe to flush out the sockets. Or, if they don't just go to the local drug store and buy one there.

I'm a chicken when it comes to dental procedures and having my 4 teeth out scared me to no end. Hope your procedure was as easy as mine! ;)

[Taz_Zoee]

I had mine taken out when I was about 17, I think. All four at the same time. And only because they were beginning to mess up my orthodontist work, not becuase they hurt.

[sammy101]

Mine haven't started coming in yet. Most likely, i will have to get them removed. I don't have enough room for them.

[Glacier]

I had mine out when I was 29. I have jaw problems and my wisdom teeth were such a mess that the removal was done in the hospital as a day surgery under a general anasthetic. Couldn't chew for 10 days and I looked like a battered chipmunk with black eyes and big cheeks!

[AlleyCat]

I had jaw surgery when I was 16 yrs old which had nothing to do with the wisdom teeth, but as long as I was under general anesthesia they pulled all 4 wisdoms at the same time. After waking up there was no pain from the wisdoms because my jaw hurt like hell (they had to break/saw through the jaw and wire that) so THAT filled up the pain threshold hee hee. My jaw was wired shut for a while and I got to eat thru a straw lol

[Freedom]

I had all 4 out when I was in my late teens. I sawthe xrays, they were ALL growing sideways! All 4 of them. Pushing all the other teeth forward.

At the time, the dental insurance I had would not cover the removal, so I went in hospital to have it under the medical insurance coverage instead. I had to stay in hospital ONE NIGHT for it to be covered. Talked with the oral surgeon, and he agreed to let me come in at 6 AM for the surgery, and stay overnight THE NIGHT AFTER. I am NOT a good patient, and saw no point in being in hospital the night before surgery when I didn't need any services, and be at home irritating Mom the first night after the surgery. It worked out quite well! I was miserable and my family didn't have to put up with me.

I don't remember any irrigation or anything like that, though!

[critter crazy]

I had all 4 of mine removed about 7 years ago! They all were growing in sideways, and the two bottom ones had to be broken into pices for them to get them out. I was in pain for a few days after that!! I looked like a chipmunk!!:D

[Edwina's Secretary]

Don't have them...never did, never will.

[Karen]

My wisdom teeth were aimed sideways at the roots of my other teeth - two at about a 45-degree angle, the others closer to horizontal. They were taken out before they even started to hurt, because my orthodontist said, "Take 'em out now, or wait and redo another couple years of braces, as they will screw up your teeth." So out they came, all 4 at once - they put me under for it - when I was 18.

[wolflady]

My wisdom teeth were aimed sideways at the roots of my other teeth - two at about a 45-degree angle, the others closer to horizontal. They were taken out before they even started to hurt, because my orthodontist said, "Take 'em out now, or wait and redo another couple years of braces, as they will screw up your teeth." So out they came, all 4 at once - they put me under for it - when I was 18.

This sounds similar to how my teeth where. They called it "impacted". I got all 4 of them out when I was a sophomore in high school (what are you then..15?), so they didn't even hurt, but if I had let them start to grow in, it really would have screwed up my whole mouth. I got knocked out for the surgery, and they basically had to split open my gums and chip the teeth out piece by piece. I was a chipmunk for about a week, but oddly enough it wasn't so bad. The only thing you really have to worry about is keeping your "holes" clean so as not to develop dry socket, which apparently hurts like nobody's business.

Sorry you're in so much pain, my dear! Good luck with your consultation. I'm sure getting them out will be the best thing to do.

**hugs**

[neko1]

I only had 3 wisdom teeth (it runs in the family...).

I had them out a couple of years ago, at the dentists office, just with novacaine..

First one I had pulled, no problems afterward.

The other 2 I had done at the same time (they were partially impacted). I was in such pain for the 2 weeks after, it was horrible.

but I'm glad it's over with and I'm actually off to the dentist next week for another root canal!!! I can't wait for it though, because I'm in such pain now..

[sirrahved]

I have all four, but I picked other because...

My dentist used me as a little bit of a guinea pig to straighten my teeth. He pulled my top 12 year molars. My upper wisdom teeth are where my molars are. I bet even a dentist would assume that they are my 12 years and not my wisdom teeth.

On the bottom I think my wisdom teeth are impacted. They came in on the outside, but not the inside. I imagine they will have to be pulled someday.

[Miss Z]

Would I be considered a mid teen? Just wanted to make sure before I voted. I'm 15. ;)

I have all four of my wisdom teeth and they seem fine so far.

[k9krazee]

I have all four of mine. They started coming in about a year ago but stopped. Apparently I'm getting them out sometime in December. I asked the dentist if I HAD to get them removed, like would it harm me in any way to keep them in and she said no, and that I should just get them out becase WHAT IF I have problems down the road. I'm not an advocate for getting surgeries that I don't feel I need, but I feel like I need to get it done while I'm still under my parent's insurance. *shrugs*

[M&M's Mommy]

I had all four wisdom teeth by the time I was 18 years old. They never give me any problems whatsoever.

[jenluckenbach]

I have all four and have no problems (I am 45). Does this mean I have a BIG mouth?!?! :p

[Catlady711]

Ouch! That sounds like a horrible thing to have going on with your teeth.

I had to vote 'Other' in your poll.

Several years ago they did a full mouth x-ray on me which they said I should have been having every 5 years (I didn't know that). Anyways I asked about my wisdom teeth because that gum area in my mouth had been sore. Turns out that I just have very large 'gum pads' (at least that's what I think she called them) and my soreness was from the beef jerky I'd been eating causing some irritation to my gums. The x-rays showed I have no wisdom teeth!! I'd never heard of that before! Anyways they said because I have such wide 'gum pads' even if I had some wisdom teeth in there I probably could just let them come in and not have them removed.

I was VERY relieved to hear I never have to worry about them coming in since there are none. BTW I'm over 30.

[slleipnir]

I got mine when I was 17 I think...well, I first noticed them then. I think I had them removed around 18. I was SO nervous to have it done. I had heard horror stories lol. It wasn't TOO bad. It hurt a lot for a few days, and you have to flush the holes out after you eat. I found it hard to talk...and my friends came over and kept making me laugh but it hurt lol. It's sorta funny looking back at it

My bro still has all his. And doesn't need them removed

[chocolatepuppy]

I had all four of mine out when I was 24. All at the same time,no problems. They were pushing my other teeth forward.

[Catty1]

I had all four removed, one at a time every two weeks in the "chair", when I was 16.

One was mildly impacted. I took it to Biology class cause it was kind of neat. Never saw it again... :rolleyes:

One of them would come up, disappear below the gums, rise again (never was a full tooth). They are 'residual' teeth as I understand.

So, those of you who never have had wisdom teeth are likely further along in the evolution path!

Excuse me, I have a sudden craving for a banana.... :D

[Soapets]

I had all four of mine taken out at the same time when I was 31. They were all impacted. It was the first time I was ever put under general anesthesia. I closed my eyes when I felt like I was getting sleepy, and the oral surgeon started in on me then, even though I was still awake! I remember groaning and trying to tell him I was still awake. That's the last thing I remember until I woke up a little later when it was all done. I am glad I never have to go through that again! I am a total WIMP when it comes to having any dental work done. I had quite a bit of swelling, and quite a bit of pain.

[Donnaj4962]

I had all four of mine removed at the same time, when I was about 20, if I remember correctly. I had no pain, in fact, like others have said, it was my orthodontist who discovered them coming in and he suggested I gett hem pulled to not wreck the orthodonture work. I had them removed while in college, a couple of days before Christmas. I had NO problems, no swelling or cruising... and was able to eat regular food for the holiday!

Good luck. I am so sorry you are having such pain. I am prone to migraines, so I feel your pain!

[AmberLee]

Hmmm, a few months before I turned 25 the upper and lower wisdom teeth on my right side began coming in and were impacted. My mouth was too swollen to work on them; needed a week of antibiotics to heal enough to get the surgery. As I recall I was miserable. It turned out I had no wisdom teeth on my left side. Interesting how many here have experienced that. I'd heard it was rare!

[jennielynn1970]

I'm 37, and just got mine out this past Christmas. I have a total phobia of the dentist (I had smashed my two front teeth when I was 14, and they drilled into them w/out any novacaine or anything... I've never had cavities, so this was a shock! :eek: ).

I've avoided the dentist for the past 7 years. Horrible, I know. But in that time, I only ended up with 4 tiny cavities total, 1 in each molar. I did however had a bad case of gingivitis or whatever the gum infection is called, and for some reason my body builds up the tartar in my mouth really bad in my mouth, so it took a few sessions to get my mouth cleaned up. I had to have antibiotic packets inserted in my gums (which was not covered by my dental insurance, darn!!), and any novacaine and the gas they give you wasn't either). I did get a great prescription rinse that I can get at the pharmacy and it works really well, and I still use it daily.

Getting my wisdom teeth out... I did this over Christmas vacation so I wouldn't lose any sick days at work. What a Christmas that was. First, because I went to the dentist, not an oral surgeon, to have it done, I could only have local anesthesia and was given Valium to take before I went. He kept telling me that I wouldn't remember anything, and I shouldn't feel anything.... well... it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be, but I did HEAR what they were doing. I wish I would have gone to an oral surgeon and been knocked out. My wisdom teeth weren't totally impacted, so I guess I was even luckier in that respect.

What made me laugh was when the dentist was showing me the tools they use. He's all "This is the extractor" or whatever the technical term was for it. I looked at him and said "No, that's a pliers." "Now, now, Jennie... that's not what we call it. And this is the elevator that we lift the tooth out with." I'm looking at him, and looking at the instrument and said "That is a chisel." You don't need to use fancy words with me, I shop at Home Depot and Lowes, I know what these suckers look like, lol!

So, it's almost a year later, and my mouth feels much better. It feels weird having my wisdom teeth gone. My teeth haven't shifted much since then. I do have a small mouth (contrary to popular belief), so the dentist said it should help with spacing.

What I can say is that I haven't gone back for my checkup for the yearly cleaning yet... :o . I'm still kinda rattled from the whole entire ordeal, and I get panic attacks and throw up when I'm there (the smell gets me). They were a really nice place, and even burned candles for me when I was first there so it wouldn't smell like a dentist's office. You know that smell??? I get sick to my stomach from it.

Oh, I know that I have gotten flouride treatments ever since I was about 3 yrs old because I was given tetracycline when I was 2yrs old and really sick, and it damaged the enamel on my teeth, and so I had to deal with discoloration from that. I still am careful about the toothpastes I use, and I can't use whiteners since they are so abrasive on the tooth enamel.

Hope you have good luck at your dental appt. I'll keep you in my thoughts as I definitely know your pain in this one!

[krazyaboutkatz]

I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth removed at the same time when I was 19 years old. Two of them were just barely starting to come in and the other two weren't coming in yet. They may have been impacted.

My mom drove me there and I was very groggy when I woke up and she drove me home and I slept the rest of the day. I don't remember being in much pain but I do remember that they packed the sockets with gauze and that some of the gauze started to come out before I was supposed to have it removed. This made it very hard to eat without chewing on some of the gauze. Yuck!!!

Kelly, I hope that you'll start feeling better soon and that you'll have a successful wisdom tooth extraction. Please take care.

[NoahsMommy]

Wow! Thanks so much for sharing your experiences with me. I've decided based on your help that I'm going to an oral surgeon and will be knocked out. I believe the front office ladies at the the dentists office told me that the dentist normally refers out her "Wisdom Tooth Removals", so that's good. OMG, my co-worker mentioned that her dental insurance doesn't pay for the anesthesia - what a MEAN insurance...obviously whomever wrote those policy limits never had to have dental work...what a mean jerk! :mad: :eek: :rolleyes:

Anyway, my appointment is this coming Friday, but I found out that my co-worker also has an appointment that day, 30 minutes prior, for a tooth extraction - so I know she will not be coming back to work. I may need to change that appointment. :(

I'm not as scared this time, the appt on Wednesday made me realize I'm in good, GENTLE hands...everyone there is so kind and like, soft. I know that sounds odd, but you just feel so welcome and like they DO care that you're terrified to be there, that they WANT to make you feel better. Shocking (refreshing??), I know! I guess I'll have my consult with Dr. Valde and discuss my wisdom teeth as well as the bonding work that needs to be redone on my front teeth.

I really want this all overwith...my pain doc told me how to take my current pain medicine to help with the teeth and told me to go get Oragel - that stuff is amazing!!! My migraines aren't as bad...all they did was clean and x-ray my teeth, but maybe that helped do something to them?? I don't know...but I'll take less pain/fewer migraines for WHATEVER reason! ha ha :D

I thought this sort of pain would be hard, but that I'd handle it how I handle my crohn's pain...but wow!! Tooth/ear/head pain is NOT fun!! This dentist (as per my co-worker) does not prescribe pain medication for her patients!! I don't need anything extra, but I feel for her other patients...I mean, OUCH!!! I scheduled this appointment around my work schedule - don't need to be out for ANY REASON - so this was the soonest I could get in...I think I may call and see if they'll call me with any cancellations, because Friday's appt is not the "end", it's the beginning because she'll need to refer me out.

Anyway, sorry to go on and on like this. I'm talkative today I think. :o Thank you all again for sharing your experiences with me...it helps to know what I'm in for. My mouth is kinda small too...my teeth are very close together, I have to get a certain type of floss so it works for me...so I think having these out will free up some room and maybe my teeth will be able to spread out a tiny bit. That would be nice.

Hugs, Kelly :D

[prechrswife]

I had mine out in my late 20's. I had 3 done at once at my regular dentist's office. The other one was impacted, so it had to be done by an oral surgeon. That one by itself was worse than the other 3 combined, but I think part of that was the way my body reacted to the pain meds they prescribed.

[mina'smomma]

Mine had to be surgically removed because instead of busting through the gum line they grew and calcified (sp) into my jaw. They literally had to chip away jawbone to get to part of the teeth. :(

[shais_mom]

wow - sorry this is happening Kel.
how are you going to be able to get time off work for this procedure?
:(
I had mine out when I was 17 the summer b/n my Jr and Sr years. Mine were impacted. IT SUCKED! My cousin was eating pizza hut pizza that nite. I couldn't eat real food for a week and when I did I had to smash it up and shove it in b/n my mouth b/c my jaw wouldn't open. My sister and brother in law had it done the summer before a couple weeks apart and my bro in law spit out a bunch of bloody gauze and MY SISTER passed out!
My mom fed me ice cream and I would totally NOT reccommend that - the milk products hitting the blood in my stomach caused me to throw up like no other! She said afterward as I'm sitting there with my head in the dishpan - "oh yea - your sister threw up after I gave her ice cream also" gggaaah!

The first day after surgery my jawline swelled up - the 2nd day my upper cheeks swelled up and the 3rd day my whole face swelled up! I remember taking an old syringe in putting them in the holes and cleaning them out for awhile but not too long, I think what bothered me the most was the stitches before they dissolved. I was playing with them with my tongue all the time.
Good luck to you my friend and keep us posted!

[ilovemypup]

I will not vote because I am not an older-teen:)
Respecting your poll!:D

I haven't gotten them yet..but I am getting my molers(I thought they were the same..).. and they hurt soo badly!!!
UGH!
PAIN!

Just thought I'd share:)

-alI:)

[Maya & Inka's mommy]

Don't have them...never did, never will.

Just like me!! I thought I was the only one, really; my family keeps teasing me with that :rolleyes: :( ;)

[Suki Wingy]

Mine are all at the placement that you'd expect for them to be once they've come in but most of them are all still covered with gums. My dentist said I need them taken out, they could be the source of my frequent yet mysterious jaw locking and pain.

[ramanth]

Voted Other.

I have all four of mine in and they do cause pain because they came in crooked.

My orthodontist had my 12 year molars pulled convincing my parents that the wisdom teeth would come up in their place. Well they came in crooked and sometimes ache, but my dentist won't pull them, claiming that I have to have SOMETHING back there. :(

[kallisto4529]

Oh that sucks big time!!!!!!!!!! I actually got lucky I never experienced any pain of any kind before mine were taken out, just went in for a regular checkup and the x-rays found that mine were growing into my jaw bone and I needed to have them out immediately! I was 17, my spring break was spent recouping from having all four surgically removed at once. It was not too awful, great pain meds. lol Good luck with yours.

[Argranade]

I don't remember ever having back teeth pulled out so I must have them,

I've had x rays taken and the dentist never see's any problems. :)

[Logan]

Mine are gone. I only had the lower ones and they were impacted. They xrayed up to my eye sockets and there were none on top. Good for me! :D I had the surgery when I was 19 (I think). That was a LONG time ago! :p

My daughter, Helen, had hers out at 15. She only had 3, but the orthodontist wanted them out right away because they were headed the wrong way (impacted).

I think they are doing the surgery earlier and earlier these days to avoid problems that pop up later.

Good luck Kelly.
Logan