Anxiety I'm anxious about upcoming dental work

[BourbonMac]

I'm supposed to get my wisdom teeth out on Thursday. Last night while stoned, I started to be a bit fearful, but knew I was going to go with it. I mean I had this all planned. I got kratom capsules so I wouldn't have to do whatever opiates they try to give me. I prefer kratom.

Then I just fucking HAD to go on reddit, read about dry socket, how it's worse than childbirth, 20% chance with impacted teeth especially on the bottom and I'm just like, fuck. Should I only get the top 2 out? It's those that likely cause the headaches (though the surgeon thinks my headaches are generally not related). They've improved vastly on their own at any rate.

So I was going to call Monday and say I'm not ready, I'm too anxious right now. Fucking internet man, I mean, the anxiety was brewing, but I did this to myself by choosing to look on Reddit, a place where obviously even if 1% of people will have a problem you'll see hundreds or thousands of people talking about it. The world is a large place.

This was all to work out perfectly. I get Thursday through Sunday off, was gonna take Monday off and not be back until that Friday because for whatever reason I'm not scheduled the Thursday after my surgery. Now I have to explain at work some elaborate excuse because mental health discussion in a retail job will just make you look bad. None of my managers give a shit about that. It's why they let some stalker kid work here for months creeping on several female employees who ended up leaving, he even showed up at one of their houses, stole $50 worth of drinks, just kept breaking rule after rule. He was fired yesterday, finally, but behaviorally he's someone who would likely come try to shoot the place up. Imagine the irony, I choose not to get them out and I get shot to death. That's sadly an actual realistic thing and every one of us are expecting him because he does own a gun and had talked about killing animals, not hunting, killing them because he felt like it. And those death stares... I'm getting off topic though.

I feel like I need another month or two to make this decision. Like fuck me, I don't know where the anxiety came from. Just last night I was vibing to some Santana, having a good session of kava with extreme euphoria, and now I'm a 29 year old man who's too afraid to get some teeth pulled. I do have anxiety and C-PTSD but still... even if I delay it I'll be afraid, it's just it came so fast. I saw the guy 2 weeks ago and it was scheduled this fast. Antibiotics fuck me up and are usually prescribed after this. Amoxicillin I'm allergic to, Clyndamycin RUINS my stomach, and these two are the most commonly used. Bactrim is about the only one that doesn't. It took me 6 months last year to get my stomach back to normal after a 5 day course of Zithromax. 6 months. And actually, probably closer to 8 because I couldn't eat at work without awful gut pain. Now I can. I went from 6"1 115 pounds last winter to 6"1 nearly 150 pounds.

Anyone have input? Yes I know I'm a pussy. I've faced so many more tough things in my life than this. In fact, I almost WANTED to get dry socket just to know how bad it truly is. It's not likely, I have 40mg edible gummies and I can vape through my nose. Fuuuck, I'm just so anxious. At least if I got them out in a month or two, I'd be in better spirits given Spring is coming and well, I'd have more time to probably see a better therapist, my old one and I didn't get along after awhile. I'm very particular about them which is why it's difficult to find good ones. The good ones don't take my insurance or cost $100 a session. Yeah, no thanks.

Anyway, Idk what input others might have. Just tell them I have anxiety disorders and I don't feel ready? I can tell work whatever, something came up and pick my shifts back up. I got a $2 raise so I'd want that anyway.

 

[Jerry Atrick]

Yeah man, I get what you are saying but I can't speak from a place of experience with anxiety. I have plenty of other mental health issues but anxiety is not one of the.

I got my wisdom teeth removed when I was 17 years old and I hardly remember it being bad at all. I didn't get a dry socket. They prescribed me opiates for pain relief and I didn't take any of them preferring to save them for recreational use later.

My only question for you is what happens when you delay this and wait a month or two? Then what if your anxiety starts up again, what is going to keep you from delaying this for months and months and possibly years? I do know from hearing other people's stories that wisdom teeth can get get painful if they aren't removed soon enough, especially if they are impacted. Of course I'm not sure if yours are or will be impacted but this is something to consider. Imagine how bad the anxiety would be if not only do you have a surgery to look forward to but are in excruciating pain leading up to it.

My advice is to bite the bullet and just get it done. Like yanking off a band-aid. It may be uncomfortable at first but it won't be any less comfortable if you wait one, two, or six months. Why not just get it over with and never worry about it again?

 

[BourbonMac]

While I'll definitely still be anxious, I think having say a month would allow me to mentally prepare for it better, I really didn't do this and then I fucked it all up reading up on reddit. I didn't even think about the surgery until February struck and then it started to occur to me this is happening soon. It might be hard to understand, it's just the way I feel. Anxiety in general I think is more a side effect of C-PTSD, ADHD and OCD. A wonderful combo for sure... I've been generally anxious about other things, it just hasn't been a good week.

I'll call them on Monday and see what can be done. If I'd have to wait months, then I'll just get it over with. Thing is at 17 you recover much better. I was about to get them out at 20 until my insurance fell apart. I guess the older you are the tougher the recovery is.

 

[F.U.B.A.R.]

Try having dental work done in the UK mate. If you're lucky, you'll get a shot of anaesthetic and a couple of paracetamol...

 

[AngelsandFairiesarereal]

Hey,
I was just reading what you wrote & wanted to tell you back when I had my wisdom teeth out, everything went fine. I had a lot of anxiety about it too. I mean it was painful & inconvenient for a week or so (& lol I kept smoking weed out of my nostril) but once it was over I was glad to have gotten it over with.

Some things that might help is when you do get this done, share your concerns with the doctor, like telling him which antibiotics you’ve had trouble with. I’d even tell him you’re a little fearful of the possibility of dry socket, because he can probably give you tips to avoid it, if I’m not mistaken I think there’s even a rinse they can give you for that.

I remember when I went they asked me if I wanted them all taken out at once & I said yes (to get it the hell over with, for some reason I only had three lol)

Anyways, try not to read the stuff on Reddit because I feel like people are more likely to write their bad experiences because all the people who had just fine experiences are prob not even thinking about it anymore or kinda forgot about it.

Actually you know what could help, try looking up wisdom teeth removal positive & success stories that could probably help too.

Either way I do believe you will be fine, try to take some deep breathes hun, that always helps the body calm down a little

 

[BourbonMac]

Thank you. I may still delay it a month if that's possible. If the wait time is too long, hell with it I guess I'll get them out. Though I do need to see a neurologist about the headaches since I know not all of them are from my wisdom teeth... or are they? It's hard to imagine the top or top corners of your forehead hurting in particular and not the teeth. Still, I've felt pain in the teeth occasionally especially the obtuse one on my bottom right jar. It's not fully sideways, but it's slanted for sure.

 

[emkee_reinvented]

Of all the tooth care, wisdom removal.

Could be wrong though, maybe some experience pain. Not for nothing Hydrocodone was used. Over here you suffer, or are on Kratom

 

[BourbonMac]

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying entirely.

 

[BourbonMac]

Well now I'm really bitching out (not sure who changed the title but I guess I don't mind, it's more specific). There's absolutely no way I can get all 4 out at once, my anxiety won't let me. I don't think it was ever going to, but given all the concerns, I just don't think I'll be able to recover easily getting all 4 out, and only the top 2 give me any issue. The only reason I want the bottom 2 out are so that I could get braces.

Grew up with the whole "real men aren't supposed to care about their looks" BS and my father in particular would not allow my mother to get me braces because something like, the worst you look, the more men will respect you or some demented shit like that. I think he just didn't want me to look good, he hated me in particular for being on the spectrum and was very controlling especially on my mom.

I was just a kid so I didn't have a strong feeling about it either way, but as I've grown older I realize I do want to straighten out my teeth. I really believed in that masculinity crap for awhile. Apparently you don't even need them removed before braces it's just recommended. Maybe if braces reduced crowding they'd be even easier to get out. But yeah, my bottom 2 have never caused me any pain whatsoever. Maybe a very rare dull ache in the lower right. Since the bottom are more likely to get dry socket, I don't want to potentially have this pain on top of the recovery of my upper teeth.

So, this is just how it's gonna have to be. I'm an adult and I realize given my mental health issues that getting all 4 out was never going to be possible. Maybe it almost was until I had to go online, but even before that, the other night I was thinking about it and suddenly I just felt that I couldn't do it. I don't know how much more costly it is and frankly I don't really care. Life is just a flash and then it's gone. If my surgeon bites back I'm just going to tell him, no, can't do it, because I can't. I will worry about crooked teeth some other time, my bottom teeth don't cause me any pain, it's very clear the top two contribute to some of the headaches and are the only ones that have ever actually experienced any pain.

 

[Nurse Ratched]

^ I changed the title as it was originally " I'm a bitch "

I read the post and realized that you were just anxious about upcoming dental work and it was a more appropriate title. Now if you would have said " I'm a whiny bitch and a pussy when it comes to dental procedures" that would have been good. Oh wait....you did say that !!

 

[BourbonMac]

In general I'm not but for this, I let the internet get the best of me and I hate that, I really do. All these "I'd rather have labor again than have dry socket" type posts.
I delayed it to March 13th and I'm only getting the top 2 out for now. Of course, within the last 12 hours of doing this I get attacked with the upper temple headaches. The same ones I said had improved when I made this thread, it's like life is taunting me.

 

[Senior Moderator]

Dry socket is NOT worse than giving birth. That's just silly.

Delaying getting these wisdom teeth out is only going to a) increase your anxiety about the procedure and aftercare, and b) prolong the current pain you're in from the wisdom teeth.

Having said that though, I personally would not (and have chosen not to in the past) get all 4 taken out at once. You've made the right choice by getting 2 out at a time. Although speak to your dentist at the appointment, as they may advise you to get the 2 out ON ONE SIDE rather than both upper and then both lower. This will give you the option to at least be able to eat on one side while the other side is healing. But see what they advise.

And please PLEASE stay off reddit, google, basically the entire internet about information pertaining to getting wisdom teeth taken out. You will only read horror stories which will increase your anxiety. I've had 2 taken out so far, both were very problematic teeth. I too was extremely anxious about their removal and the aftercare and if I was going to get dry socket. With one, I had myself convinced that I had dry socket, but it was all in my head. So I really do know how our anxiety can fuck with us. And they healed perfectly fine because I adhered to the correct aftercare precisely as advised. This is what you should also do.

See if you can reschedule for an appointment sooner than March, and get the ball rolling with this sooner rather than later. Get it done man. It will be totally fine, I promise.

 

[Lysosomalstorage]

And please PLEASE stay off reddit, google, basically the entire internet about information pertaining to getting wisdom teeth taken out. You will only read horror stories which will increase your anxiety.

This. No one goes on Reddit to make posts about how getting their wisdom teeth out wasn't that bad, despite it being most people's experiences. The recovery is worse than the procedure but even then it's mostly just really inconvenient. (Two on one side is a great idea)

I can tell you the pain achieved by letting dental problems get to their worst stages can definitely be worse than childbirth though. I only ever saw my father cry once and that was from neuralgia from a cracked infected molar.

 

[Picnic_Johnson]

I learned during the last tooth extraction I had that I can in fact smoke a joint by just barely inhaling, like long draws
that don't create any suction. One can also, as mentioned above, vape through the nose
No fucking way could I, or would I abstain from cannabis especially when I have the rare treat of hydrocodone

 

[foodcrisis]

I learned during the last tooth extraction I had that I can in fact smoke a joint by just barely inhaling, like long draws
that don't create any suction. One can also, as mentioned above, vape through the nose
No fucking way could I, or would I abstain from cannabis especially when I have the rare treat of hydrocodone

hah. i think this poster was saying they are going to not use the opiates........ i had my friend over to fill my bong with smoke though, and then i would just let the smoke float up to my lungs... i only did a few bowls, but i didn't get dry sockets, but i don't know if i'd recommend it... i actually kind of went on a binge with my pills. i was taking low doses of cough syrup with them. it was a fun few days.

i was actually thinking about this post earlier. what the deal is with kratom. i heard on yahooka that most legal pain stuff is no good, but it seems on this forum people beg to differ. i can't imagine eating grams of powder though. so i doubt i'll try to find another habbit to get into.

 

[BourbonMac]

Dry socket is NOT worse than giving birth. That's just silly.

Delaying getting these wisdom teeth out is only going to a) increase your anxiety about the procedure and aftercare, and b) prolong the current pain you're in from the wisdom teeth.

Having said that though, I personally would not (and have chosen not to in the past) get all 4 taken out at once. You've made the right choice by getting 2 out at a time. Although speak to your dentist at the appointment, as they may advise you to get the 2 out ON ONE SIDE rather than both upper and then both lower. This will give you the option to at least be able to eat on one side while the other side is healing. But see what they advise.

And please PLEASE stay off reddit, google, basically the entire internet about information pertaining to getting wisdom teeth taken out. You will only read horror stories which will increase your anxiety. I've had 2 taken out so far, both were very problematic teeth. I too was extremely anxious about their removal and the aftercare and if I was going to get dry socket. With one, I had myself convinced that I had dry socket, but it was all in my head. So I really do know how our anxiety can fuck with us. And they healed perfectly fine because I adhered to the correct aftercare precisely as advised. This is what you should also do.

See if you can reschedule for an appointment sooner than March, and get the ball rolling with this sooner rather than later. Get it done man. It will be totally fine, I promise.

March 13th is the soonest I can get in and I'm content with that.
2 on one side does sound like a pretty good idea, but it's only the top 2 that cause me any pain or headaches, and I guess the bottom ones are more likely to dry socket. Probably not that likely, but still I'd kind of prefer to just get the top 2 out and worry about the bottom ones later on. Your advice about being able to chew on one side is good but I think I should be able to manage eating okay Potatoes, scrambled eggs and stuff like that probably.

Thing is I've seen a lot of people describe dry socket as some of the worst pain imaginable. That's why I'm scared of it, I don't know if you had it or not. Giving birth really depends from woman to woman, for some it's not really that painful. My sister had a really easy birth and within 3 or 4 days she was already back to running miles. But some have very painful births and postpartum issues, it's a lot more complex than exposed jawbone through a hole.

How long until you can really eat normally, or rather, the holes start closing up? I've heard anywhere from 5 days to a week. I've also heard some people say only the first 2 days suck and they felt fine after, while others say it sucked for 2 weeks. So this also seems to depend a lot, the recovery process. But dry socket in itself is known to be one of the most painful things and can set back recovery time.

 

[Senior Moderator]

How long until you can really eat normally, or rather, the holes start closing up? I've heard anywhere from 5 days to a week. I've also heard some people say only the first 2 days suck and they felt fine after, while others say it sucked for 2 weeks. So this also seems to depend a lot, the recovery process. But dry socket in itself is known to be one of the most painful things and can set back recovery time.

Sounds a lot like the complexity of the giving birth analogy, right? It varies a lot from one individual to the next. The best thing you can do is take good care of your health before and after having the teeth taken out, and to follow your dentist's advice precisely. That's the best chance you've got at avoiding dry socket. And if you DO get dry socket, know that the pain won't last forever, it WILL heal. You've got this.

 

[emkee_reinvented]

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying entirely.

Wisdom removal is done without OPOIDS. Over here

 

[paranoid android]

Do not fucking smke anything after getting wisdom teeth taken out thats a sure way to get dry socket and i avoided it by not smoking. I had to have mine cut out and was given percs first then demerol and with my tolerance at the time the demerol worked fine. Mine got infected though hence the pain

From what ive heard dry socket is bad but nothing like fucking childbirth lol. Eeallty a few vicodin or something with ibuprofen would probably be enough

 

[BourbonMac]

Sounds a lot like the complexity of the giving birth analogy, right? It varies a lot from one individual to the next. The best thing you can do is take good care of your health before and after having the teeth taken out, and to follow your dentist's advice precisely. That's the best chance you've got at avoiding dry socket. And if you DO get dry socket, know that the pain won't last forever, it WILL heal. You've got this.

Maybe the cause or healing process might vary, I was just trying to say the pain of dry socket should be the same per any individual while child birth will be a lot different from person to person.