There’s good reason the phrase, “like pulling teeth,” has long been such a popular idiom. However, this idiom isn’t just old – thanks to modern medicine, it’s antiquated. These days, pulling teeth is much less painful than many people think. This is true, even of stubborn wisdom teeth that have taken root. Take a look at wisdom teeth removal and find out how much pain you can expect, if any.

Pain During the Procedure

A local anesthetic, usually lidocaine, will be administered ahead of your procedure to ensure that having a tooth pulled doesn’t feel like having a tooth pulled. The anesthesia won’t numb all sensation, but you won’t feel anything more than mild discomfort. It’s like that you won’t notice any discomfort and won’t feel anything more than a bit of pressure from the dentist’s hands and tools.

Pain After the Procedure

After the anesthesia wears off and you’re at home, you’ll need to take your care into your own hands to ensure that the removal doesn’t turn painful after the procedure. Doing this will be simple, especially because your dental staff will send you off with detailed aftercare guidance.

These are some of the things your dental staff will recommend to ensure your discomfort is kept to a minimum while the wisdom tooth extraction site heals and to help you avoid dry socket:

Keep the pressure on – your dentist will seal the wisdom tooth extraction site with gauze. You’ll need to bite down on the gauze to keep the pressure on and to help it form a clot

Ice it – icing the area will help you bring down swelling

Take your medicine – you should only need common over-the-counter painkillers to keep discomfort to a minimum as the extraction site heals

Rest up – get plenty of rest to keep the healing on track

Keep it clean – make sure to keep your mouth clean using the rinse your dentist will recommend

More on Wisdom Teeth Removal in Oak Brook, IL

Take a moment to schedule a consultation with a local dentist to learn more about your options for wisdom teeth removal in Oak Brook, IL.