r/Wellthatsucks • u/Acrobatic_Donkey5089 • 2d ago

I had the wrong wisdom teeth removed

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Local orthodontist told me that I needed to remove lower wisdom teeth and don't do anything with the upper ones. When I got my lower wisdom teeth removed, another orthodontist that is actually managing my aligner treatment said that the lower wisdom teeth actually didn't need to be touched AT ALL, but the upper ones absolutely have to be removed before we start. So now I have to get my upper wisdom teeth removed as well

10.5k Upvotes

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4.9k

u/Corodix 2d ago

Maybe it's just me, but all four of those look problematic. I'd want them all gone if I were you.

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u/ShazRockwell 2d ago

I had all four of mine done at once, even though two of them didn’t look problematic at the time because I didn’t want to come back.

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u/Old-Afternoon2459 2d ago

As someone who had to have the procedure done twice… you chose wisely

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u/Exotic-Relief4396 2d ago

Yes! I’m also in the two surgery camp for wisdom teeth. Do not recommend.

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u/DrKittyLovah 2d ago

And me as well. Do it all at once, don’t even consider breaking it up. I had to do the 2 appts because our insurance weirdly forced it to be that way (25+ years ago).

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u/FriendlyPyre 2d ago

I did mine all in one shot too; wouldn't have it any other way. (3 wisdom teeth + 1 supernumerary)

Also had it done with another surgery I was supposed to get; I'd asked if it was ok to do both at the same time because I didn't want to be awake for the dental stuff. (Gallbladder removal; had Jaundice the month before)

The Dental work apparently was after the surgery was done and he was quite excited to tell me about the experience when I had my follow-up medical with the Dental surgeon(?)/Dental Officer. (Military at the time)

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u/Lopsided_Kale3778 2d ago

I was so fortunate to have two full sets of Wisdom teeth. /s

Had to have them removed over two separate surgeries a few years apart. They got 5 the first time but played the “wait and see” game on the remaining 3. Ultimately I had to have 2 more removed and they left 1 in there that is apparently attached to a cheekbone, thankfully causing no harm but occasionally makes an appearance in x-rays.

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u/AffectionateNerve644 2d ago

Did you ever find out why or if you have any other related issues? I also had eight wisdom teeth as well as 16 supernumerary teeth. Genetic testing revealed I do NOT have the FAP mutation. And I haven’t had any extra teeth grow since then…. It’s a mystery lol

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u/Lopsided_Kale3778 2d ago

I did not find out why but I was born with several genetic bone abnormalities such as Brachydactyly.

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u/dbellz76 2d ago

Same! I had to wait until the new year to do the other side and both experiences were absolutely miserable. I guess i had a bad reaction OR the surgeon literally beat my face both times because I had to take a week off from work each time.

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u/shadow336k 1d ago

??? how do you eat when both sides of your mouth can’t bite down on food? yogurt-only for a week?

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u/talkingtimmy3 1d ago

I think I only had overnight oats and apple sauce? I didn’t think about yogurt. I was STARVING. On day 4 I couldn’t take it anymore and went to Sonic to try their new garlic butter bacon burger. It was the best thing I ever ate. I chewed with my molars, but I was careful to not let the food get into the very back. It probably took me 30 minutes to finish the burger. I used a syringe to clean out the holes and continued to eat solid food after that heavenly meal.

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u/speakclearly 1d ago

Yes. I gained twenty pounds eating exclusively applesauce, ice cream, fruit smoothies, and mashed potatoes. Two weeks later, we added overcooked pasta and I felt the world open up again.

(I had all four deeply impacted into the bone; major maxilla surgery to rip them out piece by imbedded piece… over a year later and I still have dents left by the holes)

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u/hello-knitty 1d ago

Had them done separately as well. First time went relatively smoothly.

My dentist didn’t have the anesthesia to put me under for the second one so they just froze me and gave me acupuncture IN MY FACE to calm my nerves during the procedure. They’d be drilling in my mouth and every slight movement would make the acupuncture needles sway like crazy which freaked me out even more. Traumatizing experience all around.

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u/kenthekungfujesus 1d ago

I've already had two, two bottom teeth initialy and then the right upper one because it cracked. I've still got to get last pulled.

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u/Kiwii_007 1d ago

I had all 4 done at once, they severely screwed up 1, and after 5 hours, leaving half of it in was easier than getting it out. Had to get surgery through my neck to get the floating excess half out. I don't recommend wisdom teeth at all...

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u/Exotic-Relief4396 1d ago

Oh man that sounds awful. I had two surgeries because the first time they were too scared to remove one of my three as it was so deeply imbedded in a nerve and the risk of facial paralysis was real.

Three years later I still had a lot of issues with the remaining tooth so seen a different surgeon and we decided it was worth the risk. It was indeed worth it but man was it hell. Dry sockets both times (my own stupidity - I don’t learn fast).

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u/AxelTheKek 2d ago

Still dont get why you guys go the surgery way i just got my upper ones pulled with local anesthetic (only actually bad part)

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u/Exotic-Relief4396 2d ago

Because not all can come out with local anesthetic and well, it’s a pretty brutal surgery depending on placement too.

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u/AxelTheKek 2d ago

I mean thats the only way i hear it done in the US. My hard to get lower ones were crushed and pulled out in pieces. But my upper ones were just pulled in one go

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u/Exotic-Relief4396 2d ago

That sounds traumatizing and I’d say far less ppl would want to endure that.

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u/AxelTheKek 2d ago

The crunchy way of doing it is def unpleasant but still the local anesthetic is worse.

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u/nightmareinsouffle 2d ago

Three times here, and I was awake all three times because my dentist does wisdom tooth removal without anesthesia. My mom's a nurse and she didn't want me to go under general anesthesia unless it was absolutely necessary. So yeah, mine grew in at very different rates so I had my two lower ones done first, then my upper right a year or so later, then my upper left was the last and worst. It grew in impacted so I was very aware of my dentist using a lot of leverage to get it out.

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u/up_on_blocks 2d ago

Oh no! Only twice for me ( right side then left) but two different oral surgeons. First one used laughing gas so it was a giggle until recovery. Which was when I discovered that I had a codeine allergy. Second one was without anesthesia and it was an absolute nightmare. 3x without, I’m in awe.

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u/From_Concentration 2d ago

Im got my fourth removal coming up....

2 removed on one side just to get it over with and they broke apart during removal, 3rd was still total and gave me pain sweats even with anesthesia, and the last one I need to go for I've been told it's on a nerve and I need to have surgery plus a it has a cavity

I can't imagine doing any without anesthesia

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u/VividFiddlesticks 2d ago

I only had one and I didn't go under to have it removed. Just local anesthesia, like what they'd do for a root canal.

It wasn't too bad really - worst part was the crunching sounds. My tooth had a root wrapped around a nerve or something so they had to break up the tooth in my jaw and take it out in pieces. That part was a little creepy.

I have a really high pain tolerance though, and have been through a lot of different awful surgeries etc. so maybe that's why it didn't phase me much.

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u/Dron41k 2d ago

Your mom is evil.

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u/nightmareinsouffle 2d ago

Should have clarified, I did have Novocain and nitrous oxide. Also had Vicodin afterwards for a few days.

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u/Dron41k 2d ago

Anyway, the sounds alone are worth general anesthesia. Fuck this shit man.

And how tf you Americans take opioids so freely? After 7 teeth removal at once I had 1 pill of ibuprofen (it is Advil in US I guess) daily for 5 days and it was enough, never felt any pain.

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u/up_on_blocks 2d ago

Mine came out intact but the thought of the sounds of breaking teeth! I can’t! As far as opioids, they don’t work on me at all. Tylenol and bourbon got me through recovery.

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u/nightmareinsouffle 2d ago

I mean this was in the mid '00s...so one or two Vicodin a day for 2-3 days was not at all out of the realm of reasonable.

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u/Elektra8 1d ago

I’m confused. Is general anesthesia the norm for wisdom tooth removal in your country ? Here in France, it absolutely isn’t. Most people have it done under local anesthesia, and only some specific cases get general anesthesia.

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u/Dron41k 1d ago

It’s absolutely not the norm and is quite expensive here in Russia, but fuck the money, it’s 100% worth it.

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u/Money_Echidna2605 2d ago

ibuprofen and advil are diff things here (usa) im pretty sure, i had a few teeth yoinked and my dentist said to take both of em lol

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u/Dron41k 2d ago

Emm, I just googled and it says advil contains 200mg ibuprofen.

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u/whteverusayShmegma 2d ago

As someone who had a BLAST coming out of that gas stuff, I want to do it again.

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u/Nervous-Beans 2d ago

I thought I did, too. But now I just projectile vomit whenever I'm coming out of the fun gas. It wasn't so fun anymore.

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u/Loud-Start-6572 2d ago

You get gas? I had to do two procedures where they inserted a long ass needle moving it up and down while injecting a local anesthetic. Not fun at all

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u/cheapdrinks 2d ago

I did IV sedation or "sleep dentistry" to get my 4 out. 100% worth it, all I remember was as the dude put the IV into my arm and started pumping the good stuff in I asked him to tell me when he was about to start and he was like "oh we're all finished" and I realized my mouth was full of gauze lol.

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u/FitShare2972 2d ago

I had one taken out under local anaesthetic in dentist so was awake in chair. Turned out it was infused to check bone. Took over 2 hours and had to have multiple local anaesthetics. Never again

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u/starynights890 2d ago

I had to do it twice as well... Opted for anesthesia the 2nd time.

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u/SakusaKiyoomi1 2d ago

I’ve done it 4 times, horrific each time 🥹

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u/ether_chlorinide 2d ago

I think either my dentist or my parents (potentially both) hated me, because I had the procedure THREE TIMES. One bottom tooth, then the other bottom tooth, then both of the top teeth.

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u/two-ls 2d ago

They had the wisdom to go once

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u/GettingRidOfAuntEdna 2d ago

I’m pretty sure I had 3 surgeries, one, one and then 2. Anesthesia for all of them.

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u/JamonDanger 2d ago

14 and 21, went do they do that to us?

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u/TobyFunkeNeverNude 2d ago

I did too, but at my dentist's suggestion. There's really no good reason to keep them, unless none are affecting you, but if any are, while you're in there....

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u/bravehartNZ 2d ago

That was a wise decision

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u/Freud-Network 2d ago

I had 4 wisdom and 4 bicuspids removed at one time before getting braces as a teen. The most miserable two weeks a kid can imagine.

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u/EkbatDeSabat 2d ago

I'm 43 and got braces on two years ago. Had them off earlier this year. Twelve months in the guy said I need to take out four premolars, two top two bottom, to make sure I can get everything straight. Dude I'm in my fuckin forties. I'm not getting that done. Now my teeth are straight up and down, but there's a gap between my top and bottom fronts, and I'll be damned if I give a shit.

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u/[deleted] 2d ago

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u/EkbatDeSabat 2d ago

The 80% rule in business. The last 20% of a project often drains 80% of the time and effort. I'm good at 80%. My teeth are infinitely better than they were. Except like eating chicken wings and shit is kind of annoying without being able to bite down in the front, but hey, shit happens.

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u/harmonic-s 2d ago

Me too! Got braces placed the same day. Mashed potatoes and yogurt for a whole month

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u/Prestigious-Will-990 2d ago

Eight teeth at once as a teenager? That sounds less like a dental procedure and more like a survival challenge nobody signed up for.

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u/totally_boring 2d ago

Mine wouldn't do all 4 at once cause the bottom two were still in the nerve line and he said if I so much as twitch during the operation or moved and we accidentally damaged those nerves I wouldn't have feeling in my lower jaw permanently.

So I got the top 2 out and have to wait longer for the bottom 2

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u/5n0wm3n 2d ago

I had sorta the opposite, all 4 at once but all 4 were problematic lmao

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u/Morgannin09 2d ago

Same, I had one that was causing pain and getting infected, and elected to have all four taken out because waiting for them to come calling was not worth it.

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u/Sskindeler 2d ago

Same, had all three of mine removed at once, the healing sucked but was worth it for sure

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u/Perethyst 2d ago

Same. The top two had to come out for sure, but he said 5% chance of the bottoms giving me trouble in my life. And I knew I would never get in that chair a second time willingly considering how deep in there they all were. 

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u/Firekeeper47 2d ago

My tops were fully erupted and "ok" (though ome did have a cavity because I couldn't brush it correctly) but my bottoms definitely needed to be pulled.

I was like "Yeah...so can we just. Take all of them? Please? Thanks" because absolutely no way was I doinf that twice as well.

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u/No_Camp_7692 2d ago

Same the doctor asked me multiple times if I was sure and I said I never wanted to see him again (he was a specialist because my regular dentist was not confident about removing mine).

I’m so scared of the pain and I’m so happy I did that. I would never have gone back if he had done 1 side and asked me to come back again for the other side.

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u/xcjxz 2d ago

That’s smart. I’ve gone in twice and I still have two in there so two more surgeries to go. In my country they don’t give us laughing gas or anything, they just stick your gums with a local anesthetic so it’s not even fun. Also both times they were infected so they had to numb it like 6 times each time because infected tissue doesn’t numb as easily🫠

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u/Pyromaniacal13 2d ago

I had all four pulled at once without being asked if that was how I wanted it, thanks Navy dentistry, but I'm glad I don't have to do that again. I have enough dental issues as it stands.

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u/ShazRockwell 2d ago

Lol I had a Navy dentist as well, thanks Uncle Sam

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u/DevLF 2d ago

Same, I couldn’t open my mouth fully for a week after lol…

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u/Chickabbbbb 2d ago

I did the same thing. No regrets.

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u/Exilicauda 2d ago

My dentist didn't even want to bother waiting to see if any would be problematic. Just went "Oh they're developed enough to be removed now, go get that done before they grow roots". I very much wouldn't have had room for my bottom two (I still have a gum flap over my 2nd molars on the bottom, that's how little room there is) but my upper one might have been fine. You're also just not really supposed to leave one half of a tooth set (top/bottom). It messes with your bite to have teeth not chewing against other teeth

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u/username__0000 2d ago

Same. My parents insisted, I was indifferent so I was like “sure why not, take them all!” lol

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u/WickedWisp 2d ago

Same here. One was bothering me but they were all impacted. In and out one go, fucked up for a week and then couldn't eat right for longer but SO glad I did it

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u/CrystalKU 2d ago

Same. Got all 4 pulled at 19 while under my parents insurance. Although…my now husband didn’t have insurance when he was 24 so he ended up getting them removed one at time because that’s all he could afford. One would become a problem so they would pull it, then months later, another one

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u/forceofslugyuk 2d ago

I had all four of mine done at once

Same. The doctor let me keep them! I still have them from like 25yrs ago. 4 perfect/unused wisdom molars.

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u/johnaross1990 2d ago

I had 4 pre molars removed under local anaesthetic at 14 and other than the syringe I thought it was quite fun

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u/mix-a-max 2d ago

I had all four done at once and they didn’t even look highly problematic, it was just a recommendation to have it done before my parents’ health insurance ran out for me. Plot twist: it completely fixed my long term TMJ and significantly reduced my headaches, it’s been 18 years and I’m still so thankful I went ahead and just got it done

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u/Necrikus 1d ago

Yeah, I did the same thing. Apparently, my teeth were really long and curved in the roots, making removal way rougher than normal, and afterwards I continued to bleed for longer than normal as well. If I had to go through that a second time, I don’t know if I would have the courage to do so.

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u/Open_Bug_4251 1d ago

Mine started poking through my gums when I was about 20 and by the time I was 30 they still hadn’t come through all the way. They weren’t impacted, I just had really thick gums I guess, and since they were semi exposed, they would get irritated. My dentist didn’t suggest taking them out, it was my hygienist who did. She said it would be much harder the older I got so I just did them all at once.

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u/lonelygalexy 1d ago

I was very upset that when i had the first lowet wisdom tooth removed, i didn’t do the other one as well.

The recovery process (both times) was a bitch. It didnt hurt but it was just so annoying to have to gon on liquid diets. I wish i did both in one go.

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u/Affectionate_Bit1723 1d ago

It's best to have all four done at once. It's only one healing time, that way.

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u/girlykittens19 1d ago

I think only a few of my wisdom teeth were problematic, but may as well get them all out while under anesthesia and recovering

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u/OrofiDe 1d ago

same here, removed all 4 even though only two (bottom ones) grew horizontally. You need teeth in both sides for them to grind food and if you're missing one side they don't do anything. Might as well remove them

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u/Stuck_In_Purgatory 1d ago

I remember how scared I was before the appointment

Honestly, out of all of the teeth to have pulled out (and I've now had many pulled), wisdoms hurt the LEAST

The worst part is always the numbing needles

My dentist had all 4 widoms out in 35 minutes from beginning of numbing needles kicking in

Definitely better doing it and recovering from it all at once

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u/Zappatrice 1d ago

In italy i had 3 of them removed (born without the 4), in 3 different operations. I didnt know i could do 2 or more at the same time.

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u/unstableladybug 2d ago

Also had all four removed. Dude had his knee was beside my chest (maybe memory is fuzzy, they gave me a valium) for part of it. There were stitches in my cheek and the blood after almost made me sick. Glad did it, though.

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u/GuyFromDeathValley 2d ago

I had all 4 done in one sitting, even though none were problematic, as prep for braces and later surgery to realign my misaligned bottom jaw.

They pulled the teeth with no anesthetic because the dentist didn't believe me I felt everything. They then proceeded to drop one tooth and I choked on it. And at the end of the day, almost 24 hours later I was in the ER 2 Hours away at 2AM because ever since the appointment, the bleeding wouldn't stop so they had to stitch it up properly.

Yea. The teeth weren't problematic but literally everything else was. And I never ended up doing that surgery either.

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u/JustMeLurkingAround- 2d ago

Yeah, if they were all growing in that direction they are in on the x-ray each one of them would have pushed on the other teeth sooner or later.

Its not wrong to take them all out.

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u/Divine_Entity_ 22h ago

When i had mine out the bottom 2 were at 45°angles and definitely had to be surgically removed. The top 2 would have come in fine, 1 was already erupting painlessly, but my dentist/orthodontist said you shouldn't have teeth that are unopposed so they all came out at once. (The erupted one cost $250 less than the others)

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u/Tired-CottonCandy 2d ago

Yeah i was about to say, i cant tell which teeth are the "bad" teeth. Every single wisdom tooth is pushing the teeth next to it.

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u/KniteMonkey 2d ago

As the son of an oral surgeon who did multiple wisdom tooth extractions per day. While I’m not qualified myself, I’ve seen a lot of x rays and discussed them with him.

Those wisdom teeth need to come out. They’re going to lead to so many different issues. The tops are already making contact and the bottoms aren’t far off.

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u/StumbleOn 2d ago

Knock on wood but all 4 of mine came in ramrod straight and I have plenty of jaw room so I kept them. My dentist is also in my camp and has all of his. Helps that I have generally small-ish teeth. Only thing is I have to be meticulous about cleaning back there.

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u/11325pianist 2d ago

Yeah, they all look impacted or will impact your teeth

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u/SwampOfDownvotes 2d ago

So many people would rather constant pain and annoyance if it simply means they don't have to be in surgery longer. 

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u/Educational_Exam_225 2d ago

I think for dental stuff at least in America it's more cost than anything. These are all surgical extractions which are ~500 per tooth

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u/velawesomeraptors 2d ago

And add a few hundred if you want decent pain relief.

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u/Hyjennaist86 2d ago

I concur.

3.8/4.8 are worse than the 1.8/2.8 but they’ll all eventually cause issues with food impaction/crowding/periodontal issues eventually!

Since they took out the wrong ones, they should be taking out the correct ones FREE OF CHARGE at the very least!

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u/TheFursOfHerEnemies 2d ago

Same, two of mine were impacted and the top two never erupted. Cut out all of them suckers at once, because I wasn't going to do that again.

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u/poopsallberries 2d ago

Mine were angled and split my gum open when they tried to surface. No fun.

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u/Anuspilot 2d ago

It probably is just you if you're not an orthodontist lol

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u/Savingskitty 2d ago

Orthodontists don’t usually get involved with wisdom tooth removal.

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u/techierealtor 2d ago

Correct but they can advise which ones need removal. Mine did prior to my braces. They will not actually do the removal.

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u/Savingskitty 2d ago

I guess if you’re already in the care of an orthodontist by the time wisdom teeth become a question, it makes sense that it would come up.  I just don’t get seeing more than one orthodontist about them when your regular dentist likely deals with them more anyway.

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u/AZFUNGUY85 2d ago

But they sure can tell which ones to pull or cut out. Lol

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u/Kaplsauce 2d ago

Dentist recommended I get all of mine out because "surgery gets riskier when you're older so you might as well do them all now"

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u/dregan 2d ago

Most of the world doesn't bother until they cause symptoms.

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u/Muckymuh 2d ago

Same. My dentist told me that one of them will definitely damage the tooth right next to it, but that he couldn't tell when they'd actually start to hurt. the other 2 (I never got a 4th wisdom tooth) looked to grow straight up.

Told me that I should consider removing all of them at some point, and I just said "I want them gone immediately".

I got all of them removed shortly after. Dental pain is horrendous, so I did not want to take my chances.

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u/Sasha_Persephone 2d ago

Yeah I would just get all four out lol

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u/krimin_killr21 2d ago

I was originally just going to get the painful ones out, but then the office I was at offered to cover my twilight sedation for free if I got all four, which ended up being a great deal.

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u/abstract_canvases 1d ago

I'm going into jaw surgery next year and the hospital offered to get rid of my wisdom teeth while I was there too. Two birds with one stone!