Honestly I don’t remember how long ago it was when a dentist first said oh that tooth will have to come out. They always just kind of assume they can stick a needle in your mouth and all will be ok. It will not! But having your wisdom tooth taken out when you have a needle phobia is not great.
At this point I had no idea it was a wisdom tooth. Mainly because I was lead to believe that the four that were taken to make room for my brace as a teen were my wisdom teeth. But fast forward a good many years. Yes it must be years because it was a different dentist than the one I see now, and we have had her since before the pandemic! Well it turns out that my two top wisdom teeth need to go.
This has definitely been going on a long time because I was referred to the hospital. At first the consultant seemed really good. Taking the time to discuss my concerns, trying to find out what my actual fear was.
No Pain with Either Infected Wisdom Tooth
Neither wisdom tooth is causing me any pain. The one apparently needs to come out more so than the other. At the time one had been filled and the other I had the option of keeping it and having it filled or removed at the same time. The other one had already been filled.
Sensory Issues with Teeth Brushing
He also talked about the sensory issues I have. I find brushing my teeth quite difficult and even find myself being physically sick trying to do so. I have written about sensory issues when brushing teeth on my other blog. Telling me that if I slowly worked my way from front to back it helps desensitise my mouth or something. It didn’t work but it was nice that he was trying to find solutions.
The Hospital want me to Put my Needle Phobia Aside
Each time I have been to the hospital over my wisdom teeth I have been on my own for one reason or another. Being a grown woman that makes sense but the thing is I ended up so upset that I don’t know what is really going on.
So needless to say I have been back and forth a few times. The hospital or reluctant to give me a general anaesthetic for just a couple of teeth. It costs them a lot more time and money. Actually I had a lecture on how that they only really do that for people with Cancer.
Being told my Needle Phobia is Irrational
No matter how many people have a go at me telling me that my phobia is irrational it just doesn’t help. What makes a phobia a phobia is that it is an irrational fear! That now I am getting older I am going to need them a lot more, there’s no getting away from them.
That actually I was okay because I had my covid-19 vaccinations. In fact it was just after my second covid-19 vaccination which was horrific. I was crying in the hospital and the assistant passed me the tissues saying, “Oh you really don’t like needles do you,” whilst the dentist continued to press on with getting me to agree to have it not under general anaesthetic.
He was telling me that when the pain hits then I will be begging for them to just take it out with a needle. The only options he seemed to be giving me was with a needle in my mouth or by sedation. That the general anaesthetic had a lot more risks and complications.
Moving Forward with What to Do About my Wisdom Tooth Removals
At the first appointment it was possible that I would be having a general anyway to sort the problem with my bottom half. If this was the case it might be an option to do them at the same time. When I got to my next hospital appointment the bottom half people hadn’t let me know what was going on. But again I got a lecture on the fact that I need to get used to needles.
The hospital dentist agreed to keep my appointment open for 6 more months for me to make a decision. By the end of the 6 months I was just going back to the hospital about my bottom half. But when I was meant to go my husband tested positive for covid-19 and the appointment cancelled. Luckily I could still go and a new appointment was made a further 4 months later for the end of March.
During this time that I have had the second one filled, without any anaesthetic. I was really worried as she seemed to think it would really hurt without. Told me to take paracetamol afterwards. I didn’t actually feel any pain at all so didn’t bother.
What to Do about Both Wisdom Teeth
There was a time when the filling fell out of the other tooth and it hurt a bit but after a filling it was fine. So personally I do not feel in a hurry to get them removed.
I have since read Sarah’s blog posts one about a wisdom tooth removal with a local anesthetic and the other about wisdom tooth removal under sedation. Neither sound like I would be able to cope with them.
Now to see what he says at my next appointment. Unfortunately it also falls at a time when I will have to go on my own.
Eek! Good luck, it’s really tough for you. It’s good that you don’t currently have pain from them, but no doubt it will happen at some point. The pain I had was unbearable at times, I only had it for a very short time.