Before the surgery.
1. Ask your dentist for more jabs of anesthesia, preferably until you can't feel your ears.
2. Tap your face and wiggle your jaw around while waiting for the numbness to set in. I highly recommend this because it is quite fun.
3. Plug in your earphones, close your eyes, and try to distract yourself from the drilling sounds that ensues.
During the surgery.
4. Do not panic when the nurse holds your head down while the dentist tries to yank out your tooth forcefully.
5. Do not panic when a piece of tooth lands on the back of your tongue, simulating a choking sensation. The dentist will remove it promptly.
6. Do not panic when the dentist asks you to go into another room to have a localized x-ray done on your tooth. Tap your face while waiting for the film to develop and try not to stare at the bloody surgical equipment.
7. Do not panic when the dentist informs you that he has to make a deeper cut into your gums because your wisdom tooth is very impacted. Do the same when he tells you that he has only managed to cut 1/4 into your gums for the past hour.
8. Ask if more anesthesia is needed and try to be content with the answer your dentist gives you. The answer is most probably no.
After the surgery.
9. Go to the washroom to wash off any dried blood on your face. Tap your face in front of the mirror again, it's really quite fun.
10. Collect your medicine. Ask for more painkillers.
11. Go home and try to drink a lot of water. It helps with the dehydration that comes with not being able to close your mouth fully when sleeping through the night.
Day(s) after surgery.
12. Drink as much water as possible, and ignore the taste of watered down blood every time you do so.
13. Try not to spit. Excessive spitting will dislodge the blood clot formed, causing the bleeding to resume. If it happens, just wait for the blood clot to form again.
14. Rinse your mouth with salt water whenever you remember. It helps speed up the recovery.
15. Make your own ice pack with rubbing alcohol and water. Ice your jaw for the first 1-2 days after surgery, and use a heat pack for the remainder of your recovery time. Convince yourself that this will help bring down the swelling.
16. Do not take your medicine without food in the middle of the night because you will wake up feeling extremely nauseous and sickly.
17. Weep silently on your bed when you realize that your Mummy is not home on the very day you feel terrible and text your best friend about the embarrassing incident.
18. Cancel all the social activities that you committed to because your smart ass grossly underestimated the recovery time of the wisdom tooth surgery.
Food.
19. Campbell soups. Cream of anything will be your best bet.
20. Congee.
21. Mashed everything to add into your soups and congee to make for a less boring meal. Some suggestions: Tofu, carrots, broccoli, sweet potato...etc.
22. Mashed banana if you craving are something sweet.
Others.
23. Lots of naps to take your mind off the pain.
24. Have a horror movie marathon with yourself to shock the pain away. My recommendations: Exorcist: The Beginning, The Exorcism of Emily Rose, The Haunting in Connecticut, Mama, etc.
25. Write a blog post about your wisdom tooth experience because you have another tooth surgery to go.
Really hoping that I will recover soon because I've really had it with this wisdom tooth surgery. I want need solid food in me in the form of fried chicken and sushi because that is all I crave for the past few days.
:(
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