Extracted Teeth Gone: The Recovery Road

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If you have decided to have your wisdom teeth removed, you might be feeling a little worried about the recovery. The process will be long, yet we can provide some tips of what to do and how to make it smoother.

 

For the first 24 hours, you should try to follow these guidelines:

 

– Rest for the day.

– Eat only soft foods.

– Do not brush your teeth.

– Use 8 ounces of water mixed with ½ teaspoon of salt to clean your mouth every two hours and after eating.

– Sip plenty of water.

– Avoid alcohol, caffeine, carbonated drinks, and hot beverages.

– Use ice as directed to soothe the swelling, bruising, or soreness.

 

After the first day, you should start to see some improvements. You can start getting back into your routine a little more. Still, for a week more, it is best you consider the following:

 

– Perform activities as you normally would, but avoid anything strenuous.

– Eat more semi-soft foods. Avoid anything spicy, hard, chewy, or hot.

– Brush as you did before, except take extra care around the area the teeth were taken from.

– Continue rinsing with salt water every two hours and after meals.

– Avoid drinking from a straw. The action can cause the blood clot in the socket to come loose.

– Feel free to put ice over the soreness, if it helps.

 

As you hold to these guidelines and any others the dentist gives to you, you should be able to feel better. After about a week, you can get back to normal life.

 

If any pain persists after this time or any problems occur, do not hesitate to get back to the dentist. We want nothing more than for you to get better.

 

Dr. Todd A. Williams, our oral surgeons, is at your service. You can find them at Williams and Williams Facial and Oral Surgery in Dallas, Texas. Call us at 214-691-0101.