Post Op Pain Meds for Wisdom Teeth Extraction, Did You Take Them?

I had all 4 out at once (they were impacted) and did NOT use the pain meds afterwards. Trust me, I would have if I had needed them. I was in my early 20s though - don't know if that helped me.

Remember-there is a difference between soreness and pain-soreness is annoying-and pain is like-"will someone just shoot me?" Maybe you won't need something for pain-but then there's inflamation...Maybe, for baby, some formula mixed with a little fruit juice to make it palatable?? In a cup??? Good luck..

Me! I had mine removed when I was around 20 (can't remember exactly) and did not take any pain meds. My Dr. was creepy but he did a great job.
The only real pain I had was where the IV was.

Hope it goes smoothly for you!

Vicodin and Percocet are both safe to take while breastfeeding. These are the prescriptions available after giving birth and they're also what dentists give after dental work. I have taken both while nursing. Good luck!

Please tell your dentist that you are nursing so that he can prescribe the appropriate meds. After a C-section, Mom's are given strong pain medication even if nursing so it should be fine. You can even call ahead and see what they will be prescribing and contact the pediatrician and look up on line if the Medication is considered safe while nursing. Good luck and feel better soon.

I got mine pulled at 19 and didn't take any pain meds. I didn't need them.

i'm astonished that it was not a big deal for so many! i had all four out at once (under anesthesia) and i NEEDED those strong pain meds for the next couple of days.
but i'm sure your doc can prescribe something that will have minimal impact on your breast milk. good luck!
khairete
S.

I had all 4 of my wisdom teeth out at once when I was younger. It was a bigger procedure b/c they were all impacted. I took pain meds (vicadin I think) but they made me very nauseous b/c I didn't eat. It took a few days to start to feel better.

After my c-sect they gave Tylenol w/ codeine if I remember correctly and they strongly recommended that I take it so I could function better with the pain. I only took 1/2 of what they told me since I didn't want to much to get into the milk for my preterm baby.

My other to labors I tore while giving birth and they gave advil and said I could get something stronger if I need it.

My children didn't have any side effects that I noticed and they all thrived and did wonderfully.

When necessary I believe pain meds are ok-even preferable if it helps you do a better job at keeping up with all your mommy duties ;)

Take care and wishing you a speedy recovery!

I just had my last wisdom tooth out a couple weeks ago. They gave me tylenol 3 & its ok to take while breastfeeding (Im nursing) A small amount passes through, but it had no effect on my DD. I find advil or motrin to be MUCH more effective though. I resorted to T3 when I ended up with "dry socket" from drinking through a straw too soon after the extraction. Follow the after care carefully to avoid that, that pain was worse than childbirth!

There's a post below about wisdom teeth being pulled. I noted there that having my wisdom teeth out was the worst pain of my life. TAKE the medication!!! My dentist put me on too low a dosage and it was excruciating. Do NOT skip the pain medication! The mouth is a very sensitive area. I think I cried for six or seven hours straight in agony until my parents looked up information about my medication and realized the dosage was wrong. Pain medication is not optional.

ETA: My pain threshold is very high. I delivered a face-first baby and got by on Ibuprofen after delivery. I'm definitely not a delicate flower.

The thing that really helped after my wisdom teeth were pulled was icing a LOT; they gave me a special disposable ice bag that wrapped from one cheek, under my chin, and up to the other cheek and I basically kept it on much of the first 2 days if I remember right. Don't feel bad if you need the pain meds; as long as your MD OKs them for breastfeeding, they should be safe.

I would try to find out what your post-op med would be and see if there are alternatives if your OB doesn't think it's ok. Mine was demerol. I had two teeth that were impacted and had to be broken apart to be removed, so I definitely had pain afterward. The first day wasn't too bad, as there was some residual anethesia effect. Late in the second day and the third day the pain was pretty significant. I think your ability not to take any meds will depend upon what shape your teeth are in and what it will take to get them out. I will also say to take it easy on eating and enjoy soft foods for a few days. I started to feel better on the second day and started trying to eat small bites of regular food and that led to the pain.

I would talk to your oral surgeon about your options. You may, for example, opt for as much Tylenol as you are allowed instead. When I had my teeth out, I was not nursing, and I did take them for a few days. I got vicodin, but even then they tell you to take the minimum and get off the heavy meds as soon as possible. You might also call your lactation consultant and have her look up in this reference guide they should have each of your options per the oral surgeon.

I think a lot depends on you and the type of removal. I have a very small jaw and my teeth were growing in horizontally, so I had general anesthesia. And if I had general while I was bfing, I'd definitely want to wait until it was out of my system before feeding the baby.

I have a high tolerance for pain, but one gum hurt MUCH more than the others afterward. I still got by on Tylenol and a hot water bottle. I wasn't good for much, but I made it.

At my post-op checkup, the surgeon said I had an open socket in that tooth. Basically, the flap of gum that was supposed to cover the hole in one gum flipped open, exposing my nerve to the air. He irrigated it and put the gum back, and the pain became COMPLETELY manageable.

I would pump just to be on the safe side, but you might make it. Can your little guy drink from a cup? He might enjoy trying it and being so big!

I did not experience this exact thing, but I remember taking pain med's after my C-sections. It seems to me that we tried to time taking the med right after nursing. Maybe to give it a little chance to get out of my system? Check with your pediatrician, but I think you'll be okay.......it's not like you'll be on pain med's forever. Some people don't experience that much pain anyway; you may be okay with lots of Advil. Good luck!

the best thing to do is to pump breastmilk now, and dont give the baby any from the tap( so to speak) for at least 24-36 hours after you have these teeth pulled. that way the drugs they give you is less likely to affect your baby.
K. h.

OK, everyone's pain threshold is different, and also some dentists/oral surgeons hit nerves while they're in there & some don't. I've never heard of anyone crying for hours after this procedure, seriously, never, so that sounds like there must have been something else going on. My husband has hid pulled out without being knocked out & just several shots of novocaine, but he did take pain meds afterwards. I got all 4 of mine taken out when I was in college & did take the meds for the rest of the day the surgery was performed, but was a-ok by the next day.

Pump as much as you can, and expect to need the pills. If you end up not needing them, great. If you do, you should be ok without them by late the next day.

I can't respond to the breastfeeding portion of your question, but as for the wisdom teeth extraction:
I had mine out as a young adult. (22 yrs old?) I underwent full anesthesia (and if you aren't then you may have a totally different situation) and only used the pain meds the first day. After that I only used the prescribed meds for things like swelling. That was for maybe 2 days.

My niece just had hers out 2 weeks ago... she was put on antibiotics a few days in advance of the surgery. And some other stuff, too, in advance. I don't know if that is now standard procedure or not. I know things can vary with dental work if you use steroids or corticosteroids for asthma and such.
But I will say this: Do not freak out over this. Many people will happily tell you their horror stories, but I know just as many (and I am one) that everything went swimmingly well. :)

My daughter just took 600 mg of ibuprofen, but more importantly, she iced her cheeks for 10 minutes every hour the first day which seemed to have reduced swelling and pain tremendously. I just answered a widom tooth inquiry a few lines down from yours with more details. I took ibuprofen when for my level 4 episiotomy with my first daughter and nursed her every 1 -2 hours, so that med is OK with nursing.
Good luck.

I didn't take them and felt fine. I did have pain meds while there. My wisdom teeth were all the way in when I had them out and it was done with general anesthesia. I had planned to try regular tyenlol before the stronger meds if needed. Good luck to you.

They gave me the same pain medications for my wisdom teeth procedure as they did after I gave birth so I'm sure it's safe for breastfeeding. I only needed the meds for the first 8 hours afterwards and then 2 days later after a conference call for work so I didn't take them very often.

I had to have a different kind of surgery when my oldest was less than a month old. I was told I hate to wait 24 hours to nurse ( after I was awake from the anesthesia) I was given Tylenol 3 for pain and was told it was safe to nurse while taking it...but that was back in 1995...so who knows what has changed. I would just mention to the doctor that you are breast feeding and would like something safe, just in case you do need something for pain.

My oral surgeon had given me percocet after I got my 4 wisdom teeth out, but it made me so sick to my stomach and constipated, I couldn't take more than 1. SO...I called him back and he recommended 2 Advil AND 1-2 Extra Strength Tylenol together...worked like a charm! (I had dry socket in 2)
Either way though, pain meds like percocet are fine while you are nursing.

I took very strong pain meds while breatfeeding. The Dr. was not worried, he said very little comes through and it might just make him a little tired. Talk with your OB.

I would talk to your obgyn about the anesthesia and pain meds affecting your breast milk. I had a C-section with both of my pregnancies and took hydrocodone for a week or so afterward. I pumped and dumped thinking that would get into my milk, but the nurse told me that it was ok. Many of their patients that took the pain meds were breastfeeding in the hospital. I was sad I dumped all of that liquid gold down the drain! Check it out. Don't be miserable needlessly!
A.