My son had his out when he had to have some other oral surgery. He got to pick soft foods but really only ate the applesauce and maybe a popsicle or two. He was fine within 24-48 hours but he was also only 15. Was cleared to attend soccer tryouts less than 2 weeks later with a “Don’t get hit in the face with the ball” warning.
If you do fill the prescription for opioids, dispose of them promptly when the pain is no longer severe so that they do not contribute to the rampant abuse problems. (Ask the pharmacy about unused drug disposal before leaving when picking up the drugs.)
Both of my kids had all 4 wisdom teeth removed in one day when they were probably around 17-18 or so. My S was amazingly fine in a few hours – he wanted to go out that afternoon but after some negotiation he stayed home and had a couple of friends over. My D was a little puffy but basically fine by the next day. In both cases we did some shopping before-hand for soft foods like applesauce, yogurt, pudding etc. that they like and we stuck to pasta and other softer foods for a couple of days afterwards just to be safe.
My son had his removed at the end of his summer before senior year in HS. When we removed the gauze at the time indicated in the discharge instructions his bleeding didn’t seem to stop. We called the office and they told us to soak some tea bags in water and have him place them over the wounds (something about the tannic acid contributing to clotting) but that made him gag and then vomit which really had me concerned that he would discharge the clots and end up with dry socket. Fortunately he did not.
He drank a bunch of milkshakes made with ovaltine and a raw egg during the day (not through a straw as others have mentioned) and was eating scrambled eggs by the end of the day and the next day. I have to say that it seemed like my son’s cheeks retained some permanent swelling after the procedure. To the point where I took him back to make sure there wasn’t some residual issue but there wasn’t.
He also had problems swallowing the first does of pain pills because he was still relatively numb but fortunately his pain was pretty mild and he didn’t take the narcotics past the first or second dose.
My daughter only has one wisdom tooth and it’s not clear it will ever need to come out so we may have lucked out there.
Bromelaine can help with swelling, when I had facial surgery for a deviated septum and some other work the surgeon had me start bromelaine a week or so before the procedure to help reduce swelling. It was in pill form, I had a bad reaction to it and stopped taking, but apparently it can help with swelling.
D1 and S2 had them out in high school and I remember it being an ordeal. Lots of ice/frozen peas really helped with the swelling. S3 only had 3 (explains a lot) and he breezed through it. No swelling, totally resumed normal activities a few hours after the procedure.
All these stories are helpful! D3 had hers out at 17 and spent a full week recovering (but she’s very sensitive to pain and inclined to …er…drama), while D2 is only doing this now at 27 (and I know they really have to HURT for this kid to go ahead with the surgery with no insurance coverage (which obviously the parents are covering) because she’s the no-drama kid - with a 102 fever she might say “I don’t know if I should take the SATS today”). I’m hoping her history will make it an easy recovery, but I’m also concerned that waiting this long will have made it worse. She’s in grad school after several years working, and has scheduled it for just after finals.
Bromelain is found in pineapple. Our oral surgeon recommended it and vitamin C the week or two before surgery. I don’t recall the exact instructions.
Two of my kids had all four wisdom teeth out in the last year. Both did fine. D1 had no complications. We probably should not have given her phone back to her as soon after surgery as we did. Some funny things were texted to friends. The pain meds worked less well for her. D2 had the same doctor, same exact pain meds. She felt GREAT on the pain meds! She probably did a bit too much because she felt so good. She did end up getting a dry socket which meant several more trips to the oral surgeon and more pain for her but not unmanageable. Son will be next but the dentist says it’s not time yet.
DD had all 4 removed last year. I didn’t do pineapple, but immediately gave her the prescription pain killer with apple sauce, then religiously did ice packs 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off, tied with a long scarf (get a cheap pashmina). No dry sockets. She was surprisingly teary after the surgery. Rested at home, propped up. Was able to go out with friends the next day. Her oral surgeon said dry sockets are more common in young women who are on birth control (go figure). Hugs. Hope it is uneventful. Key tip: make sure you have wifi. DD watched the whole new season of House of Cards. 
I suggest taking ibuprofen or another OTC pain reliever even before the procedure, if it’s allowable with the anesthesia.
We went through this at Christmas for 2 lower impacted wiz teeth with 25 year old about to go off our medical plan.
I actually had him weigh himself before we left so he was given the right amount of drugs for his weight and not just an estimated range. For the first time, he did not get sick at all. I had soft ice packs / frozen peas in a cooler in the car to put on as soon as we got in the vehicle. Others have mentioned the right foods and not to use straws. Our oral surgeon kept stressing to rinse by ever so gently letting the water slide around in your mouth vs. swishing and NO forceful spitting. You want to keep that blot clot in place. We were also given a prescription for an oral rinse of Chlorhexidine Gluconate 0.12% to use for 5 days.
Son was very lucky to avoid the dry socket issue and swelling was minimal.
I did a great job of policing the ice pack usage, but failed miserably at putting in the folded up wads of gauze the first day. I should have asked for a review session!
If stitches need removal you might want to make sure she makes the appt so she doesn’t procrastinate.
Good luck to you both!
The doctor warned DS not to have any yogurt or smoothies that contain tiny seeds…like raspberry. He said that the seeds could get into the incision and cause an infection.
Hummus, mashed avocado and mashed potatoes were nice non sweet foods.
DS just had his out at the winter break. They didn’t do stitches for him, which freaked me out, but made for speedy healing. He only used his pain meds the first day/evening, and slept in the recliner. I recommend having a dish towel or hand towel that can get blood on it to put behind their head, just in case. Son loved having lime popsicles, yogurt, smoothies, and scrambled eggs. We got him a water bottle he could use to pour water into his mouth so he could keep hydrated, which was awesome.
I admit that I watched him sleep in the afternoon while he still had the gauze in his mouth. That paranoia is hard to let go, lol.
Take note of how she reacts to the stronger painkillers…mine (think it was Vicodin) made me very ill. Luckily I think most people don’t have that problem.
When I had two of mine out (as an adult) I bought Ensure and drank that for the first few days. The oral surgeon sent me home with a prescription for percocet, which I never filled.
hunt
"We were told that if you eat a whole pineapple the day before the surgery, you will have less swelling. My wife (a doctor) scoffed at this advice, "
listen to your wife!!!
stradmom
do not forget while your child is still out of it post op ask lot’s of embarrassing questions, record it and post it on you tube. she will hate you but you may have the next viral video and 15 minutes of fame.
I had all four out with a local. I was reading The Growth of Biological Thought by Ernst Mayr at the time, for fun. It made for an effective recovery. You can sleep for days with that book in your hands, and it’s so heavy at close to a thousand pages that you can easily manage your jaw pain by dropping the book on your foot.
@zobroward Why so skeptical of pineapple? Many modern medicines are based on naturally occurring substances.
If you want to hear it from an oral surgeon:
“It is recommended that patients facing extensive surgery, such as the removal of wisdom teeth or placement of implants, consume pineapple and pineapple juice the two days prior to surgery and two days after surgery. Bromelain is an anti- inflammatory proteolytic enzyme found in pineapple that aids in reduction of inflammation, and hence helps prevent swelling and bruising.”
http://www.funarioralsurgery.com/pdf/Presurgical%20Instruction%20Sheet%20-%20Original.pdf