Your Guide to Wisdom Teeth Removal Recovery

Your third molars are called “wisdom teeth” because they come in years after your other adult teeth. These molars can grow at an angle, which means you’ll need to get them removed to avoid developing pain or infection.

Dental work isn’t much fun. And wisdom teeth removal is an intense dental procedure. So it’s natural to feel anxious. But the good news is that there’s a lot you can do to help your recovery after wisdom teeth removal. Here are some tips on how to make it through your procedure as easily as possible. 

Average wisdom tooth removal recovery time

It can take up to 2 weeks to fully recover from wisdom tooth removal. Your own recovery time might be longer or shorter depending on how many teeth you have removed. 

Side effects after wisdom tooth removal

Most people experience pain, bleeding, and swelling. These are expected side effects. But the amount of pain, bleeding, and swelling varies from person to person. Here are some things to keep in mind:

• Bleeding: You should expect some bleeding, oozing, or redness in your saliva. But this bleeding should go away after the first 24 hours.

• Pain: Pain is usually worse on the first and second day after your removal. It usually starts to get better after 48 hours but can take about 1 week to fully resolve. Most people don’t need pain medications after the fourth day.  

• Swelling: Swelling is common around the mouth, cheeks, eyes, and sides of the face. Swelling gets worse over the first 48 to 72 hours and then starts to get better. It can take up to 10 to 14 days to fully go away. 

Other side effects you might experience include:

• Bruising: Some people experience bruising in addition to swelling. This usually develops 24 hours after removal and worsens on the second and third days.

• Nausea and vomiting: If you receive general anesthesia for your removal, you might experience nausea and vomiting. This usually goes away after a few hours. 

• Facial numbness: You also receive local anesthesia. Numbness of your lip, chin, and tongue from anesthesia should get better after a few hours.

• Cracked lips: During the procedure, your dental team has to keep your mouth open. This can stretch your lips and cause your skin to crack. Vaseline or Aquaphor can help relieve this.

• Sore throat and jaw: Many people notice a sore throat after removal. You might also have pain or stiffness in your jaw from keeping your mouth open during the removal. These should go away over the next 2 or 3 days. 

The 5 best recovery tips for wisdom teeth removal

Here are five tips that can help you recover from wisdom teeth removal:

1. Stick to soft foods at room temperature for 4 days  

You may not feel like eating right away, and that’s OK. Just make sure to drink plenty of fluids so you don’t become dehydrated.

When you feel up to eating, stick to soft, room-temperature foods. Some good soft foods to start with are: 

• Yogurt

• Applesauce

• Soups

• Ice cream 

Soup should be lukewarm, not hot. To avoid irritating the site, don’t chew near the back of your jaw.

By the third day, you should be able to eat soft, solid foods — like mashed potatoes, eggs, mashed fruit, and oatmeal. After the fifth day, you can start to eat your regular diet, but remember your wound is still healing. Stay away from crunchy foods for at least 1 week so you don’t disrupt your blood clot and cause dry socket. 

Another helpful tip: Don’t use a straw. The sucking motion can dislodge your blood clot.

2. Don’t brush your removal site, stick to rinses

It’s important to keep up with oral hygiene. But you don’t want to disturb your clot and cause dry socket. 

It’s OK to gently brush your front teeth, but don’t brush in the back of your mouth. Instead, use gentle salt water rinses to keep your mouth clean. Rinse your mouth up to five times per day and especially after meals.  

3. Make sure to take your pain medication

Your dental provider may give you pain medication during removal to make the transition easier when your local anesthesia wears off.

Once your local anesthetic is gone, take your pain medication regularly for 24 to 48 hours. This will keep you comfortable. Most people only need over-the-counter medications like acetaminophen or ibuprofen. After the first 48 hours, you might start feeling more like yourself. Many people switch to taking medication for pain only as needed. 

Another thing that can help your pain is a cool compress or ice. You can put the compress (or ice wrapped in a towel) on your face for 15 to 20 minutes. Then take the ice pack off and let your face rest for 20 minutes before icing it again. Cool compresses are most helpful in the first 48 hours after removal. 

4. Have gauze and black tea at home

You can prepare for your recovery by stocking up on some gauze and black tea at home. It sounds like an odd combination, but they’ll come in handy to help with bleeding. 

Gauze (2-by-2-inch pads) are very helpful to control bleeding. Fold one gauze pad and place it over the removal site. Bite down to keep the gauze in place for 30 minutes. Then gently remove the pad. 

If the gauze doesn’t stop the bleeding, try black tea. Place a moistened black tea bag wrapped in a gauze pad over your removal site. Bite down and keep it in place for 30 minutes. The tannic acid in the black tea helps stop bleeding. 

If your bleeding continues, call your dental provider.

5. Avoid alcohol and smoking until you're fully recovered

It’s best not to drink alcohol for a couple of days until your removal sites are fully healed. Alcohol can kill the “good” bacteria in your mouth. And you need this bacteria to help with healing and recovery.

You should also avoid smoking until you’re recovered. The sucking motion of smoking can disrupt your clot and cause dry socket. Talk to your healthcare provider about nicotine replacement therapy so you can have it ready after your procedure. 

What are the complications with wisdom teeth removal?

Two major complications from wisdom teeth removal are dry socket and infection. Both of these issues are rare. But here’s what you should know about them. 

1. Dry socket

Dry socket develops when the clot that was forming at the extraction site falls out. This clot helps your jaw heal and protects the inside of your jaw from the outside world. 

So when it falls out, you can feel a lot of pain because your nerves are now exposed. Dry socket develops in about 30% of people. 

If you develop dry socket, your dental provider can place a platelet-rich fibrin clot in your open socket. This protects your nerve and relieves pain.  

2. Infection

Very few people develop an infection after wisdom teeth removal.

Many studies show that routine use of antibiotics does not decrease the risk of developing infection. Instead, keep an eye on your system and listen to your body. See your dental provider if you develop any fever, redness, or worsening pain or swelling. These could be signs of a dental infection.   

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Written by:

Jennifer Sample, MD

After a fellowship, Dr. Sample worked as the medical director at the University of Kansas Hospital Poison Center (The University Of Kansas Health System Poison Control Center), which served the state of Kansas for poison exposures. In 2007, she returned to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, as a consultant in clinical pharmacology and medical toxicology.

Edited by:

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH, is a medical editor at GoodRx. She is a licensed, board-certified pediatrician with more than a decade of experience in academic medicine.

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