My dentist had been prodding me for a while to have my wisdom tooth extracted. He argued that it would be better to remove it before it started causing more problems, since it had become a natural collector of dirt that was hard to clean, and because it had been pushing against one of my molars.

I had always been hesitant — I still remembered how much it hurt when my other wisdom tooth was removed a few years ago. That experience led me to adopt the stance: if it doesn’t hurt, why remove it?

Interesting side note: In Japan, the wisdom tooth is called “oyashirazu” (親知らず), which literally means “unknown to the parents.” This is because they usually erupt in our late teens to early twenties, when we’re no longer under our parents’ direct care — so our parents may never “see” them come in. They’re typically extracted around that time, not when someone is nearly fifty, like myself. But I suppose, better late than never.

On my most recent visit for a routine cleaning, my dentist brought it up again — but this time, without giving me much time to think, he said he was preparing a referral letter to a dental clinic at a nearby hospital. I was surprised that he wouldn’t do it himself and instead referred me to a larger facility. He explained that the tooth was pushing hard on my molar and that the procedure might require better equipment and resources.

They handed me a sealed referral letter, which I was to use to make an appointment at the hospital. I did make the reservation. When I arrived, they first did an X-ray to assess how my teeth were positioned. Then I had a CT scan to show how the nerves in my jaw were arranged around the wisdom tooth — just to ensure that the nerves wouldn’t be affected during the extraction. I suppose this was why my local dentist wanted it handled by a larger hospital with more advanced facilities.

The hospital dentist explained that due to the arrangement of my teeth, it would be difficult to extract the wisdom tooth in one piece. They would need to cut off the upper half first, then extract the lower half. She explained the plan thoroughly, including what to expect in terms of pain, eating restrictions, and risks. We scheduled the extraction for my next visit.

On the day of the procedure, it was a different dentist who performed the extraction. They followed the plan: first cutting off the upper half of the wisdom tooth, then extracting the two remaining parts. Surprisingly, it wasn’t as painful as when my other wisdom tooth was removed, and for that, I was grateful.

After the procedure, the dentist placed a rolled-up gauze pad over the extraction site and asked me to bite down on it and keep it in place for 30 minutes, replacing it as needed until the bleeding stopped. She showed me my extracted tooth — now in three pieces. A nurse then explained the aftercare instructions: no alcohol, no exercise, and to take it easy for the rest of the day. I was also given a prescription for antibiotics (to be taken for 5 days) and painkillers (to be taken as needed).

After the bleeding stopped, I was pleasantly surprised — there wasn’t much pain. Swelling was minimal, and when I woke up the next morning, I felt almost back to normal. I continued taking painkillers just in case, but by the following day, I didn’t need them anymore. There was still a slight feeling of discomfort, but otherwise, everything felt fine, and I could eat almost normally.

I’m scheduled to return to the dentist a week after the extraction — most likely for a final check-up and, I suppose, to conclude this chapter.

Goodbye, wisdom tooth. Goodbye, 親知らず.

What about you? Are you still hanging on to your wisdom tooth?