What You Need To Know About Dental Implant Pain

One of the reasons people don’t see their dentist as often as they should (even for basic check ups) is that they are afraid of the pain. This fear even has a name, "dental phobia". And, insult to injury, after a round of pain, you get stuck with a bill to pay for the privilege of this pain. But dentistry is getting less painful all the time. If you are told you need dental implants, you can't be blamed for wondering about how bad the dental implant pain is going to be.

When Does It Hurt?

Most of the dental implant pain you will feel is not during the actual procedure itself. The most you should feel is numbness and perhaps a headache from getting your head jerked around during the implantation process. If you can't have Novocain, for some reason, you might need gas (laughing gas) or perhaps you could find a sedation dentist or a laser dentist. Otherwise, your dental implant pain is going to rank right up there with breaking your small toe.

Most people though, get pain after dental implants are in place, long after you are back home and out of the dental chair. The dental implant pain is often described as "discomfort" and more annoying than actually painful. Your mouth needs time to adjust to the implants, just as you would need to break in a new pair of shoes. This can make eating uncomfortable.

Does It Ever Go Away?

The good news about dental implant pain is that eventually, the pain and discomfort goes away. You are not stuck with it for the rest of your life (or the life of your dental implants). Sooner or later (usually later), the dental implants feel like your mouth and nothing but your mouth.

You still want to talk to your dentist about any dental implant pain or discomfort you have. Ideally, you will ask about any problems you might have or any discomfort your should expect to experience before you have the dental implant procedure. Sometimes, though, you might be too upset in order to pay attention to your dentist's replies.

If you can, get him or her to write down what kind of dental implant pain you should expect. This would include warning signs of an emergency. Having blood squirting out of your mouth is never a good sign and you should immediately contact your dentist. (That was a joke. The odds of that happening are astronomically slim). But you should be over the worst of the discomfort in a few weeks.