Had an apicoectomy a few days ago, and honestly, recovery's been a bit rougher than I expected. Dentist gave me the usual spiel about ice packs and painkillers, but here's what I've been doing step-by-step to make things bearable:
First couple days, stuck religiously to soft foods like mashed potatoes, yogurt, and smoothies (got sick of smoothies real fast, lemme tell ya). Also rinsed gently with warm salt water after meals. Ice packs were my best friend—20 mins on, 20 mins off—to keep swelling down. Slept propped up with extra pillows, which kinda sucked comfort-wise but really helped with swelling overnight.
Now I'm easing back into semi-normal foods but still chewing carefully on the opposite side. Pain's manageable but still there, especially at night. Wondering if anyone else who's been through this has any better tricks or hacks to speed things up or at least make it less annoying...
"Slept propped up with extra pillows, which kinda sucked comfort-wise but really helped with swelling overnight."
Ugh, I remember that pillow mountain all too well. Had my apicoectomy about a year ago, and honestly, the first week was no picnic. You're doing pretty much everything I did—ice packs, salt water rinses, soft foods—but one thing that really helped me was alternating warm compresses with the ice packs after the initial swelling went down (around day 3 or 4). My dentist recommended it to improve circulation and speed healing. It felt weird at first, but it actually eased some of the lingering soreness.
Also, if you're getting tired of smoothies (I hear ya on that one), try scrambled eggs or oatmeal with a bit of honey or cinnamon. Both are soft enough not to irritate anything but still feel more substantial than another berry smoothie. I also found that sipping lukewarm chamomile tea before bed helped relax my jaw muscles and made sleeping a little easier.
One other thing—be careful not to rush back into crunchy stuff too soon. I got a bit impatient around day 5 or 6 and tried some chips...big mistake. Set me back pain-wise for another couple days. Stick to pasta, rice dishes, or even soups with small noodles for now.
Hang in there; sounds like you're already doing great managing things so far. It does get better pretty quickly from here on out.
"try scrambled eggs or oatmeal with a bit of honey or cinnamon."
Scrambled eggs were my lifesaver too. I got so tired of smoothies and yogurt after my apicoectomy. One thing I'd add—mashed sweet potatoes were surprisingly comforting and easy to eat. Warm compresses helped me as well, though I waited until day 5 because I was paranoid about swelling. You're definitely on the right track...it really does get easier soon.
Scrambled eggs sound doable, but honestly, I'm still pretty nervous about chewing anything at all. I've mostly stuck to soups and smoothies so far, but mashed sweet potatoes might be worth a shot... Did you find the warm compresses actually helped with swelling, or was it more just soothing? I'm on day 3 now and still pretty swollen, so I'm hesitant to try anything new yet.
Scrambled eggs worked pretty well for me around day 4 or 5, just had to be careful chewing on the opposite side. Warm compresses didn't really reduce swelling much in my experience—mostly just felt soothing and helped relax the muscles around my jaw. Did your dentist mention anything about alternating ibuprofen and acetaminophen? Mine suggested it, and it seemed to help manage the pain better, especially at night.
