Glad your son handled it well. I had laughing gas myself last year for an extraction, and honestly, I was cracking jokes with the dentist within minutes after. Felt a little floaty at first, but nothing like that zombie-mode grogginess from IV sedation. With IV, I once spent half an hour afterward trying to convince my wife I'd met Elvis in the waiting room...she still won't let me live that down. Sounds like you picked the right option for your kid.
Glad to hear your experience went smoothly. My daughter had laughing gas for her extraction a few months ago, and I was honestly a nervous wreck beforehand. I'd read way too many horror stories online (big mistake, I know...), so I was bracing myself for the worst. But it turned out to be pretty uneventful—she was giggling a bit afterward and kept telling me the dentist had "magic hands," haha. She was back to her normal self within an hour or two, just a little sleepy.
We considered IV sedation briefly, but the idea of her being completely knocked out made me uneasy. I've heard similar stories about people feeling really disoriented afterward, and I wasn't sure how she'd handle that. Plus, she's pretty sensitive to medications in general, so we wanted to avoid anything too strong if possible.
I think it really depends on the kid's personality and comfort level, though. Some kids might do better with IV sedation if they're extremely anxious or have trouble sitting still. But for us, laughing gas was definitely the right call—less stress for both of us.
And hey, at least your Elvis story gives you something funny to look back on...my husband still teases me about how worked up I got over a simple tooth extraction. Guess that's just part of parenting—we worry way more than we probably need to!
My experience was pretty similar to yours—we went with laughing gas because the idea of IV sedation freaked me out a bit. I'm one of those people who reads way too much online beforehand (bad habit, I know), and I kept picturing myself waking up halfway through the procedure or something equally dramatic. Thankfully, the laughing gas was enough to keep me calm-ish and made everything feel quicker. Still, I envy your daughter—wish my dentist had "magic hands" too, haha.
I totally get the anxiety around IV sedation—I was exactly the same way. I spent way too many nights scrolling through horror stories online before my extraction (seriously, why do we do this to ourselves?). Laughing gas was my choice too, mostly because needles freak me out and the thought of being completely knocked out made me even more nervous. It worked pretty well for me, though I wouldn't exactly call it relaxing...more like it took the edge off just enough to stop me from bolting out of the chair mid-procedure, haha.
Funny you mention the "magic hands" thing—my dentist was nice enough, but definitely didn't have that gentle touch either. I remember gripping the armrests so hard my knuckles turned white. But honestly, looking back, it wasn't nearly as bad as I'd built it up in my head. The anticipation was way worse than the actual procedure.
I'm curious though, has anyone here actually tried both IV sedation and laughing gas at different times? Did you notice a big difference in recovery or anxiety levels between the two? I'm hoping I won't need another extraction anytime soon (fingers crossed), but it'd be good to know just in case...
I've actually done both—laughing gas first, IV sedation second time around. Honestly, IV wasn't as scary as I expected. Felt like a quick nap and recovery was surprisingly easier. Anxiety-wise, IV definitely won for me...though everyone's different.
