Did you have any trouble with recovery after the laughing gas, or did you feel back to normal pretty quick?
Honestly, I bounced back super fast after laughing gas. Felt a little floaty for maybe 10 minutes, but then it was like nothing happened. IV put me out cold once, and I was groggy for hours after. Definitely prefer being able to walk out on my own two feet... even if they felt a bit wobbly at first.
It’s wild how different the recovery is, right? I see this all the time—patients come in worried they’ll be loopy for hours, but with laughing gas, most are back to themselves before they even reach the parking lot. I remember one guy who joked he was ready to drive home (definitely not recommended, but he was that clear-headed). IV sedation, though, is a whole other beast. Even I needed a ride home after my wisdom teeth came out… and I’m used to seeing this stuff every day. I felt like I’d run a marathon in my sleep.
The floaty feeling with laughing gas usually fades quick, but I’ve had a couple folks mention they felt a bit “off” for the rest of the afternoon—maybe just tired or super chill. Not common, but it happens. With IV, grogginess is almost guaranteed for a few hours. If you like feeling in control, laughing gas is the winner. If you want zero memory of the whole ordeal, IV’s got you covered. Both have their place depending on what freaks you out more: the needle or the noise.
I get what you mean about the recovery differences. When I had my wisdom teeth out, I went with IV because the idea of being half-aware freaked me out more than the needle. Woke up feeling like I’d slept for days, but honestly, I was groggy and useless for the rest of the afternoon. My friend did laughing gas for a smaller extraction—she said it wore off fast, but she felt kinda spacey for a bit after. If you’re someone who likes to know what’s going on, laughing gas seems less intense. But if you’re anxious about the whole thing (like me), IV is almost like hitting the skip button.
I’m in the middle of trying to decide between these two myself, and honestly, I keep going back and forth. I’m not super needle-phobic, but the thought of being totally out with IV makes me nervous—like, what if I wake up mid-procedure or say something ridiculous? (My partner would never let me live it down.)
But then again, I’ve used laughing gas for a filling before and it was...weird? Not bad, just kind of floaty and detached. It wore off quick for me too, but I definitely wasn’t ready to drive or do anything important for a while. The idea of being aware of what’s happening but just not caring is both comforting and slightly unsettling.
Recovery-wise, I hear IV can leave you wiped out for hours after. That’s not ideal if you’ve got stuff to do later in the day. But if anxiety is high, maybe it’s worth trading a groggy afternoon for less stress during the actual extraction.
Honestly, neither option sounds “fun,” but it’s kinda nice to know both have their upsides depending on what freaks you out more.
But if anxiety is high, maybe it’s worth trading a groggy afternoon for less stress during the actual extraction.
I get what you’re saying, but honestly, I’ve had IV twice now and didn’t feel groggy for that long after—just needed a nap and was back to normal by dinner. The “waking up mid-procedure” thing never happened for me either. I actually found it less weird than laughing gas, which always left me feeling kind of off for hours. Everyone reacts differently, but for me, IV’s been surprisingly easy to bounce back from.
