Don't Misidentify One of These Potential Symptoms Associated With Your Wisdom Teeth

If you're a teenager or young adult who goes to the dentist regularly, you'll learn when your wisdom teeth need to be removed. However, if you aren't a frequent dental patient, you may eventually face a number of wisdom tooth-related issues that should compel you to seek treatment. Unfortunately, it's easy to notice one of the following symptoms and associate it with something else. This can make you shrug off seeking treatment, resulting in your wisdom teeth starting to come in and cause problems. Here are some symptoms that can suggest it's time to have your wisdom teeth out.

Toothache

When your wisdom teeth begin to get close to coming in, they put pressure on your existing teeth. This can understandably lead to a toothache. If you're someone who doesn't always stay on top of your dental health, you might notice a toothache and perhaps take a pain pill to feel better or simply ignore the discomfort. Ignoring a toothache is never a good idea because a cavity or a crack in a tooth will only get worse through inattention. If a wisdom tooth is causing the ache, however, you definitely need to see a dentist.

Jaw Pain

In a similar way, you might be aware of jaw pain. It's often a sign that your wisdom teeth are exerting pressure in the back of your mouth. Unfortunately, it's very easy to dismiss jaw pain. For example, you might tell yourself that you've been stressed of late, and this has likely resulted in you clenching your jaw at night. You might even think that you've been chewing too much gum, which has resulted in a jaw that is tired and sore. In actuality, jaw pain, especially if it's severe, should prompt you to visit your dentist.

Headache

Another type of pain that you can commonly experience when your wisdom teeth are getting closer to coming in is a headache. This is a troubling symptom because there are many different ways to incorrectly assess a headache because headaches are a symptom for such a wide range of health issues. For example, you might think that you're overtired or that you've been overly stressed recently. You might even think that you've recently slept awkwardly and have developed a kink in your neck that has resulted in this headache. If you're aware of any of these symptoms and you're of an age at which wisdom teeth will begin to be an issue, it's important to see your dentist.