Honest Gum Graft Experience
I recently got a gum graft on April 30th.
I just want to say, it is not nearly as bad as I anticipated. The worst part was probably the first three days.
The procedure itself was meh. I couldn't feel anything, minus some slight pressure. I took a beta blocker prior to the procedure. It helped a bit with anxiety and kept my heart rate low.
Days 1-3, I was nauseous most of the time. I was hypersensitive to the glue that was placed on my donor site. That combined with swallowing blood made me feel sick. I had zofran on hand and used that to keep me alright. I also didn't wear the custom stent. I only wore it the first night to sleep and after that it just made my mouth feel even more gross. Pain was managed exclusively through ice packs and tylenol. It hurt to drink and eat, but it wasn't that bad. More of a dull ache if it was too cold or hot. I mainly played video games and watched tv. I was pretty much completely sedentary.
Days 4-7 were ok, I was able to begin chewing soft food around this time. This was also around the time the graft site started turning pink instead of white. I was a little more active during this time, though still mainly sedentary.
Day 8 and onward, my mouth feels fine. I have no pain and feel like I could eat anything. I obviously can't until I get stitches out, so I am still limited to soft foods. I have begun mild workouts again.
Honestly, the worst part of this whole experience is the major diet shift. Since I have IBS, it has been rough to shift my diet as much as I have. It's getting better but man... eating mainly dairy has been rough. I'm ready at this point to get the stitches out and go back to fully regular eating.
Overall, for me it wasn't too bad. I had a frenectomy and a single graft. I would do it again if I needed it. It's more of a PITA than anything else. I also took off a decent chunk of PTO. I was fully off the day of and day after the graft and the next week I was working half days to make eating less of a hassle.
If you're getting a graft, best of luck and make sure you check reviews for your periodontist before getting the graft! My Periodontist had high reviews, and it helped lessen my anxiety.