My oldest daughter had all 4 impacted wisdom teeth taken out last week and
sends her heartfelt thanks.
I am so glad for Lactnet, I wouldn't have though to use the cabbage for wisdom
teeth if it hadn't come up on the list so many times.
After 6 hours the ice packs weren't working and the swelling was getting worse
(she looked like she had oranges stuffed in her cheeks-honest). So off to the
store I went. Within 20 minutes of starting the cabbage compresses, I watched
my daughter's face go down by nearly an inch. We were amazed. My DD said that
it really helped with the pain too. She used only 3 pain pills that first day
and none after. At one point she called me at work, crying, and begged me to
get more cabbage right away because we ran out, the relief was that great.
The dentist laughed, at first, but said "Well, I can't argue with success."
First 24 hours we used the cabbage under ice packs applying fresh leaves every
20 - 30 minutes. Next two days we used frozen leaves, changing them as soon as
they got warm.
I  covered the area of her face right up to the ear and below the jaw, halfway
across toward the chin. Ice packs on top. I used rolled towels next to her
head to help hold them in place.
Oh the wonders of "Modern Medicine" <g>
Happy holidays
Marie Davis, RN, IBCLC