Almost nothing can compare to dental pain. An exposed nerve in a tooth, either from decay or a fractured tooth, causes immense pain, and the only way to treat it is with a root canal or pulling the tooth. Having a root canal can save your tooth, but what do you do if after having the root canal you still have pain? Here are some simple ways to help reduce the pain you may have after having a root canal.

Try an Ice Pack

Placing an ice pack on the side of your face where the root canal was performed can help reduce swelling from the operation. If this causes pain from cold sensitivity, though, you can place a towel between the ice pack and your cheek, or you’ll need to try another treatment.

Take an Anti-Inflammatory

A root canal from dentists like Dr. Bryan Murray removes the nerve from your tooth; however, the procedure often irritates the periodontal tissue around the tooth. An over-the-counter anti-inflammatory, like ibuprofen, can help. This medicine will reduce the swelling from the tissue, which reduces the pressure of tissue pressing against your teeth. You can try other over-the-counter pain medications, but a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) will work best.

Enjoy a Liquid Diet

Another way to reduce pain after a root canal is to avoid chewing while the swelling decreases. If you’re a fan of smoothies, here is your perfect excuse to indulge. Smoothies, soups, or soft foods like mashed potatoes that don’t require chewing will let you still get the nutrition you need without needing to put pressure on your tooth.

Talk to a Dentist

If pain persists from your root canal longer than a day or two, you should talk to your dentist. Complications can develop because of your root canal, such as hyper occlusion or an abscess. Hyper occlusion is where the tooth is longer than it should be from the repair work your dentist performed. The only way to correct this is to see a local dentist again and have the tooth reduced in size. An abscess is a pocket of infection or even the accumulation of cleaning fluid used during the root canal procedure. Your dentist will need to prescribe an antibiotic to help with infection from an abscess.

A root canal procedure can cause the area around your tooth to be sore, but that pain will pass. Don’t let concerns about the pain you’ll have after a root canal prevent you from seeing a dentist to have a root canal performed.