I've had both procedures done. With respect to the root canal, after the novacaine wore off, there was less residual pain than after an ordinary filling. It was a walk in the park. This was an upper jaw tooth, so your mileage may vary if yours is on the lower jaw.
Now, the wisdom tooth extraction wasn't bad either. I had two done after being put under, but when a third one went bad, my dentist pulled it in the chair using novacaine. Yes, you will hear some ugly sounds, but the only thing you'll feel is pressure. My dentist was an ex-Army guy, and he illustrated the difference between pain and pressure by pricking me on the arm with a dental pick ("that's pain") and punching me gently ("that's pressure")
One advantage to having it done under novacaine instead of getting knocked out is that you can get ice on your jaw right away, and probably have less residual swelling afterwards.
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