I put off getting my wisdom teeth out for a good long four years...until finally they drove me so nuts with all the infections and inflammations I was getting that I just decided to suck it up and get them out. And then the procedure ended up taking a total of twenty minutes, and I was fine the next day -- back to eating most of the same foods I would normally eat. I didn't even take pain killers the first night.

So I think it varies for everyone...I've also heard horror stories of like 3 weeks' worth of recovery time. Your doctor will probably be able to give you a good idea of how long you'd be recovering for, simply based off what s/he sees in your mouth/x-ray. My doctor told me before the procedure that I should recover in a day, while my friend's doctor told her she would be out (of work) for probably a week and a half, and for both of us that was spot on.