I had to go through the same thing in the past as what you're talking about, and had a similar experience to TheReader. If you take the bare minimum amount to take the really bad pain away, it shouldn't re-hook you in the short term, i.e. you are unlikely to have any w/d's from it. Doing this because you *have to* doesn't mean you have to say you've lost your clean time, says so even in AA and NA books.
Obviously, IMHO it would be BEST to avoid the opioid route, but if you legitimately can't avoid it (and boy do I know how bad dental pain can get ... sometimes, you really DO 'have to' take them), do you at least have someone who can hold the meds for you, who loves you and knows your situation?
'Holding them' yourself, esp. if you have any appreciable amount, and ESPECIALLY if you don't even tell any of your loved ones about the situation ... is a very dangerous road. There's no shame in asking for help managing your meds when you're an addict in recovery. In fact, it's pretty damn critical!
Getting that help can be a real bacon-saver, esp. when it comes to that time where you need to toss the rest because you don't really need them anymore. The addict brain/thinking can be re-awakened with very little impetus ... w/o someone tossing them for you, it will tell you 'oh, you better hold onto these in case the pain comes back' ... and THAT ... will be bad news, I promise you.
Bottom-line what I'm telling you is ... GET HELP if you must do this. Or you may end up in a world of hurt ... maybe even dead.