Dentures (full & partial)

Don't give up hope! I finally made my first pot of decent stew last week. I never make good stew, but I got it right with that last pot -- hopefully I can do it again!

tara wrote:thanks for the info Dee. I'll be bringing it up Monday... the why he says we can't add more teeth later, I went to the actual ValPlast site and they say they can. That is good to know though I am not in any hurry to have any more extracted. It makes me sick... well the Novocaine does, and the vomiting that inevitably comes with it leads to a dry socket EVERY single time. I almost think I would rather not be numbed to have it yanked than to deal with the dry socket later, lol. I imagine it would only hurt while they yanked and maybe a few minutes after... dry sockets kill for days, makes it really hard to care for my kids. So if you don't mind me asking what do you clean them with? do you buy the ValPlast brand cleaner that the site say is the only thing you can use? That has me a bit worried, lol, I am beyond broke at this point, I'm charging the denture (so I can pay interest and spend forever trying to get out form underneath it, lol) I don't know that I can swing paying for more expensive cleaner that I have to pay to have shipped too.

Did you go to the dentist yesterday? How'd the appointment go? What's the schedule for you now?

BTW, my new teeth and I are getting along extremely well... most foods are no problem or challenge... well peanuts are, and haven't tried steak yet, but all in all, I'm very satisified. And unless I encounter a problem, I don't have any further appointments

bizzeedee wrote:BTW, my new teeth and I are getting along extremely well... most foods are no problem or challenge... well peanuts are, and haven't tried steak yet, but all in all, I'm very satisified. And unless I encounter a problem, I don't have any further appointments

Congatulations! I'm so happy for you!

bizzeedee wrote:

tara wrote:thanks for the info Dee. I'll be bringing it up Monday... the why he says we can't add more teeth later, I went to the actual ValPlast site and they say they can. That is good to know though I am not in any hurry to have any more extracted. It makes me sick... well the Novocaine does, and the vomiting that inevitably comes with it leads to a dry socket EVERY single time. I almost think I would rather not be numbed to have it yanked than to deal with the dry socket later, lol. I imagine it would only hurt while they yanked and maybe a few minutes after... dry sockets kill for days, makes it really hard to care for my kids. So if you don't mind me asking what do you clean them with? do you buy the ValPlast brand cleaner that the site say is the only thing you can use? That has me a bit worried, lol, I am beyond broke at this point, I'm charging the denture (so I can pay interest and spend forever trying to get out form underneath it, lol) I don't know that I can swing paying for more expensive cleaner that I have to pay to have shipped too.

Did you go to the dentist yesterday? How'd the appointment go? What's the schedule for you now?

BTW, my new teeth and I are getting along extremely well... most foods are no problem or challenge... well peanuts are, and haven't tried steak yet, but all in all, I'm very satisified. And unless I encounter a problem, I don't have any further appointments

I'm glad yours are working out, I hope steak goes well too- I couldn't live without my red meat, lol.
I drove 45 minutes there... waited in the waiting room for another half hour. They did the molds and I was out in less than 5 minutes. Oh well a nice quiet couple hours away from the kids I have to stop back Thursday so they can double check that it fits? Then they will send them out and said it will be about 3 weeks before they come back, possibly less but don't count on it, lol. I'm excited.

Oh and I did ask about adding teeth later... I must have heard them wrong they can send them out to have more teeth added later if need be, they can't do it there. I'm so mad, I would have kept that last tooth they pulled and had my partial already!

Thanks for asking!

Baby steps. I do hope for you that your schedule and appointments go exactly as the dentist explained. I do find it hard to believe that it will take 3 weeks for the partials to be made... but then, perhaps there isn't any lab in the city where the dentist is. I lucked out, in that in this tiny town I live in, I've learned there are 3 labs. So there was one day when I went in the morning, left the plates, and got them back that afternoon.

But anyway, glad to you found out you could have additional teeth added.

And I'm glad you had a little R&R for the children... after a weekend, it most likely was needed

Nah weekends are just like any other day around here, lol. It is nice to be in the car without any whining or crying or "mommy I gotta go potty" 5 minutes after we leave.

tara wrote:Nah weekends are just like any other day around here, lol. It is nice to be in the car without any whining or crying or "mommy I gotta go potty" 5 minutes after we leave.

I'm sure my hubby feels the same way... to me car = potty Some of us kids just never grow out of that habit!

Hey Guys...

I just wanted to tell you that I appreciated this thread more than you can imagine.

Partly because of this thread, I went and made 'the plunge'.

Here is my story.

When I was 19, I was a single mother and had to be on state medical insurance, while I worked as a musician, I could not afford insurance for my son and I, so we were stuck with having the state program.

Well, at that time, most of the dentists who participated in that insurance were not the best Doc's.
I needed to have my wisdom teeth taken out, as they were creating some major pain..so i found a doc that took the insurance.

I went in, and he told me that most of my molars were infected and needed to come out as well as the wisdom teeth. Seeing as he was the Doc, I did not think to question him. So out they went.

I continued to see him for root canals and other 'problems' he told me I had. He took a lot of my teeth, the root canals he did ALWAYS ended up becoming painfully absessed. And innevitably ended up being pulled.

Well, it turns out, he was arrested for fraudulent billing to the state, and was doing precedures that were not needed to MANY people, most of which were on state insurance.

He took my teeth, and my self-esteem with him. Thankfully, his license WAS pulled by the state, and he was barred from practice where I live.

I spent over 15 years 'hiding' my smile. As a professional singer, I also had to adjust my singing style...it is amazing how even my husband did not realize how many teeth I had missing...

I ofcourse developed a fear of dentists. I always took very good care of the teeth I had left, but took YEARS for me to go into a dentist again.

What I had left on my uppers, was a cheap temorary partial, 3 crowns (that had got to the point where I had to glue them in almost every-day..pretty funny now that I think about it. Superglue is something that was a regular in this house.... ) and my two front teeth. I am only 37, so this was a HUGE blow to me...

My lower I have only 7of my original teeth, all of which were in great condition.
(again, I always took great care of my teeth)

After reading the bravery in this thread....

I took the plunge, got what was left of my top teeth pulled and got full dentures on the top, and partials on the bottom

I have NOT stopped smiling..even when I am angry. And MAN how my singing has improved.

Here is me, with me with my new smile...




That pic was taken the day I had them pulled, I had no pain, no swelling and could not stop looking in the mirror, in fact, I almost got into a car accident because I was looking at my teeth while driving. It was also my sons first prom, and the first day I met his girlfriends parents....I smiled for every picture.

Thanks again for everyone who shared their story...what a wonderful group of people you all are.

That's so nice! I'm glad you got your teeth fixed and that you found everyone's stories here helpful! You have a beautiful smile!

Thank you for the compliment...I have now spent a FORTUNE on lipstick. It has gotten to the point where my husband has forbidden me to go into CVS without a chaperone....maybe there will be a lipstick campaign soon!!!

This particular post is a testimony on how great, and non-judgemental the people are here at UB...

and how helpfull, in more aspects than just the tips on bzzing.

emach, a most beautiful smile, and yes, isn't it a nice feeling to smile wide again? I think I was the one who started this post as I was in the process of upper and lower partials. That started Jan. 29, and here it is, June 3, and they're as natural to me -- no more natural -- than those few teeth I had before!

I'm very happy for you that this has been such a good experience for you... and really, your smile is gorgeous!

What a nice smile!

That is a beautiful smile!

Beeautiful!
Thanks so much for sharing your story.
It actually brought tears to my eyes.
I can't tell you how happy I am for you.

Thank you all for the wonderful compliments.

Emach, you are so beautiful! And I am so happy for you. It was awful that you fell victim to someone so unsrupulous. Evil. To maim someone for profit? Just evil.

But this is about you, not him. I am so proud that you worked up your nerve to have this done. I cannot imagine the courage it took to go back to a dentist and have teeth pulled. But I am so happy that you did! Your smile is wonderful, especially because I know it wasn't a fake smile. The teeth may not be real, but the happiness is. Congratulations.

And you should put that picture in your avatar!

"Emach, you are so beautiful!" I could not agree more!


Interesting to find this thread revived.. I just got back from having new liners put in..
this process is taking forever and I am feeling a bit discouraged. They say it will be another 4 months or more until it is finished.. and the dentures are "permanent"

ugh

Hang in there kath -- you've come too far to give up now!

LOL I wish there was an option!

I am in it now.. no do overs...

Thanks for the encouraging words though...
All will be well ... I won't stay discouraged for long..

and I have lost 20 pounds... so that is a good thing!

Kath, your smile will be more beautiful than ever soon. (As soon as it becomes a smile, and not a grimace of pain, LOL.) Are the liners helping? I hope so.

And I'll be having some dental work of my own done soon. I had a tooth pulled a year ago and have saved up to get an implant. I was going to have a bridge, but they told me that it would involve putting crowns on the two perfectly healthy teeth on either side of the one that was pulled, and I just can't make myself do it. Plus, by the time I paid for those two crowns, the root canals to put them in, and the bridge itself, I was within a few hundred dollars of the cost of the implant. So I am going that route.

And now I have the money, and am just waiting for my appt. w/ my regular dentist since I can get the required X-rays cheaper from him than from the specialist.

I am so happy for you that you have money for the implant? Is it an upper or lower?

I used to work for a group of periodontist in Boston who taught how to do implants..
it was a good job.. I like one of the doctors a lot..

he was amazing!

As for me? I am not in pain.. or at least not a lot.. have a couple of ulcers due to this and that..

I am just moping today.. lol

Seriously.. let us know when you have the implant done.. I am so so happy for you!

I supposed to see my dentist in about 3 weeks and I'll get X-rays then. Then I'm off the the periodontist.

I feel strange taking the more expensive route, but when I looked at the cost difference, plus the replacement costs for if/when I damage the crown, I decided that it may be almost the same price in the long run. I would of course be at risk of damaging either, but I figure I have three times as many things that could need replacing if I get a bridge. (Bridge, crown on left, crown on right vs. the single crown on the implant) And since I plan on having this for decades, I'm bound to damage something at some point.

The tooth is on my left, bottom and it's the second regular molar (not wisdom) from the back.

I feel sorry for each and everyone of you that are having teeth issues or have had issues in the past. I, too, had major issues with my teeth. Over 30 years ago I had a love affair with abcessed teeth; I had 16 of them. Trust me, I nearly died. I lived on liquids and drank through a straw. Where I lived and at that time, well, was not teeth friendly - not many good dentists. However, as luck would have it a new dental clinic opened up and I was able to become a patient of one of the dentists. He did an experimental project on me which eliminated some of the high costs; these were called posts which is the forerunner of implants. I have never to this day regretted wearing dentures. I did want to live and eat! Best Wishes to you all.

Again..thanks all for the wonderful compliments...

I had considered going with the implaints as well, be for two reasons, I could not do it. #1, it would have cost me about 20k...um, sorry, there is NO way I could afford that right now.
That and I had so much bone loss in the back of my mouth that they would not take. I had gone way to long without teeth.

BUT, I can have 'mini' implaints done and they are MUCH cheaper and they are able to do them in about six months. I will get 4 of them on the uppers so my denture stays even better.

They cost about $500.00 a piece, without a discount, but I am eligable for a 25% discount because of the type of dentures I got.

I went to Aspen dental. I think they did good work but you have to REALLY watch their billing practices...they are a little 'shady' when it comes to billing. I am on top of it, and the grand total of all that I had done was....$200.00.

I am lucky to have great insurance.

Yeah, those re-lines really suck. I've healed really quick, so my temp. uppers are real loose, but I have been using an adhesive (the powder works best for me...all the other stuff tastes like crapola and makes me sick to my stomach). I should have gone in for a reline last week, but I wanted to heal even more. Besides, I am yet to have any big problems.

The weight lose is cool too...

However, I am DYING to eat a steak!!!!

mini implants?

tell me more!

We have Aspen here too.. I am glad you had a good experience with them... I had never known anyone who went there.. so I did not....