Any denture-wearers in the house? Help me advise my Mom...

[amitten]

My Mom needs dentures bad. She can hardly chew properly right now. She can afford the procedure but is FREAKING OUT that they won't fit, or will look unnatural, or will make her upper lip protrude.

Can anyone here set the record straight? I will send responses to Mom to try to convince her to do the right thing!

PS--They are the kind of dentures that will "lock" into place via some pegs inserted into the gums.

:shrug:

[scarlet_owl]

1. I don't wear dentures, but my mother-in-law does.

I have asked her about them and she says they are very hard to get used to at first, but they become second nature after a while. They will most likely fit well because they take molds of her gums to make the dentures. As far as them looking unnatural, my MIL's look like regular teeth and hers are a cheaper set. Your mom will need to be careful when drinking hot liquids if she has a plate because the liquid could burn the roof of her mouth. I don't know anything about dentures that lock into place, so they might not have a plate at all. I hope your mom decides to get them. They will probably make her feel much better. Good luck to your mom. :hi:

PS-If you have any other questions, you can PM me and I will ask my MIL as soon as she comes home.

[amitten]

7. Thanks...I appreciate your feedback. I think these kinds of

responses will help push her into taking the plunge.

[Blue Poppy]

2. i do

i had severe dental and health issues, and due to no insurance, had to get dentures at a very young age.
at first i hated them, but my want to eat far outweighed that.
they took about a month to get used to. i was extremely emaciated when i got them so i looked like i had horse teeth. but the swelling went down and they look totally natural. i got to pick out the color of the tooth. tell her to pick something natural, not bright white. that is a dead giveaway that you have fake teeth!
i won't lie amitten, it was one of the hardest things i had to deal with in my life. i spent many nights crying. i had 2 crowns on my bottom jaw that were left. the bottom dentures pop on to those. apparently, i was lucky. if i didn't have those crowns, the bottoms would slip like crazy.

tell her that it will be ok and eating will be fun again!
:hug:

[amitten]

4. Hers will just be the top only. Do you think that will be as bad? nt

[Blue Poppy]

8. nope

she will be fine! it's better to have the teeth in the bottom.
she'll just have to use fixodent or something like it to keep the top dentures in place.

i wish your mom luck!

[amitten]

9. Great ...thanks. n/t

[TommyO]

3. My mother has a partial, and when it's in I can't tell them from her natural teeth

[Sgent]

5. Ask her dentist about implants

Dentures do have a lot of downside. If she is eligible (and can afford it), implants maybe a better option.

[amitten]

6. Well, she's getting implants that the dentures then snap on to.

So it's basically a full top denture but without glue...

She doesn't have enough good teeth/bone left to do a bridge or anything partial like that.

[TreasonousBastard]

10. If she's only getting the top one-- it's a piece of cake...

and I should have done it years before and saved myself tons of money and vast amounts of pain. The only downside to the top one is that it covers the palate and things like ice cream aren't as much fun. (But, you can take it out!)

Modern dentures are really great, and nobody knows I have them unless I mention it. And I can rarely tell if someone else has them, even though I know what to look for. The teeth come in sizes and colors to match your natural ones.

She will probably not need the pegs since it is suction on the roof of the mouth that holds the plate in. I'm not going to overrule a professional opinion on her situation, but with most people the most they ever might need is some denture adhesive. Some slippage is normal at first, but the plate gets adjusted as the gums and jaw kind of settle in to their natural size after a while, and slippage is reduced to almost nothing. This only takes a few months.

Tell her she's nuts not to go for it.

[amitten]

11. Thanks so much! n/t

[dysfunctional press]

12. ditto...

i have a full upper and a partial lower.

i find that it's easier to eat if i take the lower out and leave the upper in.

but i always take the upper out for ice cream.

[amitten]

13. Do you feel they look natural? n/t

[dysfunctional press]

17. completely.

i don't regret it one bit.

although i do regret neglecting my teeth/gums over the years until it came to this.

[madrchsod]

19. the guy who did my second set

said that i should never use glue because glue puts hydraulic pressure between the plate and the gums ..never have used glue in 30 years

[catmandu57]

14. I've had a full set for 15 years

I don't have any problems, i glue them down tight with fixodent, I give it about ten minutes to set before I eat, but they look natural, I can eat anything I want, tell her to do it.

[amitten]

15. Thanks...I'll pass it on! n/t

[Blue Diadem]

16. Will she be able to remove them? I see they do both permanent

and removable ones now..both affixing to the pegs. I'd never heard of that type of denture before until recently when I saw an advertisement on TV.

I don't have dentures but I do have two permanent bridges. I think anytime something like that is new in your mouth, it feels strange and different and it takes a while to feel comfortable again.

[madrchsod]

18. make sure she goes to someone who does at least the following

if she needs any of her teeth taken out then make sure the dentist will wait till the gums are completely healed. she`ll be eating a lot of soft foods!

second find out how many impressions the dentist will make. the more the better.

the teeth should fit well enough to not use any glue. it may take a bit of practice but be patience.

she will have sore spots so make sure that they get taken care of immediately.

keep the plates clean i used peroxide and a good brush..brush your gums with a soft brush

never take your plates out unless your going into surgery

i followed the above and have had my original set for 30 years with very few problems and no glue. depending on her age she will need another set because as the gums recceed her face will "distort".

i have`t gotten new one yet but in 30 years the teeth are far better than what i have.

as for the pegs she needs to have her dentist go over the benefits and the drawbacks...

oh yes she`ll look and feel a lot better with new "choppers"

[amitten]

20. Thanks so much. This is bound to make her feel better. n/t

[Generic Brad]

21. My wife has partials

She felt the first set was uncomfortable and told the dentist on her two week follow up. He had a new set made for her free of charge and she has been very happy with them.