Dental Implant tomorrow...

Hi all

I am new but have been lurking for some time. I have a long and painful history of dental care. Thanks to the skills of a kind dentist about 5 years ago, I managed to overcome some the anxiety I felt for so many years. I am now seeing a new dentist who is sympathetic, very professional and understanding.

I decided to go for an implant (upper) to replace a missing tooth and avoid a bridge which would otherwise damage the healthy teeth near them. The surgery is due tomorrow first thing. I am having major jitters and doubts. I decided not to go for sedation due to the cost and also because I usual recat badly to the stuff (vomiting, hives etc)

Can anyone reassure me? I think I need someone to tell me that I have made the right decision for my mouth, and myself...

x

I cannot reassure you, but I can say that you've come a long way already!
I hope you be allright tomorrow. It sounds as you've found the right dentist! Good luck!

Hi Babou

Whenever I go to the dentist I take an ipod with me and play it very loud - it seems to blot out some of what is going on around me.

2 weeks ago I had 11 teeth extracted and 6 implants. I can tell you that as far as the implant's are concerned it was the best decision I made. I had to wait 48 hours for the temporary teeth and will have the permanent ones in about 2 months. I have had no pain just an ache which is easily taken care of with some pain killers.

They look great and I would definately have implants again.

You CAN do it, you WILL be fine

Hi!
Tell us how it's been going! Are you okey?
Hugs!

I hope everything went well, I've been thinking about you! In a compeltely none stalkery way. (God I'm so hyper don't mind me).

Hi all and thanks for responding!

Well..I did it. No sedation - fully conscious. It was not painful, just very unconfortable at times. The waiting was far worse that the actual procedure. The dentist took me again through the whole process in his office, explaining the procedure, what would happen, what complications may happen etc. I then went to clean my teeth with some antibacterial solution and went in. It was a lot like walking into an operating theatre as my dentist and his assistant were in full scrubs. I myself was then covered head to toe with only my mouth showing.

The fact of being covered made me a bit panicky. I breathed through it. There was abolutely no pain, I did not feel anything other than some tapping and of course the drilling resonating in my head in an odd way (very diffierent from any other type of drilling on teeth I ever experienced. I hated the drilling part but mainly because I found it hard to get rid of those mental pictures I kept having of a black & decker drill doing the job...eeek. The dentist was very good at keeping me up to date on every step. They were very attanetive and I only had to raise a hand before they stopped. This happened a couple of times when I wanted the drilling to pause. Not because of tha pain but because I did not like it.

Still, 2 hours later and it was all over. I felt fine, just a bit groggy and surprised that it was actually finished and that it was not that bad.

I had no pain since. There is a bit of swelling so that I look like a lopsided hamster. I will see how tomorrow goes as they say the third day is usually the worst but so far so good.

I haven't looked at the handywork (was told not to do so by dentist who said that pulling the lip could damage the gum and stiches) - I have an appointment for their removal in a couple of weeks. I have had soup and pasta and been keeping up with the cleaning regimen with no problem.

I just do hope the implant integrates and that all goes well. I'll keep you updated on what happens next.

Thanks!

Glad to hear that you managed to go through with it so well!

Hope that you are still fine and not having any more problems!

Gratz!

Hi all

I promised an update so here it is

So it is almost a month to the day of the implant surgery and everything is great. Stitches came out in less than a couple of minutes with no pain about 10 days afterwards and there has been no pain whatsoever (in fact none) since before my last post!.

I am keeping up with the cleaning regimen, and I am hoping the integration is happening with no problem so that I can have the crown fitted in 5 months. I am still very conscious of the gap and cannot bring myself to smile much...

I am having a check up in October and will update you again.

x

I was/am in a similar situation. I had the second upper premolar and the first molar extracted in March, implant surgery followed in May and finally this month I should go for the impressions to make the crowns.

The hardest part for me was getting used to the idea that I will be losing two teeth and having to have this implant procedure which seemed (and is) quite invasive. But the actual procedure in itself was a lot easier than I imagined!
The biggest discomfort for me was till my gums healed and I personally felt much better once the stiches came out. Also, I never appreciated the rest of my teeth as much as I did after the procedure, as they enabled me to eat and drink without problems!

Amost 4 months now and (to me) all looks ok and just like you, I hope the implants integrated and I can just finally get the crowns put it. I am also still a bit conscious not to smile too wide , as then people can see the gap in my teeth, however I have to say that overall it hasn't been as bad as I thought it would be, before I went ahead with the treatment. If the crowns come out ok, then I really don't have any complaints!

Glad to hear you are doing well so far!

Well - it did happen and I got my crown yesterday a year after the extraction!!!

You would not think it is an implant at all and it has made it all worth it. I had no issues during integration (apart for the smiling thing...)

I am now making up for lost time

Congratulations - thanks for getting back again - that's so encouraging for others.