need support for upcoming crown lengthening

[anneh]

I have had a lifetime of poor dental health which has meant either losing my teeth or getting them done so I have been good about getting work done. This Thursday due to having to replace crowns I have to have "crown lengthening" done on two teeth unfortunately one on each upper side of mouth but I chose to get it over with in one visit. I am wondering how I will eat afterward as I think they have to use stitches and I guess what I am most worried about is how that will work with eating etc and how long I will have to not eat. I know they will tell me but I would like to know in advance. They said I will need strong pain killers so must be painful afterwards altho I am pretty good with pain. I do have a good specialist for this that I know and trust. For those who are scared of the dentist I have had alot of work done and overcome my initial phobias but must admit this has me in terrible anxiety and if not for knowing I would lose my teeth I wouldn't be going
anneh

 

[Ohdear]

I've never had crown lengthening but I had stitches in my gum after an extraction and it really wasn't too bad. The pain from the stitches felt a bit sharp for a few days but it went away quickly. Obviously there is a huge difference between extractions and crown lengthening but don't worry about the stitches part anyhow, they're not too sore.

 

[Andria]

hi

I've also never had crown lengthening, but I too have had stitches.  I was on soft foods like soup and mashed potato's (yum yum) for a few days, but soon got back to normal food.  I had dissolvable stitches which came away on their own. I knew they were ready to come out coz they were really itchy, if this happens to you try not to poke at them, although you may find yourself running your tongue over them at regular intervals.

Hope it all goes well for you.
Take care
x

 

[anneh]

Thank you both for being so kind and responding I will be so grateful when this nightmare is over tomorrow, will let you know how it goes Thanks for food ideas and the reminder that I am not alone in this situation
anneh

hi

I've also never had crown lengthening, but I too have had stitches.  I was on soft foods like soup and mashed potato's (yum yum) for a few days, but soon got back to normal food.  I had dissolvable stitches which came away on their own.  I knew they were ready to come out coz they were really itchy, if this happens to you try not to poke at them, although you may find yourself running your tongue over them at regular intervals.

Hope it all goes well for you.
Take care
x

 

[vicki]

Good luck for your appointment - fingers crossed that it all goes really well . Don't be afraid to ask as many questions as you like at your appointment - that's what they're there for . Some people find it helps to write a list and take it with them.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[anneh]

Thank you all for the support. As it turned out they only worked on one side of my mouth as they ran into a problem that took longer (3hrs) but will go back to get other side done in a couple weeks I guess. Crown lengthening involves cutting back the gum/bone to expose more tooth and enable a better crown fit. It was a good thing because the specialist found decay up near the root which would have gone undetected . Also, altho I would have preferred to not go thru it again esp with the pain meds and antibiotics, in a way its good because as least I have a good side to eat soft foods on They had to put stitches in plus a sort of putty-like protection around the area. I have virtually no pain at this time but they did have me take 800mg prescription motrin altho I will probably switch to Xstrength Tylenol tomorrow, I don't like taking drugs and that is one of the reasons I dreaded the procedure.

Good luck for your appointment - fingers crossed that it all goes really well . Don't be afraid to ask as many questions as you like at your appointment - that's what they're there for . Some people find it helps to write a list and take it with them.

Let us know how it goes.

 

[Andria]

Well first of congratulations for going through with your appointment. I'm sorry you ran into problems, but hopefully it's all sorted now and things will heal for you without any hitches.

Secondly, I hope everything goes well with your second appointment.

Take care
x