Newbie! Full upper and lower extractions with immediate dentures

[readytosmileagain]

Hello everyone! Im so glad to have found this site! And I have been reading through some past posts and they have answered alot of the questions i have been having! SO thank you to everyone.

Ok here is my question. I am 25 years old and 4 days ago i had a full upper and lower extraction done. I now have immediate dentures, which i am having some problems with....I havent wore them at all today because they are hurting me my gums are really sore. And now im scared to put them back in because I know how bad its gonna hurt!!!! so the question is.....am i harming my gums by not having the dentures in or is it ok to leave them out?? Also question number 2 my top dentures are very long i feel like i have horse teeth! It makes it hard to close my mouth! Will my dentist fix this when i got back in 3 weeks for a softline?? Thank you to everyone who reads this.


heather

 

[Gummin It]

Hello everyone! Im so glad to have found this site! And I have been reading through some past posts and they have answered alot of the questions i have been having! SO thank you to everyone.

Ok here is my question. I am 25 years old and 4 days ago i had a full upper and lower extraction done. I now have immediate dentures, which i am having some problems with....I havent wore them at all today because they are hurting me my gums are really sore. And now im scared to put them back in because I know how bad its gonna hurt!!!! so the question is.....am i harming my gums by not having the dentures in or is it ok to leave them out?? Also question number 2 my top dentures are very long i feel like i have horse teeth! It makes it hard to close my mouth! Will my dentist fix this when i got back in 3 weeks for a softline?? Thank you to everyone who reads this.


heather

I was told to keep my upper denture in for at least 24 hours. I did. I didnt eat much for a few days. The 5th or 6th day i started eating soft foods. Like Jello/pudding/ice cream/soup etc..

No need to be scared to put them back in. Take your time, YOU WILL NOT HARM YOUR GUMS, bye putting them back in. Just take your time, dont be in a rush.

I would suggest to keep them In, as long as you can. After all these will be your new teeth.


Im assuming your dentist, will fix any problems you may have.
My soft realign on upper denture felt much better, and dentist trimmed down a few places that was uncomfortable on it.

 

[SandySea]

Hi Heather, and welcome.

It won't harm your gums to leave the dentures out, but the longer you leave them out, the longer it takes to get used to them.

However, if they are really hurting somewhere - like biting into you - then go straight back to the dentist and get him/her to fix them, this often happens with immediate dentures. Most people who get immediate dentures find they go back regularly before their first reline, and the dentist expects this.

As for the uppers feeling like they go back too far, don't be too quick to judge. They need to go back a fair way to create the suction that keeps them up, and when you're not used to upper dentures they can feel like they go halfway down your throat. The amazing thing is that after a few days or a week of wearing them constantly, you don't even notice any more.

The lowers are usually the most difficult to get used to, as they don't rely on suction but just sit over your lower gums and if you're like most people, your tongue keeps wanting to pop them out, lol. But again, constant wear for a few days should get this under control.

But I repeat - if either of them are really sore anywhere, go straight back to the dentist and get them fixed! If you don't, you could rub a little sore on your gum and they can get very sore.

 

[readytosmileagain]

thank you gummin it and sandy sea! i woke up this morning and rinsed my mouth out with salt water and took pain meds because i woke up hurting. once the meds kick in im going to try and put them back in. if they continue to hurt over the weekend im going to call the dentist monday. sandy i think i may have explained the "the horse teeth" wrong in my post. the teeth themselves are very long! im hoping maybe the dentist can just file them down just a lil so i dont look weird when i try and smile and my teeth are real long!! belive me im thankful for the nice pretty straight teeth that were made for me! I just dont like the length. i did have a problem with gagging on my uppers though is that something that happens to everyone?? or am i just a wierdo??! thanx again! im so glad to have found people to talk to about this!

 

[readytosmileagain]

also i forgot to mention me and the hubby were laying in bed last night and i felt one of my stitches from and impacted wisdom i had one on both sides. well one of them came out i didnt even pull it really, but there is still one in there i guess they put two in?? is it normal for them to just fall out like that? it didnt hurt when it came out. i thought they were suppose to dissolve?? sorry for all the questions but i do appreciate every answer!

 

[SandySea]

Hi Heather,
Don't worry, the stitches are designed to come out, they're dissolvable, and some surgeons (although not all) put both internal and external stitches in the extraction site to hasten the healing and prevent dry socket. They'll keep coming out over the next week or so and that's fine, no need to worry about it.

No, gagging does NOT make you weird. Some do, some don't. I personally have a very sensitive gag reflex and when I first got uppers I didn't think I'd ever be able to wear them, but I soon got used to them and now don't even notice them. It takes a while for your mouth to adjust to the new feel. I recently got lowers and I went through the same misery, I found the only way I could keep them in for any length of time was to keep a peppermint or sweet in my mouth to trick it into thinking it was food in there, not a denture. Then one day I realised I was chatting to someone on the phone and I didn't have a peppermint in my mouth, and I was doing just fine! It takes a little time, but it's worth it in the long term.

As for the length of your teeth, did you have your impressions made while you still had your own teeth? They usually try to match the size of your original teeth when they make dentures, so don't be too quick to judge - maybe they just FEEL longer because you're not used to them, or maybe your gums are still swollen and they just look bigger because they're lower in your mouth than they'll be when your gums shrink. But if you really feel they are the wrong size, absolutely talk to the dentist about them. I'm not sure (not being a dentist) if they can "file them down" - you might need to get a whole new denture made if they're too much longer than they should be, but give it a few weeks and see how they look and feel then.


You're doing fine Heather, soon you'll look back with a big smile and remember these days and be grateful you went through it.

 

[drhirst]

Hi Heather,

I cannot add anything further to the excellent advice you have already been given.

Lincoln

 

[readytosmileagain]

Thank you sandy for all of your advice i really appreciate it. i am going to try the peppermint trick! : )

 

[SandySea]

Hi Heather
I'll be interested to know if it works for you, because it sure worked for me. When I first started doing it, I had to ram a peppermint between my back teeth on both sides, and everyone in my house knew not to ask me any questions - not easy to talk holding peppermints in your cheeks, lol. But now I just bite down on a peppermint with my front teeth when I first put my lowers in. (I wear my uppers all the time but I'm awaiting a hard reline for my lowers so I don't wear them to bed because the soft reline is a bit sticky and yucky and I don't want to wake up in the morning with them in my mouth)

By the time the peppermint between my teeth has dissolved (about 10 minutes) my mouth has adjusted to the feel of them and all is well.

Some people can't stand anything at all in their mouth at all when they're getting used to dentures, but one day when I was still trying to get used to the lowers and wasn't wearing them to eat (have you ever gummed a steak to death???? I have, lol) it suddenly occured to me that the food I had in my mouth took up more room than the actual denture, so WHY was I gagging on the denture but didn't on the food. Was it psychological? So I put the denture in and shoved the peppermints in between the back teeth, and sure enough my mouth said "huh, this is food, this isn't denture, I'm ok with this!" I know, sigh, I told a little white lie to my mouth, but it will just be our secret, ok?

I believe that whatever works to get you through the denture adjustment period is worth doing, so if it's not a peppermint it might be a mouthful of chocolate cake or meditation or hypnosis or deep breathing or an antiseptic throat spray or crossing your eyes and poking out your tongue or ANYTHING - because after a few days of constant wear, you totally forget you're wearing them.

Good luck Heather, and let us know how you get on.