Hi all,
Like many of you, I too have had issues with my teeth all of my life and just recently gathered the courage to do something about it. I'd had several consultations with dentists over the years that all ended badly due to the treatment they gave me, but I live in a new area and tried a new dentist office; they spoke with me so gently and understandingly on my first visit that I wound up bawling my eyes out in the chair! So I finally felt comfortable going forward with what I knew I needed done.
Yesterday I had all of my upper teeth extracted and an immediate upper denture placed. I panicked a bit upon getting home, because the denture feels ENORMOUS in my mouth. I'm having a hard time adjusting to it. I went back this morning for my first follow-up appointment to check on the status of my healing, which seems to be going well. But the dentist insisted that I need more time to adjust to the change before he will make any changes in my temporary plate. My next appointment is not until early January, and then my permanent upper denture plate will be made around June.
I haven't really had any pain since the extractions and I'm hoping this luck continues but I know it's still so early. I'm prepared for the swelling to worsen in the next few days, I just really don't want the pain to be bad enough to where I resort to taking one of the pain pills they sent me home with. I have been taking my antibiotics though.
My biggest fear right now is that I won't be able to adjust to the denture enough to speak normally before I return to work. No one knows I've had this done, except for one good friend who has been nothing but supportive, but it's still a somewhat shameful experience to go through in your 20s. I work in a hospital, which of course never closes, and I'm expected to be at work on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day...I just really hope to I can speak with enough comfort to where I don't find myself calling out just due to embarassment, because calling out on a holiday is one sure way to get yourself written up.
I'm having difficulty eating....I have no problem sticking to a soft diet, and I stocked my pantry and fridge with plenty of yogurts, soups, pudding, protein shakes, and juices...but it hasn't been easy. I find that my dentures are so much larger than my old teeth that I keep hitting them with the spoon when I atempt to eat...if I open my mouth REALLY wide to fit a spoon in, the dentures drop out of place. I've taken to sort of using my tongue as a ladel and swishing food from the spoon to the side of my mouth. I'm sure the weight loss from a week of eating like this will be a nice bonus, but I'd really like to feel a bit more 'normal' soon. My dentist doesn't want me using any fixodent until I see him in early January...but I already purchased some and it's going to be very hard to resist it for two more weeks, since I feel like if my upper plate was just more secure, it could make a world of difference with my attempts to talk and eat!
I found this board last night and it was a great comfort to read stories of others going through this same struggle. I'm sure every change we've all made is definitely for the better. We just have to get through the hard first months. :) Thanks for reading.
