Improving Life By Removing Teeth
81Keeping Your Original Set Is NOT Always A Good Idea
A close friend of mine has a theory: Teeth do not occur naturally in human beings. Rather, they are implants forced upon us by aliens who use them to control us by means of various electronic signals to our feeble little brains. As wacko as that may sound, his reasoning does possess a certain logic.
After all, what sensible genetic design would include sharp objects that burrowed into bone at one end while piercing your flesh on the other?
My own memory of tooth problems dates to my eleventh year. I'd been to the dentist to get a couple of fillings, which meant those hated shots of Novocaine. Being young and dumb, I managed to pretty well chew my inner cheek to shreds before the stuff wore off. Whether it was that or the original work that caused it, I was violently ill for two full weeks after the appointment.
Worse than the repeated vomiting was not being allowed to go horseback riding with Dad when he headed to the mountains to check on our cattle herd. My sister didn't complain; it gave her the opportunity to begin serious riding in my place. But it drove me absolutely nuts. In turn, I drove my father equally crazy until he relented. Sort of.
If I could catch and saddle my horse by myself, I could ride with him.
Okay. Piece of cake. Goldie, one of the gentlest mares on Planet Earth, was certainly easy to catch. Everything went just fine until, as I was cinching the saddle tight, I felt something pop in my back. When I came to, I began spitting with considerable enthusiasm. I had blacked out and fallen face down, apparently with my mouth wide open.
At least the horse manure that filled my mouth was dry; a fresh cowpie would have been infinitely worse. As it was, I didn't get to ride that day. It didn't make sense that a reaction to Novocain and a spinal "pop" could be related, but my parents were the narrow minded sort about such things--for some reason, they just didn't feel an unconscious young cowboy was a healthy cowboy. Fooey.
A lot of people hate going to the dentist. Me, I HATED going to the dentist. There was never a time I was able to consider my teeth my friends. Decades later, an old college buddy would tell my family, "It seemed like Fred always had a toothache." Even the U.S. Army did its best to make it worse. Our unit was out on maneuvers once when a terrible toothache drove me to report my problem to the brass.
They trucked me back to our main base, where a military dentist extracted the offending fang. That particular tooth was on the upper right, and that gap rode with me for another thirty years before getting the rest of those choppers out. Not that the extraction itself was the low point of that particular visit to the dentist. After the deed was done, I got out of the chair and promptly passed out on the floor. And the entire dental staff laughed at me for doing so.
Unfortunately, I retained just enough awareness to know they were laughing.
Novoicaine-Free Dentistry??
From Root Canals To Learning About Mercury
Year by year, life went on...but the tooth situation was not getting better. Over time, all four wisdom teeth had come and gone. I'd begun learning about the problems associated with mercury amalgam fillings and had become more than merely suspicious regarding my own mouthful of mercury.
During one ten year period, from age 22 to age 32, I had avoided the dentist entirely, holding to a personal vow never to visit one again except to have a bad tooth pulled. At age 32, however, after working up enough nerve to have dental work once again, a blessing showered down upon me: Dr. Jerry Smith of South Sioux City, Nebraska, promised shots you wouldn't even feel going in...and he delivered.
Not that his talent made my knuckles any less white on the chair's armrests, but it did make scheduling subsequent appointments a whole lot easier. Eleven cavities after ten years didn't seem all that bad.
By 1992, though, I had finally had enough. It took months of telephone work to locate a dentist who would agree to pull all my teeth, but in the end I found two in the same day: One in Minnesota, one in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Since I was at that time living in Custer, South Dakota, it made sense to go to Sioux Falls and save several hundred miles of additional travel. The initial appointment was made; all those metal fillngs would soon be gone.
The removal process involved taking out the front half of the teeth first, followed by the second half some three weeks later. During that second session, part of one mandible had to be shaved down to get the tissue to seal over it--that was a tad scary. Then the doc and I had a mouthfight over two lower front teeth he wanted to leave in for anchors to help hold the lower denture in place, so I had to go back a third time to get them yanked.
Then the fun really began. One of those final two deep-root ivories left a dry socket behind. In case you don't know what that means, the bone is still exposed after the stitches come out because the tissues have not sealed over the mandible. A one word description would be: OUCH!!!
But I watched the socket's progress day by day and could see that it would seal over just fine...given enough time. Maybe a week. So I called my dental surgeon and asked for more pain pills.
Two problems with that: Despite realizing that I did have some osteoporosis in the mandibles as evidenced by a bit of honeycombed bone that came out with a couple of the teeth--which he admitted as proof that I had been right all along and the x-rays had been wrong--we were no longer buddies. Sort of a "good riddance to bad rubbish" sort of thing.
And, almost as important, I was not about to tell him I had a dry socket. He would have wanted me to come in, to drive clear across South Dakota for a fourth time, and most likely he'd have also wanted to sew the thing back together for another week or even two.
No thank you.
So, with great and obvious reluctance, he did call in a prescription to my hometown pharmacy. When I picked it up, it turned out to be a bad joke: A few pills of generic Ibuprofen, not even extra strength, stuff I could have bought for less money over the counter.
No more help there!
Exactly one week, 135 extra strength Tylenol, and one overdose reaction in the form of a chest rash later, the dry socket did seal properly. Pain levels dropped immediately to nothing, and the worst was over. No more poison teeth. No more fear of the dentist.
Amalgam Fillings In Your Mouth Are Poisoning You Part 1
It Was Definitely Worth It
There were lots of adjustments to make. Two sets of dentures and 16 years later, I never wear my false teeth, not even when I'm on stage singing. I've had people who've known me for years yell fiercely across a crowded room,
"Fred, put in your teeth!"
Uh huh. Don't think so. I'll be releasing videos of my original songs to the Net soon, and that toothless look may bring some pretty strong comments my way. Quite frankly, my only response (if that happens) will be: Yeah? So what's your point? I found out that my body considers dentures to be foreign objects to be rejected as quickly as possible.
What other downsides have been noticed? Only one, really: Certain foods are pretty much out of the question. No raw celery or carrots, no peanuts.
But that's about it. My health is much stronger than it was for the first 50 years of my life. A dear friend who has the ability to "read" a person's health was able to tell me that prior to the extractions, my mandibles were carrying a 52 percent toxin load (heavy metals in the bone that shouldn't have been there), whereas one year later the reading showed that number down to 31 percent.
I can eat steak--with considerable enthusiasm, I might add. And most impressive of all, a few years after it was over and done with, I happened to bump into an old friend at a church seminar. She is a stunningly beautiful redhead, but I would not have recognized her if she had not spoken first. The wear and tear was that great; she looked like Death had come so close, the Grim Reaper might still be sharpening his scythe.
What she told me was sobering: HER mercury amalgam poisoning had nearly killed her before she realized what was wrong and got her teeth removed in the nick of time. A very thin nick. Thankfully, she did make it.
A final question: Will your dentist deliberately lie to you? Answer: Mine did. In 1989, I'd had a root canal done in Hamilton, Montana. The dentist promised not to use metal as an anchor. When that tooth came out, I discovered his perfidy: Rather than admit he didn't know how to do the job without metal, he had simply hidden the metal anchor wires behind the tooth so that I could not see them in the mirror.
Even so, I don't wish the dental profession ill these days. Certainly I do not envy the statistic that indicates most dental workers lose actual brain power over time due to prolonged exposure to mercury fumes.
Thanks for reading,
Ghost32
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Mr. Marmalade, I would not ever want to try telling you (or anyone else) WHAT to think, but if this Hub influenced you to actually THINK about something you had perhaps always taken for granted (like dental fillings), then it has done its job.
As for me personally, I've been "looking around corners", as you put it so well, pretty much my entire life.
Have you written your biography.That would be amazing.
Topstuff, I did write an ANECDOTAL autobiography in 1986 titled Tales Of A Golden Heart. Had my own little publishing company in 1992 and self published it at that time. Sold a few hundred copies. But as for a comprehensive version, no, I have not done so. However, I figure that by the time I have 1,000 or so Hubs, that ought to be a good start. Maybe then all I'd need to do would be compile all those pages and call it a book, eh?
Anyway, thanks for asking.
Very interesting stuff, Ghost. I read some aloud to my husband because I couldn't believe someone would go through that - but it sounds like you made the right choice for your health. Great hub!
Wow, what a compliment! Since I read to my wife at times, I'm pretty sure that having one's material read by a Fan to a Fan's Spouse counts as a high compliment. Thanks for the boost!
Now I know why I gave up dentistry LOL Gee Sir Ghost, pretty tough experience you've had there. Well, I still am glad I have teeth though. :-)
Thanks for the comment, ripplemaker! I never thought of it as a tough experience, though. It was what it was. Will admit I was glad when 'twas over.
As to being happy to have your own teeth: My Dad was wearing dentures long before he passed at age 75, but my Mom made it to age 86 and still had some of her own to work with. They weren't really, um, PRETTY by that time, but they did still work. Sort of.
More dental horror stories. Thank you very much! Please read my dental oriented hub: What Can I Do about My Bad Teeth?
I have some of my teeth still. Like you Ghost, the dentist keeps saying "we can save this one" or that one if you do this... Well, if I wanted to "do this or that", I would have been taking care of them all along. With many spaces from extractions over the years, I FINALLY found a dentist that is going to pull them all. Well almost, he says, like yours did, they want to leave 2 on the bottom to anchor the bottom plate. I guess I'll argue that point when I get to it.
Anyway, I have a mouth full of metal fillings from my young adult years. I was very interested in your HUB here. I never thought of that, but I guess that IS a foriegn body, permanately installed, in my mouth. I have had a number of systemic problems over the years and wonder if some of that will improve after the teeth are gone. Who knows......
Thanks for this HUB
MWSinARK
I hate dentists, too! I do still have almost all my teeth, though. I use them for so many things, I don't think I could live without them.
Good to "see" you, Ghost!
Habee, I understand--but have to admit your reference to using your teeth for "so many things" drives my imagination a bit crazy. Eating, of course, but...street fights? Snipping thread? Chewing fingernails? Grinding 'em? Whistling? (I don't whistle as well without 'em as I did with 'em, will admit that.)
Hello Ghost I have read a couple of your hubs and wanted to comment of the great quality of your writing. Since you have written so many it will take some time to read them all but I look forward to it. I have to say that my father lost all his teeth when he was about 60 and he also never got used to wearing false ones as well and after about a week or two gave them up entirely and he never wore them again. He died when he was 72 without any of his teeth but he would eat everything, even steak. Good hub, I shall be a fan.
Thanks, LadyJane. Appreciate the compliments. Yup, I eat steak as well with no problem whatsoever. In fact, Pam and I had a couple of New York strip steaks just last week. M-m-m-good!
Like your avatar, by the way.
Great hub. I had a back jaw tooth taken out because I kept biting the side of my mouth.
Ouch. That doesn't sound like any fun.
It's now been 18 years since I had mine out, and my health continues to be better than it ever was prior to the mass extractions.
For the women out there, a warning - if you get all your teeth out, your jaw may sink. If you think you've got jowls now, just wait till you've got no teeth!
I know mercury is a problem, Ghost,but for us ladies vanity can be more important...
And you can get your mercury fillings replaced, you know.
Understood, Marisa. My wife had her teeth out in 1997, and I'm painfully aware of the vanity problem for the ladies. However, we have never found one single dentist who could and would replace the mercury with anything we trusted, and if she hadn't got hers out, she'd be dead now. I do realize many a gal would literally prefer death to disfigurement, though....
Hey, Ghost. I'm 49 and have been trying for the last couple of years to find a local dentist who will pull all my teeth. Since my teeth can be "saved" by several root canals, I haven't been able to find a dentist who will pull them. When my girlfriend was 28 (ten years ago) she walked into a dental clinic in Jacksonville, Florida with six bad teeth, told them she wanted ALL her teeth pulled, and within two hours they sent her out the door completely toothless! No questions asked! That's what I want, but here in South Dakota if possible. I'd consider it a huge favor if you would direct me to the dentist here that was willing to pull all your teeth. I have no intention of ever having another root canal. I just want all my teeth out. Can you recommend a dentist? Thanks so much!
I totally understand your situation. Can't recall the name of the DDS who pulled mine. He was in Sioux Falls, but that was done in 1992, 18 years ago, and that man is most likely retired by now--he'd have to be in his 70s.
The guy who pulled Pam's fangs was a bit younger and located on the west side of Rapid City. Can't recall his name either. In fact, I just looked through the online version of the Rapid City phone book and didn't come up with it. But I can tell you the only way I know how to do it, and that's to become a telphone solicitor.
That is, in both cases (mine in 1992, Pam's in 1997), I simply started with Yellow Pages after Yellow Pages, not bothering with the tiny towns but hitting the major cities, asking two questions:
1. "Would you pull all of my teeth, thank you very much?"
2. Every time they said no--and there were a lot of those--I'd follow up with, "Okay, well, do you have any idea who might be willing to do so?"
In my personal case in 1992, it took me something like 90 phone calles to places in Minnesota, Iowa, and South Dakota before getting a positive response, but then two "yes" answers hit on the same day. (The second being a call-back from a message I'd left on an answering machine.)
In 1997, for Pam, we got luckier and found one after something like 14 or 15 calls.
For sure, don't give up on getting 'em out.
Very well done hub - very informative and helpful with an appealing and genuine feel - fantastic writing style! Glad I found you and look forward to reading more of your hubs and future writing's.
Thanks.
Well, shame on me for not finding your magnificent hubs sooner...and you can bet I will be here for the duration!
Your dental story had me sitting on the edge of my chair. My recent hub on how antibiotics just about did me in all started because of a dentist. I am with you - I dislike them intensely. You are full-time talent, Ghost, and how very blessed am I to have found you here on hubpages. BTW - am passing this hub on to friends and family. Rated up and awesome. :)vocalcoach
Seven months between the last comment on this page and yours--but the wait was worth it! Really appreciate the fact that you like this one well enough to pass it on to those you care about.
I have all my teeth taken out. I have dentures which fit well and I can eat all foods. Most of my teeth were in poor condition and some were loose. I asked my dentiat to do a total extraction and he agreed;all uppers then and a wek later the bottom teeth. Best thing I ever done and no my face has not fallen in like some dentists say wil happen. I was eighteen at the time and I am now nearing sixty and have worn out three sets of dentures. I dont always wear my dentures at home but mostly do in public. Bad teeth are bad news, dentures are no problem once you get used to wearing them. It takes a couple of months.
I'm happy for you that it took "a couple of months" for your dentures to settle in. I gave up entirely after 10 months and never ever ever reconsidered. My wife wants to find someone competent enough to actually fit her mouth after struggling for 14 years so far.
I have a mouthful of broken teeth that my dentist wouldn't pull 4 years ago. The fillings were so large that there was hardly any tooth on the outside. Now it will cost a lot more to get them pulled and will be more painful since they will have to dig for them. But "SAVE THAT TOOTH".
"Save that tooth", certainly makes the dentists a lot more money. Dentures (if you use them, which I no longer do but Pam does, being a girl with appearance an important factor and all) are a heck of a lot cheaper (and less painful) (and less poisonous) than teeth and fillings and crowns and root canals and stuff.
My dentist wouldn't pull mine, either. So I hit the phone books in several states (didn't have Internet access then)until I found one who would.
Teeth are evil.
I am 22,female, and have no teeth for the last four years. I am toothless by choice more than by necessity. Growing up I was facinated by people who had no teeth,including my Mum, My Gran and two of my aunts. I always wanted to be like them and finally after much difficulty found a dentist who extracted all my teeth. He wanted to leave in two on the bottom to stabilise my bottom plate but I persuaded him to take all out. Looking in tthe mirror immediately afterwards was a shock but I was so happy I could have kissed him, bloody mouth or not.I was now how I wanted to be and there was no going back. I waited a year before getting dentures and probably wold have waited longer and perhaps never bothered if my mother had'nt continually nagged me to do so. I love my smooth gums and the changes to how I speak.
I can eat almost everything except nuts.It was a nine day wonder among my friends I now have dentures but relish the times I can take them out and leave them out. As I work in the office of my parents haulage company I often do not wear them at work. They are fine,a good fit and comfortable but smooth gums every time for me. I have absolutely no regrets and would go throgh it again in a heartbeat. It has change my life completely and for the better
jenny: Thank you SO much for this post!
My wife is still bitter about having no teeth, though it's strictly a vanity issue. She wants either implants (the very idea of which makes me shudder) or cosmetic dentures. Not that we've ever had the money to tackle something like that, her mouth being very tiny and very hard to fit correctly--but before next year we may be in a position to do so.
But me? Jenny, I'm with you all the way! Despite Pam's wish for "pretty teeth" (storebought or otherwise), she does acknowledge the health benefits (at least some of them) of having had them out.
As for me, I don't even know where I misplaced my dentures some years back...and don't care. Come 2012 (this being Dec. 2011), I'll have had them out for a full 20 years. I wouldn't want them back, either.
I had some dental nightmares in college, but yours are all much, much worse - except that your dentist didn't stalk you probably, like mine did me.
Rated up! Glad your gums are doing fine.
Yikes! A stalking dentist? With knockout gas all ready and waiting, no doubt!
Thanks for the Up rating.
Like Jenny posted, without teeth I still eat everything except nuts (well, and raw carrots) just fine. Steak? Lemme at it. :)
That's great! - One of my teachers got pneumonia from an infected tooth. Teeth can be very dangerous.
Remember Steve Martin playing a dentist in the remake of Little Shop of Horrors? Kinda like that guy.
Never realized pneumonia could be caused by an infected tooth. Wonder if that could have been connected with my bout during my Army training, back when...hmmm....
Despite being a bit of a Steve Martin fan since his King Tut days, I missed that one. Have seen the original Little Shop of Horrors but not the remake.
I think I liked the original better.
Now that I think about it, I used to get headaches related to a cracked tooth. Glad to have gotten rid of those.
Very understandable (the headaches).
I didn't clearly recall just how rough it had been prior to fang removal until meeting up with an old college buddy one day. He told my wife, "It seemed like Fred ALWAYS had a toothache."
He should know since we were roommates for one full semester.
I am just back from holiday in Mexico with my husband. Put my dentures in a waste bin on the way out. I will never again wear dentures. Thats final. I enjoy it as it is and why should I care what people think. My husband has had his teeth out at the same clinic as did mine. He has no dentures as yet.(3 months)It was his choice.I think he was overcome with curiosity as I love it so much. I never put him under any preasure but I have to admit I love his pink smile. He says he has no regrets and enjoys the new sensation of smooth gums. If he decides to get dentures that fine by me but I am not encouraging him to do so. Tooth paste, nuts, and corn on the cob are about all that's off my shopping list since neither of us has teeth. One does not need teeth to eat a healthy diet but a knife and fork are a must as without teeth there is virtualy no ability to bite anything harder than chedder cheese. Even ice cream (Magnums) from the freezer are difficult until they thaw a little. I was told by my dentist that my face would fall in somewhat without teeth. After four years there is no difference in my apppearance until I open my mouth. There is a hotel under construction that I walk past every day on my way to the office and I am delighted to say I have silenced the wolf whistlers when I turned and flashed my toothless smile a couple of times
ROFLMAO! (That's for silencing the wolf whistlers. Wusses!)
Happy to see another true believer post a comment; thanks. As for corn on the cob, I can skin a cob with a steak knife in a matter of seconds and get a pile of awesome corn that's better than any ofther sort I've ever tasted.
Thank you for ur post! I had 12 teeth pulled last year and in a week or so I am having 9 more pulled and then getting an upper plate. I do not like going to any Dr much less a Dentist but my teeth make me literally sick often. Since the last procedure I can take less medicine for my allergies / asthma. I'm not sure y they made a difference but it did. Thank u for reminding me y should b looking forward to this not shaking like. A leaf. :-)
Nothing wrong with doing both--looking forward to it AND shaking like a leaf. This (2012) marks my 20th year without teeth, and the only thing I'd do differently (if I had it to do again) would be...not wait so long to get them out!
I don't have ANY doubt that getting rid of 12 bad teeth improved your health.
I am sixteen and six weeks ago I gave up and had all my teeth extracted including my wisdom teeth that were not fully erupted. My teeth were more like chalk than teeth and were constantly breaking and painful. I had no gum disease and have good gum ridges which are still shrinking (More slowly now) and becoming quite firm. All of the women in my family have no teeth including my mother, my two sisters my aunts and my grandmother and I suppose I always knew that my turn would come.I do not know how far back the family line this condition goes but it seems to be passed down throught the female line as neither of my brothers are affected. I had all my milk teeth out by the age of two but do not remember that. I have no dentures as yet as my dentist pointed out the pros and cons of immediates and it was my decision to decline. Its no problem for me as I was there before but this time it is permanent. I am going to wait a year, despite my Mums nagging, before getting dentures to let my gums and bones heal and settle completely I can eat and speak much better than I thought I would but my lisp is back and here to stay. I quite enjoy my smooth gums and have no problems socially and I am in no hurry to get dentures but OH I suppose I must eventually for a quiet life.
Wow. It's certainly clear you did need to get those out, all right!
It's possible your lisp doesn't have to be back permanently. You'd know better than me, of course. It's just that I remember having to learn to work both my lips and my tongue much differently (and with considerable concentration & practice) after getting my teeth out.
Curiously enough, the toughest retraining of all was teaching myself to whistle. I first learned to do that at age 6. (The memory remains clear--I can even tell you exactly where I was when the miracle happened.) I was never able to do the fingers-in-mouth piercing thing, but carried a tune okay.
Finally got it back for the most part, though the volume's never been the same and there are days when it's a lost cause.
I'm glad to hear everything else is coming along well--except of course for your Mom's nagging. Hint: It doesn't get any better as you get older. I'm 68 years of age now, and my wife (we've been together 15 years so far) still lets me know when she thinks I'm missing the boat.
While my lisp is permanent it is not in any way severe and anyone speaking to me on the phone would not guess that I have no teeth. Speaking to me face to face its, of course more obvious that I am toothless. As a child I learned to control the lisp, and like riding a bicycle, this ability to speak clearly returned without any great effort on my part. I never could or can whistle. I am delighted to be finally rid of my teeth and life without them is good. Sunday, I had steak and all the trimminggs and enjoyed it without fear of breaking a tooth. Firm gums might not be as hard as teeth but I can exert enough force to chew my food. This was my first steak in three years; great.
Please don't think I'm trying to flirt, but I've always considered a girl with a slight lisp to be automatically (and powerfully) attractive. Subject to other factors, of course; it's probably unlikely I'd be drawn to had the lisp housed in a 700 lb. gorilla body, but....
Great for you on the steak. Got me to craving a good ribeye just thinking about it.
I'm not always the quickest student, but just last night I discovered a great way to eat raw celery AND raw carrots with no teeth. I'd decided to whip up a bowl of chicken salad. We've been feeding celery and carrots to the wild bunny rabbits that live in a rabbit hide I made for them. It didn't seem right for them to get all the best food, so a stalk of celery (sliced thin) and most of a humongo carrot (shaved down with the serrated edge of a steak knife) were added to the mix.
Best chicken salad ever.
Not trying to flirt either but five foot six and 124 pounds and have a boyfriend, my childhood sweetheart.
I think however that you are fantastic to share your own eperience with us who are novices on this tooth free journey.
Well, thanks! By October, I'll have 20 years on that trail, and my wife got hers out 15 years ago. One of the roots on Pam's had actually turned GREEN before it was pulled.
I did a quick survey yesterday among the fifteen girls I am in class with and friends with since childhood. I asked them should I get dentures, remain as I am or get some implants. Twelve said I should get dentures. None knew anything about implants. My family are financially secure and could afford them. None of my family opted for them. Three said I was fine as I am and if I was happy to not bother with false teeth.That was the best advice or the one I liked best. This confirms tha:
A) Women are very vain.
B) Some would remain without teeth
but are in the minority.
If I can get around the domestic preasure I won't get dentures other than should I get married I will for my wedding photographs.. My boyfriend has no problem with me being toothless. It was how I was when we first became friends when we were both five years old and he knew the torture my teeth were.I did not consult the other boys for obvious reasons, the dirty minded brutes.
ROFLMAO! (That's for "the dirty minded brutes".)
My wife is obsessed with wanting implants. Yes, vanity, turbocharged, and her face HAS sunk in considerably since she had the teeth out 14 years ago. I could wish she did not feel that way, because I trust neither the process nor her eligibility for them. She's got major osteoporosis going on--in her mid-fifties, her doctor said after she'd had a bone scan that she had even then "the bones of an 85 year old woman".
I can't imagine that her mandibles are in great, dense condition.
Plus, slicing open fully healed tissues to plant MORE foreign objects into the bone makes NO sense to me. Her immune system is very low (ever since she had rheumatic fever and nearly died at around age 4-5), and had to fight a major infection from getting her fangs pulled in the first place. Now she wants to put herself deliberately at risk? Ew-w!
But it's her call, at least for the evaluation. We've not been financially flush for quite some time, but just recently our fortunes improved dramatically once again. (My $$ life has been up-down a number of times over the decades.) So we can afford implants now, too.
But quite frankly, I'm hoping the X-rays show she's NOT a candidate. Safer all around in my opinion.
It is a terrible pity that your wife can't accept her toothless condition and learn to enjoy it. Vanity is due in large part to what other people may think. I couldn't care less. Dentures are OK but the very idea of having metal screwed into my facial bones scares the life out of me. I am quite content with my empty gums and have no hesitation in bearing them when I smile. I pointed out last night to Mum and Sis that while they were extolling the virtues of dentures they were a little hypocritical as the first thing they do in the evening, if not going out, is take out their dentures and remain like that until they put them in the following morning and I put it to them that they do not do this because their dentures are super comfortable but rather it is more comfortable without them and it was only because of vanity that they wore them and lacked the courage to go with bare gums. Dad, who keeps out of these debates, looked up from his paper and said she has a point girls. Mum then shot back with How would you like to be out with me without my teeth. He said it would make no diference to him ,I Live with you, sleep with you and your lack of teeth never bothered me. She said fine I,ll not bother with them and see how you like it. Since she never would be seen without teeth I think it will not happen any time soon but I have a lever now when she starts on to me about dentures. Sis on the other hand is a little more daring and may do it. My Gran seldom or ever wears her dentures.
In my wife's case, it's understandable. She's faced an entire mountain range of challenges in her life and has always kept on keeping on despte the odds. If the vanity toothwise is what she needs to keep going, so be it.
I am, however, entirely with you when it comes to contemplating jamming steel into my jawbones. That is, NEVER.
Great debate with your Mom & sis, and kudos to your Dad for backing up your point. Your story reminded me of one between me & MY Mom. She's long gone now, but back in the day...well, the debate wasn't about teeth, but about warriors & pacifists.
Mom was a lifetime pacifist. Dad was a lifetime warrior and served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. But one evening when I was visiting them (we lived about 400 miles apart at the time), we got into our old discussion. I mentioned the obvious: Pacifists can exist only so long as there are warriors around to protect them. Without that, the bad guys simply kill all the pacifists. (Well, sometimes they enslave them, but I didn't go into that.)
Mom admitted I had a point.
I may have won, but I am not gloating. I could not believe my eyes but my mother and sister have not worn dentures since our last little discussion when Dad put a spanner in the works. My mother and my sisters had immediate dentures after their extractions and have never been seen in public without teeth. We are just back from shopping today,all toothless. I asked Mum why she was doing it now and how she felt about it and had Dad anything to do with her going without dentures. She said he provided the spur and she decided to do it but was doing it for herself. She said it is in some ways liberating as she presents as exactly what she is, a toothless woman. She is still a little self concious about it but is going to continue for at least the rest of Lent and perhaps permanently. As for my sister she says the dentures are out for good as there is little advantage wearing them and it does not compensate for the difficulties and discomfort like food under the plates and having a mouthful of plastic.Well we'll see how it goes.
Well, yay for your Dad and his spanner in the works.
The most difficulty Pam EVER had dealing with the "no teeth" thing was in 1997 or 1998 when a really nasty Physician's Assistant in a medical clinic described her in the files as a "...52 year old toothless woman". Most of my wife's fury was because she knew this meant she was being judged as someone who'd lost her teeth due to drug usage (meth especially), and it was very much mean to be a crass insult.
We wouldn't have found out about that, but when we changed clinics and demanded a set of her medical records to take with us, that was in there.
Of course, the PA who wrote that was a rawboned 6-footer, while Pam stands 5 feet even with an hourglass figure. Jealousy.
I can't beleive I passed this hub over until today. I get a load of crap for having a few missing teeth and I don't have any more metal filling but I have 1 root canal with a crown and I have always told the dentist do not use metal in my mouth, but I HAD to have a gold crown, why gold? Any how my partials have give me such a bad time I refuse to wear them, If people are going to judge me on my lack of teeth I don't need to know that shallow person.
I just want to comment my parents were the same a pacifist and a navy man hahaah..
Oh yeah when I was living in Silt one of my friends ran across a bunch of videos showing what the metal fillings in your mouth were doing to your body. Its really scary. The videos actually admit that the dental schools and presumably the dentist know all about heavy metal poisoning.... they probably don't spell it out to the new dentist though...
I've had people TRY to give me crap for "going toothless", but got pretty good pretty quick at giving crap back....
Hate to tell you this, Mary, but I'd bet a dollar to a donut hole there's more metal in your mouth than just that gold crown. If you ever have that tooth yanked, be sure to take it home with you--and you'll most likely discover steel wire was used to strenghten that dead tooth.
At least that's what I found out in my case AFTER the dentist who did the work promised NOT to do that.
No, they probably don't clue in the new dentist. A lot of first year dental students, if they knew about the heavy metal poisoning (especially that suffered by the dental workers themselves), would run screaming to another major.
There are so many teeth gone that there is only 1 other tooth with a crown ( front one) and its the only other place there could be metal as the greater majority of the teeth are gone, and what is left are "good" ones and no metal fillings.
I will want the gold... lol
Heh. I never did have any gold in my mouth, but yeah, I'd want it, too.
My older married sister, husband and their twin thrty four month od girls are due to visit fo a week or two over Easter. Mon phoned her to warn her that neither her or my sister were now wearing their dentures and I was refusing to even get dentures. She was warning her so as not to shock her when she arrived. It was us got the shock. The twins had just had all their teeth out for the same reason as us and she was not wearing her dentures in solidarity with them and so they would not feel so different. She says she will not put them back in until they get theirs,as young adults, if they want them, and was delighted that we would be all be same. The condition is genetic an there is no cure. I hope for their sake that their permanent teeth will be taken out at the tiime of or before eruption so that they might avoid the nightmare we all went through. If I ever have children I hope they are boys and avoid the chalky teeth.
Anne, that is SO good to hear. And you were the one who got the No Dentures ball rolling for your family. You're a Pioneer! :)
Neither of the other two ladies in my house are now wearing dentures and are gaining in confidence every day. The denture boxes have vanished from the bathroom as have the cleaning tablets. Mum says all are in the bin and I believe her. I am getting no hassle at home now but my boyfriends mother wold prefer I wore dentures. She herself has no top teeth and two bottom teeth. She wears dentures when out but is no way shy of going without when I visit. Thats hardly surprising as we are both in the same boat. She is a very pretty woman with or without teeth and I have often told her so. I think that she would prefer I was wearing dentures as my boyfriend is considering having his out and no dentures and I might be in favour and eging him on as it were. Nothing could be further from the truth.Would I like him to have no teeth? Yes. Would I ever ask or encourage him to go ahead? No and No a thousand times. If he ever has his teeth out it will be his decision and I will have no responsibility for such a life changing event.
Anne, you are just one truly impressive individual. I'm getting a kick out of comparing your striking level of maturity (in all areas) with the noticeable immaturity in a young lady I know. Not to rat her out by name or anything, but she's 4 years older than you chronologically...and still pretty much an emotional five year old.
It's really nice to chat with someone of your generation who's an adult.
Well thanks Ghost32 for the compliment. I dont think I am any more mature than your average teenager (Girl). I had a choice, get dentures or implants or accept what mother nature gave me and be myself. I decided that to be true to myself I could never present to the world as someone false or fake. I am a girl without any teeth, thats all, and I find it comfortable and efficient when speaking and eating without any dental "Aids". The other ladies in the family are finally coming to the same conclusion. As for the opinions of people who were gifted with perfect teeth, they have no idea of what its like and are generally talking out of their hat or that other orofice at the back, when telling us what they would do and we should do. All my friends accept me as I am and as for the very few that are critical; they simply don't matter. I hope I don't come across as arrogant but one has to be pretty ballsy to cope with some people (not usually girls mind) and I have a caustic tongue which has lashed a few embiciles and, who have never come back for seconds.
Understood (the causting tongue when needed)...and appreciated. They don't come back for seconds after tangling with my redheaded, five-foot, 100 lb. wife, either. :)
HAVEWORNDENTURESFORSEVERALYEARSREALLYLIKETHEM
Glad to hear it. Dentures turn out to be a really good way to go for a lot of folks.
Just not for people like me or Anne.:)
I wonder why,in todays society,is it seen by many as socially unacceptable to have no teeth. The loss of a limb,or for woman the loss of a breast,carries no such social stigma. It was usual in the early part of the last century for a woman to be given a "present" of having all her teeth out and supplied with dentures, for her twenty first birthday, so that she would be freed from dental problems for life. I certainly would not like to return to that era of automatic tooth exraction, but how did we get from that to the tyranny today of having to have perfect teeth regardless of circumstances. People have lost teeth for a variety of reasons but being toothless is seen as, as in your wife's case a junkie or being poor and unable to afford dental treatment ( which is not a crime but reflection on our health care system) and strangely as in my case never consirered that it might be be genetic. Toothless people should not allow themselves to be considered second class citizens and be shy in public because of it. I am not on a crusade but all toothless people should not have their self respect dented because they are missing minor body parts because of the attitude of the morons who shout loudest and influence public opinion.They should feel free to wear dentures or not, whatever is most comfortable. I for one will not be intiminated by what society is now told to think. I will not be wearing dentures either.
Anne, I believe I know the answer to the question of why it's conisdered "better" to keep your teeth "regardless" these days:
MONEY.
Two thirds of the dental profession would be out of business instantly if we ALL just had our fangs yanked at age 21 and were done with it. There's a bit of money in dentures, but nothing like there is in crowns, fillings, root canals, and even regular tartar-scrapings.
So, near as I can see, the dentists have managed to sell our culture (over the decades) on the "benefits" of "hanging in there and paying through the nose".
As for the general societal pressure: Anything different will trigger the herd instinct to "kill the different member" in a lot of people. It's just human nature, not for all folks (thankfully), but enough to be a pain.
When I was growing up on my parents' Montana ranch, I saw this in extreme form...in our herd of cows. One cow had somehow broken a front leg. The rest of the herd TRIED TO RUN HER TO DEATH.
That's right. One cow on three legs, fighting to keep from being murdered by 90 cows on four legs each.
She was tough (half Brahma, for one thing, and that helped) and did survive--no thanks to the herd.
So, whenever I hear the "attitude", whether about teeth or anything else, I just place the person with the sour outlook in my mind (then and forever more) as, "herd beast!".
I agree it is motivated by money. I don't know about the herd instinct but my B/F parents are dairy farmers. I asked him and he said he only ever seen cows attack a new member of the herd and that it usually settles down rather quickly. I suppose when I achieve my ambition to be a vetinary surgeon I will find out more about such matters. I have a summer job for the past two years with the local vet and have no doubt of what I want to do. Anyway Easter is almost here and there is no sign of any teeth with any of the ladies including my married sister or her children. Mum seems totally at ease without her dentures and no longer refuses to smile in puplic or covers her mouth with her hand. My sisters have no issues whatsoever with no dentures and as for my nieces it all is normal to them. For myself being toothless equates with perfect happiness. Had I had perfect teeth and knowing what I do now I would have them all out. Smooth firm gums not covered by plastic is the most enjoyable feeling and cannot be understood by anybody who still has their teeth. My B/F asked me would I not get dentures just to see what it would be like. I cannot imagine a time when I would ever wear dentures. Curiosity might tempt me but its unlikely to;to try a strictly limited trial run in the future. I most certainly will never wear them for more than six months and never after that. I fully intend to spend my entire life without dentures, implants or any other technology that may evolve in the future. I am perfectly happy as I am. I have no plans for such a trial and it most probably will never happen. There is a bigger risk that curiosity will relieve by B/F of his teeth. He says he was always facinated as a child how his mother could put in and take her teeth at will and his father could do the same with his front teeth. He claims that I am a hypocrite in cautioning him not to do it and maybe I am but I love him and don't want to be in any way responsible for a decision that is going to affect the rest of his life. I don't want to get on the wrong side of his mother either. After all she may one day be my mother in law and not just my friend. She says I will make a great Vet and how handy it would be to have vet on a big dairy farm so I am in favour with her, teeth or not.
Big dairy farm, eh? Sounds like one of those 4-letter words:
"W-O-R-K"! :)
The attempt to run the broken-legged cow to death was done in a large, open field by a mixed-breed herd of beef cattle on a brisk fall day, close to first snow of the year, gray overcast--the image is still sharp. Could be the breeding was a factor. Many (though far from all) of the animals had some Brahma blood, but there was plenty of Hereford, Angus, and a few other bloodlines mixed in. Dad went to Charolais bulls about that time, but none of the calves had grown up enough to join the breeding herd yet.
Yay for knowing your goal so clearly. Took me my entire career--wait a minute. Had a number of career paths and never DID totally settle in. But my kid sister was like you, knew at fourteen who she was going to marry (he never had a chance), that she was going to be an R.N. and a rancher's wife, and have four kids.
Which she did, although the youngest got run over on the freeway at age 17 and cut her back to 3.
I considered becoming a vet myself at one point. Thought it through enough to realize that was (for me) a dumb idea--I definitely like animals, but always having to cut on the sick ones would have absolutely destroyed me over time. I can do it if there's no other option, but basically I'm glad there are others (like you) for whom it's an actual calling.
TOOTH STORY: (This is pretty cool.) Pam's son (age 26, married, 1 son, pregnant wife) broke a tooth the other day. It needed attention--plenty of pain thereafter. But he's broke (high risk pregnancy wife, can't leave home safely to go find work). We would have had to pay for the repair, which (as you know) I don't believe is EVER worth it.
It was right up front, though, lower, too visible for his ego to bear the idea of having it yanked.
So we did nothing...for days....
This morning, he gave me a ride back from town after I dropped off our Subaru at the shop for some needed repairs. Asked him how the tooth pain was going.
Not a problem. The "broken" tooth turned out to be nothing but ridged-up tartar. And the pain?
He had a popcorn kernel jammed in between gum and tooth. Got that out and...no more pain.
I am a thity year old woman and thank god I found this hub in time before my tooth decay,fillings ,filling in fillings and gum disease totally destroyed my health. My sincere thanks to Ghost and all the wonderful people who have posted their stories on this site. It gave me the courage and the kick up the bum to go back, after four years, to the dentist and have all my teeth extracted. My dentit wanted to try and save some of my teeth but I was adamant that saving a few of my teeth was not why I was there. I had no great difficulty in persuading him otherwise. I am now totally toothless for the last five weeks and could not be happier.I had all of my remaining teeth, twelve on top and nine on the bottom out at this sitting as I was sure that once out of his chair I probably would not go back. I have now no pain from the extractions and my gums are healing and shrinking nicely although, while I am still confined to mostly soft food yet, I am eating firmer food such as cheese, chicken and all cooked vegetables on a more and more regular basis without difficulty. I Have not tried a steak yet but I will, shortly, as I am told by Anne and yourself that this will be possible. I will really miss eating nuts although they have been a problen for years, sticking in my cavities. I opted not to have immediate dentures on his advice as he says that a better fit can be achieved first time after six weeks and preferably longer. He cautioned me not to go much past six months as I might not devote the time needed to adjust to dentures and may not be bothered to wear them as I would be completely adjusted to going without teeth. Well I was mortified at first going out in public without teeth but I am getting better at it, but still and have to make a concious effort not to cover my mouth with my hand when speaking to people. Speaking is another issue, my lisp seems to be getting worse as my gums shrink but I am learning to control it. I really had no lisp immediately after extraction. Will I get dentures? probably but I am in no hurry. I got a shock when I looked in the mirror the first time but I am now used to,and not all put off by how I look and as for my husband, I am not sure he notices at all now that I have no teeth. My three children have no issues at all with it other than they have christened me the "toothless wonder". I was suffering constant stomach problems and had zero energy before I had the teeth out and all health problems have cleared up completely now. No doubt my teeth were killing me slowly.
Good for you, Mary J.
Update here:
Me: 20 years without fangs, definitely some mandible bone loss, but ZERO complaints. Still MUCH healthier overall than before the teeth were removed. (And happier, too.)
Pam: 15 years without...and now working on getting implants. Which is scary and very, very expensive, but in her case, it now makes sense.
Her mouth tissues are quite thin (always have been) and getting "touchier" to the extent that eating anything solid is uncomfortable if not painful. This is quite likely due (in my opinion) to the numerous meds she has to take to stay alive from day to day, as her disabilities and/or ailments are both numerous and pretty much unbelievable in extent. As some of the implant literature explains, a lot of meds have DRASTIC effects on lip and mouth tissues.
Since she's on some heavy stuff, and in some cases at huge dosage--not by choice, but of necessity--it makes sense her mouth could well be affected. (I'm on zero meds.)
The implants cost as much as a new Lexus. They also require slitting tissue and drilling holes for 4 titanium screws in the lower jaw, 4 in the upper.
I'll be doing a Hub on that whole process (as a "Product Review")...but not for, probably, another year or so. Want to wait till Pam's all settled in and we know we're reporting accurately.
Another thing the implant folks told us is that the "vibration" of the implants, just like original teeth, will stimulate bone growth. Not back to original dimensions, but it's supposed to stop (or at least slow) the deterioration.
On the other hand, I met a 95 year old man in McDonald's today who was clearly toothless and, I strongly suspect, had been so for many decades. (Said he's nearly 96.) His posture was still ramrod-perfect, and it looked to me like he still had plenty of mandible when he was scarfing down his McGrill chicken sandwich. :)
Good for you Mary J. You found out in time what was causing your illhealth. You will always have a little lisp without dentures but with it you will still be able to speak clearly. You will soon be able to eat almost everything except as you ay nuts. Add to this whole apples (Peeled and cut up no problem) corn on the cob, raw carrots unless sliced thinly and you will need a knife and for for foods that require a firm bite as your bite is much reduced. Other than that there is no downside to being toothless. ice cream feels and tastes much better without teeth. Whether you get dentures or not is up to ou. my advice would be not to bother. it works perfectly fom and now for all the ladies in my family; all of whom have no teeth and wore dentures for years before deciding to go without them. i have to defer to their experience that dentures were of little advantage other that cosmetic and were never comfortable.
Thanks, Anne; great comment. I will only add one thing: Not everyone has even a tiny lisp without dentures. I do not, for example. My wife does if she forgets to focus (and with her attention problems, yeah, that happens fairly often). But my own diction is as crisp and clear as any full-ivoried orator out there.
It did take a bit of effort in the beginning, retraining my tongue (to use the roof of the mouth where I'd used the teeth before) and to some extent my timing--sort of my own personal speech rehab program--but it worked.
From a health point of view I am getting better and better every day. I find that I now have energy levels that I have not experienced for years. My sense of well being can not be overstated. I am more and more adjusted and comfortable mixing socially with my friends and being at work without teeth. I have never exprienced a negative comment and it would matter little even if I did as I had a total extraction for very valid reasons with a better outcome than I expected. Oh;yes I can eat steak. I always enjoyed my steak cooked rare and while it takes a little longer to eat, it is as enjoyable as ever. I have found no negatives to being toothless and am considering not getting dentures in,certainly the six months as advised by my dentist and maybe not at all. Once healed there is no handicap in not having teeth. When I mentioned that to my husband he said "I like you the way you are and its up to you. I like your gummy smile and the way it softens your face". There are other intimate benefits to not having teeth that I think should remain private. No encouragement there for getting dentures.
Good for you, Mary...on all fronts. :)
I had one lighthearted "smart remark" from a fellow the other day when I was electioneering at a local street fair--he asked me who knocked all my teeth out. Which was remarkable in that I believe it's the first comment of its kind in at least the past ten years...and I'm in contact with a LOT of people.
Told him getting my teeth out was the best thing I'd ever done for my health (as for yours, from what you're reporting). He was quite interested in what I had to say. Could be his relatively full set of born-with choppers aren't all they should be, either.
The next person to ask that question, though, gets a simple (grade school level) rejoinder: "You should see the other guy!" :)
There has been a small developement on the dental front here. My B/friends mother has had here two remaining bottom teeth extracted. When I asked her why she said she did not want to look like a walrus without her dentures. She is not wearing them at all at the moment while she heals and is out in public shopping etc. While she won't commit I think the dentures are gone for good or at least won't be used a lot. If she wasn't planning on going without them she would not have had the extractions when the two bottom canines were healthy enough. The fact that she and my mother are close friends (my parents bought the lot our house is built on from them and we are friends ever since) may be a factor in her decision as my mother is now totally at ease without her dentures. She often said she wished she had my courage in going without dentures so time will tell.
AWESOME!
I know EXACTLY what she meant by the "walrus" look.
Thanks for the update, and hey, keep on keeping us posted. :)
MrMarmalade 4 years ago
Now you have me looking around corners.
Do not know what to think