Ok I made myself a dentist appt. and I can't be seen until the 13th of Dec. I want for sure all of my upper teeth pulled so I can get a denture. What do I say? And also will they pull all of my uppers in one sitting? What is the pain like? Ugh, I am terrified of dentists as it is. So what do I do?? I cannot wait to have dentures!! And smile!! yay!!

Hi Miss Erika,

Most dentists will only do what they prescribe. It won't hurt to ask to have more done but make sure you have good reasons for pulling teeth the dentist thinks can be saved. Some dentists will do all of the extractions in one sitting, some will spread it out over a few sessions so that some parts of the gums have a chance to heal. As for pain, again it mostly depends on your threshold of pain, how difficult the extractions and other things.

Dentists "do dentures" in different ways. While they seem to agree on how to do dentures the traditional way, they seem to have different ideas of what a treatment plan for an "immediate" denture is . Some dentists need to make 2 sets of dentures before all is said and done while some can do it with one set. Some dentist don't do immediate dentures at all. I would suggest you read up on how some dentist perform thier procedure. It will give you a reference point for comparing what your dentist suggest be done and help prepare you to ask questions about the procedure. There are a few denture groups on the WWW that can help you out there.

I've had dentures for two years and they're great compared to my old rotted teeth but they're nothing like real teeth. I would strongly advise you to keep as many natural teeth as possible especially if they're in reasonably good shape. Keeping a few natural teeth will also help "anchor" the denture and make wearing them much easier. Good luck!

Yos