scaredstiff70

Hi again MMMarie,
I have had mine for one month now, so I can only speak up to this point.

I had my reline done yesterday...as you probably read.
I was told I would need another in a month or so, depending on my own personal healing and prefrences.
My dentist did not mention those specific terms either, she just said "call if you're uncomfortable and we will get you in same day". When I went in yesterday, I had to hold my dentures in with my fingers when I talked...they were soooo loose. The hygenist went to take them out, and they fell into her hand. She immediately told the dentist, who took a gander at my gums, and said "How would you like a soft-reline today?" My answer was an emphatic "YES PLEASE".
It's pretty much an individual thing as far as relines. It depends on how much healing is occuring and how long it takes to reach that point where you will have little change over the course of many months. Yos will be at his 6 month mark in June...he's getting his hard reline then. I believe he's had two soft-relines...Yos, if I'm wrong, please correct me It just depends on the person's ind. healing time.

I have used adhesive since the 2nd week after surgery. Lots of it too. When it got to the point that I was having to use too much, I called for my appt. that I had yesterday, and had the reline done.
Once the hard reline is done, I would think as long as the fit is a good one, there would be no need for adhesive unless the individual felt more comfortable with it for eating harder foods. From what I understand though, once that final reline is done, the fit should be perfect for quite some time to come. I still have to use it on my lowers because even with the reline, the lower gums are healing in some spots faster than others, causing the denture to sit high in some places. I don't mind though...as long as I can go on with my life, that's all that matters. Eventually, all these kinks will be worked out.

My palatte is shaped like a small ). There's not alot of curve to it, but just enough to keep it comfortable. It will feel weird at first, and you may think the sensation will never go away, but once you get the uppers, give it a good week before you decide they aren't fitting right in the back. I was like that too, and told the dentist about it at my 2-day follow up after surgery. She said to give it some more time, and if after a week it was still bothering me, call her. Well, it stopped bothering me about the 4th day, and it wasn't until my gums started really healing that I had to have adjustments made to the palatte. Once you get used to the upper you will know when the shrinkage is causing it to sit too far back in your mouth. You have to give your mouth time to adjust first...otherwise, you really won't know what "normal" is up there.

I ate soft foods with my uppers for about 2-3 days. I ate a hot dog (you can tell those are my favorite food..talk about them alot I do!) around the 6th day. It was cut very small, like what you would give to a baby, but I ate it. I was so proud of myself! But, then I had to get the lowers placed a week after the uppers, so it was back to mush food. Now, after a month, I am eating anything that can be cut up...I try not to bite down on hard things just yet. Even sticky things like bread will be hard to eat at first. Just take your time, and you will be fine. Slowly introduce new things into your diet until you're comfortable enough to move forward with more complex foods. It will take time and patience.

My immediate is my permanent. You always have the option of having another denture made, although the cost is quite high. You can have a rebase as well. I think that's what I will be doing instead of the hard reline. I want the maximum fit I can achieve without having a new denture made. BTW, I was told a new denture will be needed in about 5-10 years, depending on bone loss and whatnot. My father has had his for over 35 years and hasn't had any new ones made. He says he still has to use two hands to pop out his upper plate. Amazing huh?


Hope this helped a bit.

scaredstiff70