I totally get the fear around implants—surgery just isn’t something I ever wanted to deal with unless I had no choice. My cousin got one after a bike accident, and he said the healing was longer than he expected, but now he forgets it’s even there. He did mention it was expensive and the waiting between appointments drove him nuts.
I’m actually more nervous about dentures moving around or making it hard to eat what I want. Has anyone tried those flexible partials? Are they any better in terms of comfort or staying put? Sometimes I wonder if just leaving the gap is really as bad as they say, at least for a while... Anyone else just living with a missing tooth?
Leaving a gap isn’t the end of the world, honestly. I had a molar pulled a while back and just lived with it for about a year because I couldn’t face another dental bill. It was weird at first, but I got used to chewing on the other side. The only thing that bugged me was food getting stuck sometimes. I’ve heard flexible partials are more comfortable than the old-school ones, but they can still move around a bit, especially if you eat chewy stuff. If the gap isn’t super visible or causing pain, waiting it out isn’t as bad as some folks say.
I get what you mean about just living with the gap. After I lost a back tooth, I did the same thing for months—chewing on one side, getting annoyed with food sneaking in there. Honestly, the only real downside for me was how it made flossing kind of a pain. Did you notice your other teeth shifting at all? That’s what finally pushed me to look into options.
I went with an implant after a ton of back and forth. It wasn’t cheap, but it does feel like a real tooth—no movement, no taking anything out at night. Partials always felt weird to me, but maybe that’s just me being picky. Did you ever feel like your bite changed with the gap? That was my biggest worry.
Yeah, I totally get what you’re saying about the weirdness of chewing on one side and food getting stuck. That drove me nuts too. I had a molar pulled a few years back and just tried to ignore the gap for a while, but I did start noticing my bite felt… off? Not like super dramatic at first, but after maybe six months my jaw would pop sometimes and my front teeth started feeling like they weren’t lining up the same. Kind of subtle, but enough that I started worrying about it long-term.
Implants honestly scared me at first—just the idea of drilling into bone freaked me out. But partials never sat right with me either, especially after seeing my dad mess with his all the time. I finally caved and got an implant last year. It’s wild how much it actually feels like a real tooth. I forget it’s even there most days. The price was a punch in the gut, though… insurance barely covered anything for mine.
Curious if you had any issues healing after your implant? My gum took forever to stop feeling tender, and I was paranoid about messing it up at first. I kept thinking, “Did I just spend all this money to end up back at square one?” But after a couple months it settled in fine.
One thing I’ve wondered is if bridges are worth considering for some people. My dentist said they’d have to grind down two healthy teeth for that, which sounded rough, but maybe if you’re missing more than one tooth it makes sense? Anyone else here gone that route instead of implants or partials?
It’s such a personal decision—what bugged me might not bother someone else at all. But yeah, living with the gap just felt like a slow slide into more issues for me.
One thing I’ve wondered is if bridges are worth considering for some people. My dentist said they’d have to grind down two healthy teeth for that, which sounded rough, but maybe if you’re missing more than one tooth it makes sense?
Bridges do still get used, especially when implants aren’t an option (like not enough bone or certain health issues). But yeah, prepping healthy teeth isn’t ideal, since you’re basically sacrificing two good ones to replace one missing. If you’re only missing one tooth and the neighbors are solid, most folks lean implant for that reason. For multiple missing teeth in a row, sometimes a bridge or even an implant-supported bridge makes sense. It really depends on your mouth, budget, and what you can tolerate. Insurance can be a pain either way—sometimes they cover bridges better, weirdly enough.
