![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
I have been to the dentist, and the device may now be fitted properly. Near the end of the visit, the assistant said that, given the shape of my teeth, the thing is basically cosmetic, and if we can't get this to work at all, it will be okay from the dental viewpoint.
On the way out, I said something about hoping to see them in four months, for the next step in the implants (rather than more visits for the partial), and the dentist said that he should be back in Watertown Square by the end of the month, if that's easier. I told him that this Brookline location works well for me too; what didn't occur to me until I got home was to ask if that office has a hygienist for routine cleanings. The last word I have on that is an all-patients email from the hygienist I'd been seeing at his Watertown office, giving her hours in Belmont (Saturdays) and a couple of other locations that seemed less convenient (somewhere in Concord, or Acton).
I got to the dentist, sat down, and explained why I haven't been wearing the device, before handing it to the dental assistant. The first time she put the partial in for me, I asked for a cup of water, drank some, and felt the thing come loose as I swallowed.
The assistant asked me to show her where it hurt, polished it down a little bit more, then showed/reminded me how to adjust the hooks that attach the partial to my gum: run a little warm water over the device, then push the hooks gently back relative to the teeth before putting it in. I had only remembered the idea of soaking it briefly in warm water, but not why that would help. (Like last time, I had to touch my gums in order to figure out where the pain was.)
Also, when she said that the partial is basically cosmetic, I said that I wanted it both for that and because things have been tasting somewhat dry with the gap in my front teeth. She either thought that was also a good reason to want it, or didn't think it was worth arguing with me.
The adjustments worked well enough that I walked out of the office wearing the partial. The plan is to wear it for at least an hour today, two hours tomorrow, and so on--my suggestion, based on the instructions they gave me when it was first fitted--and if it continues to feel wrong, call for another appointment. I am currently trying not to press down on it with my tongue, because that's still not comfortable.
Meanwhile, I'm still having trouble standing for long, so I took a lyft both ways rather than walking down to green line C. I used the iota carrageenan nasal spray this morning, because dental visits are the largest reason I wanted it.
ETA: I took the partial out after about two hours, because it was getting less comfortable. Also, it feels weird having that in when I cough, and the cough brings up phlegm.
On the way out, I said something about hoping to see them in four months, for the next step in the implants (rather than more visits for the partial), and the dentist said that he should be back in Watertown Square by the end of the month, if that's easier. I told him that this Brookline location works well for me too; what didn't occur to me until I got home was to ask if that office has a hygienist for routine cleanings. The last word I have on that is an all-patients email from the hygienist I'd been seeing at his Watertown office, giving her hours in Belmont (Saturdays) and a couple of other locations that seemed less convenient (somewhere in Concord, or Acton).
I got to the dentist, sat down, and explained why I haven't been wearing the device, before handing it to the dental assistant. The first time she put the partial in for me, I asked for a cup of water, drank some, and felt the thing come loose as I swallowed.
The assistant asked me to show her where it hurt, polished it down a little bit more, then showed/reminded me how to adjust the hooks that attach the partial to my gum: run a little warm water over the device, then push the hooks gently back relative to the teeth before putting it in. I had only remembered the idea of soaking it briefly in warm water, but not why that would help. (Like last time, I had to touch my gums in order to figure out where the pain was.)
Also, when she said that the partial is basically cosmetic, I said that I wanted it both for that and because things have been tasting somewhat dry with the gap in my front teeth. She either thought that was also a good reason to want it, or didn't think it was worth arguing with me.
The adjustments worked well enough that I walked out of the office wearing the partial. The plan is to wear it for at least an hour today, two hours tomorrow, and so on--my suggestion, based on the instructions they gave me when it was first fitted--and if it continues to feel wrong, call for another appointment. I am currently trying not to press down on it with my tongue, because that's still not comfortable.
Meanwhile, I'm still having trouble standing for long, so I took a lyft both ways rather than walking down to green line C. I used the iota carrageenan nasal spray this morning, because dental visits are the largest reason I wanted it.
ETA: I took the partial out after about two hours, because it was getting less comfortable. Also, it feels weird having that in when I cough, and the cough brings up phlegm.