Replacing All my Teeth. London, GB

I have had people ask me and seen disscusions about bulky teeth. Although my upper teeth feel ok to me, I thought I would add a pic of my temp upper teeth to try and show why they can feel a bit bulky. As the pic shows, there is an acrlyic ridge behind the teeth which the implant screws attatch to the implants. I guess it has to be this way, with the front most implants, as the the teeth are way too fine for the screws to go through. The rear implants go through the wider molar teeth. I got used to the slightly bulky feeling within a couple of weeks. It is a matter of retraining where to place your tongue when speaking. My permanent teeth, the ones in my mouth now, are titanium reinforced and feel slightly less bulky but there is still a ridge for the screws.
Everything still going well with me, one year down the line, and just pleased to be able to live and eat very normally again. I have my first hygiene appointment next week. Hopefully I will get a good report and all still ok with cleaning etc.

Went for my final check today with thevimplant surgeon. X-rays taken, teeth removed so gums and implants could be checked. All is fine so teeth refited, screws back in and more permanent coverings were placed over the screw holes in the teeth. I mentioned the upper implant that is still ever so slightly tender so this was checked and no problems found. I trust they know what they are doing so not particularly concerned by this.
So that's it for now. I go for a cleaning in December and should stick to a schedule if hygenist appoinments once every 6 months I think they said and a yearly check on the implants. Apparently my home cleaning is very good so they reckon I will only need the teeth removed once a year if I keep up the good work.
It is relief to get to the end point and l'm very happy with my final teeth. It is great to eat normally again; to crunch down on raw carrot or eating corn on the cob is a great feeling when you haven't been able to do so for years. I was speaking to the patient communication manager at the clinic and she asked if the teeth feel like mine and 'yes, they certainly do' I have really got used to them and because I can eat normally now and the perms feel a bit less bulky than the temps I don't think about them too much now. More importantly, I can get on with life without feeling self conscious about my teeth and going through the pain of abscesses constantly.
The clinic has been outstanding every step of the way and l have now updated my review to 'worth it'. The only slight downside was the general receptionist for the whole building (there are a number of different practices all based at the same location) had a bit of a go at my partner when he couldn't remember the name of the clinic I was using and I was running slightly late for my appointment - l found it quite funny though. I still prefer not to name the clinic as I didn't really write this to be a review of the dentist/clinic as such but more just to document my experience throughout this process. If anyone wants to know because you are looking to get this procedure in London just get in touch and I will tell you privately. I remember how scared I was before I started this but it has been so much easier than I ever thought it would be

Yesterday I had my perms fitted which is about 6 and 1/2 months since surgery. Prior to this I had 3 wax try-ins. The first of these the upper teeth were way too long and just didn't work, second time was far better but after discussions with the dental tech it was decided to make the upper teeth smaller to suit my face better. My natural teeth had been quite large which I was never that keen on so made sense to reduce the size which was done for the third try in. All went well on this occasion so time to go a-head and make the perms. I requested the lower teeth to be made slightly crooked to enhance a more natural look.

The fitting of the final teeth was quite painful. The dental tech said many people say it is worse than the surgery and now I can see why! Apparently it has something to with realigning the gums with the titanium reinforced prosthesis. I also wonder if they are torqued to higher setting as just felt as though it was getting so tight that something must surely give. Thankfully, it didn't and most of the pain went away fairly quickly apart from one of the upper right implants which still feels quite sore now but this implant has always felt more tender than the others.

After the fitting, the dental tech spent a while checking the bite and making adjustments I.e. grinding bits off the teeth to get them just right. I need to see how I get on over the next week or so and if I have any problems with chewing or anything can go back for further adjustments. If no issues, I go back anyway in early August for a final check with the surgeon. I will ask again about the slightly tender implant if still an issue by then. It has been checked a few times now and no apparent problems with it but it does feel slightly sore at times still.

Once it was all done and I was about to leave there was a heavy shower so as I was cycling home I decided to wait until it finished. The rain stopped after 10 mins so I left, unlocked my bike and set off, turned the corner onto the main road and a lorry stopped in front of me, so I hit my brakes also but the brakes weren't working properly and I wasn't stopping. I had visions of me smashing up my newly fitted teeth straight away. Fortunately, I managed to steer my bike through the narrow gap around the side of the lorry and put my foot down to slow me down and gradually came to a stop without any teeth crushing impact - phew! Anyway, jumped off my bike and fixed the brakes before proceeding any further. Note to self - must always check brakes before cycling from now on.

I think I am happy with the new teeth and definitely worth going for all the try-ins and glad the dental tech spent the time and effort to get them right. I like the fact they don't look perfect but will probably take while to get used to them completely. Each tooth feels more defined than the temps did. They are much closer fitting to my gums and when I eat I can crunch down on food now which I couldn't do with the temps though not tried anything too hard/cruchy/chewy yet. I did take a pain killer last night as the upper right side was still quite painfull. Hopefully this will go soon and I can start enjoying my new teeth to the full.