Will I ever be able to wear dentures?

Countrymouse is giving excellent advice on this question!

Dentures should last at least ten years.

As seahag mentioned, the bone that holds natural teeth will shrink. The dentures can be adjusted to compensate for this "resorption" with a reline. More of the pink acrylic resin is added to the tissue surface of the denture which makes them fit more closely to your gums.

I agree with country mouse, it sounds like you have been seeing the wrong dentist. Depending on your financial situation and how badly you want to get good dentures, could you start from square one with another dentist? Even better would be to find a Denturist. This is a professional who examines the patient, prescribes the prosthesis, and then does the fabrication. If the dentist who provided the 3 useless dentures is also the one who advised you on implants, I would get a second opinion on that as well. Our natural teeth are anchored in our "cheek" bones so that is where the implants would go too. Implants are better, if you can afford them.

Dentures replace our body parts (teeth and the surrounding bone and tissue) and they must be functional, beautiful and improve speech while causing no harm or discomfort to the patient. Dentures (and partials) must do all this while living in the mouth which is the first stage of the digestive system. Saliva is a precursor to stomach acid. Also dentures must be able to withstand the extreme force that chewing exerts on them. The muscles that draw the jaw up to the skull for chewing are some of the strongest in the body! Millimeters (and even smaller measurements) are used when getting the fit just right for just one patient. Every single denture is custom made for one and only one patient. I disagree with the opinion that replacing a body part with these very complex requirements should cost about $300 to $700! As country mouse said they are expensive but worth it. The problem in your case is that you have not gotten what you paid for.

Making your tongue go numb is EXTREMELY unacceptable. A Denturist can get a great impression of your mouth and work with you through every step of the process. I'm really sorry that you are having to deal with this physically and emotionally distressing situation with a dentist who is less than adequate.

Has anyone had experience with the snap in dentures? I am considering and am leary because it is so expensive- anybody know about this? Thank you.

Elaine-I had all my teeth removed at once and temp dentures put in immediately. For me to be able to wear these, I had to have them taken down to be as thin as possible. I am a vain person and before doing this had all but 7 of my teeth capped 25 years ago and the plan was to put in implants as the caps had lived out their life expectancy. Time is evil and at the time I made this commitment for implants which was my next plan of action for my teeth. This I could no longer. afford financially. When I finally succumbed to dentures, I waited to the point that, I had no teeth to line up which would enable me to chew my food. So when I had all my teeth out, I mentally gave myself no other option. I do have to use Polident to keep my dentures in place. I need a new set of dentures, but unlike you I cannot afford this or this seems. When I first got my dentures I would whistle when I spoke. Pretty bad, because I am a car salesperson and talk for a living. I just set my mind to the fact that I will never have my own teeth again and remind myself when I eat that I can actually chew my food on my side teeth and not have to chew with the front teeth. It is a battle, but you seem determined as I to make this work. Look at the positive of how you look with them and how they make your life easier eating foods. You have to remember they will never replace your own teeth. In time and when I can afford it I am going for the implants that will enable me to pop my teeth in and out. With doing this you will no longer have plastic on the roof of your mouth. They do offer mini implants for this, but they do not know how long a mini implant will last. If you can afford this, all you will have in your mouth is a ridge of teeth for the upper and lower teeth. I can't wait for the day that I can afford this alternative. Mini implants are not as strong as regular implants but with mini implants you have no down time and pain as with regular implants that you have to be cut and have to healed before you get the semi permanent implants. These snap in teeth are supposed to be the best you can get with being the most similar as your own teeth.
I look at it this way if the mini implants don't last, at least I got some time with them until I go for the painful version.
I don't if you know that with implants you don't loose bone shrinkage like with regular dentures. With implants you won't get that drawn in look around your mouth. With regular dentures you start to loose bone mass and like my Mom will eventually have to have the ridge on your bottom jaw built up to hold a regular denture. I have talked to a person who has implant dentures and they love them.
Make sure you shop around because regular dentures and same for the implant version there is big price difference As I found that could thousands of dollars.
Sorry for my long version on this, but I have put a lot of research into this and hope I helped.

PS - you are not to snigger at this! - dental services in the UK are a mess. Bog standard treatment through the NHS is hard to access and still pretty expensive for people on a tight budget - you end up with adequate but not brilliant treatment, and if there's anything unusual about your needs you're in trouble. Private dentistry can be eye-wateringly expensive; it can also be not much better than the NHS (as far as I know, all NHS dentists have a private practice too, don't think they could run a surgery on what they get paid for their public service provision); but when it's good it's very good. It's the system, usually, not the practitioner that's the problem - limited choice of products and lab. services, that sort of thing.

I think Elaine is either unlucky, or perhaps may be too fond of an old retainer (no pun intended). It also depends rather a lot on where she lives - some regions are better served than others.

For that kind of money they should fit comfortably. Have you tried a cushion or paste like Dentu-Grip? If they are making your tongue numb they are not fitted properly. I would be hollering for a new impression and a new set.

After having spent seven months getting implants (misplaced), removed and crowns, plus partials, dentists are making a killing with us seniors! I should have married a dentist if I had known it was going to be so expensive. Having said that, 30 visits regarding dentures is absurd! Change dentist and find one who can fit you with dentures you can wear. Implants are titanium screws placed into the bone, then an abutement to hold the crown. A lot of seniors do not have the bone necessary to hold the screw, so make sure you don't allow a dentist to talk you in to anything. It sounds like you do not have sufficient bone. If you have a dental university nearby, go there. That's where I am taking my 87 yr. old husband and myself. They do a thorough job, plus it is less expensive. Depending on the dentist, a set of dentures should cost between $300 - $700 US dollars. You need your dentures so you can eat properly, so get a second opinion which is usually free.

Elaine, are you especially attached to your dentist? It's possible that you may have the sort of mouth that needs specialist attention from a prosthodontist - a dentist who has had additional training specifically in fitting dentures, implants and so on. I have found a UK website called smilespecialist which has a full description of this type of service. You can also get more information from the Eastman Clinic's website - google it and it will take you there, the clinic is part of UCLH.

I know that £3,000 is a lot of money, but if that's your third set then it sounds as if someone has been advising you to make false economies, possibly. A good denture is extremely expensive, but worth every penny - my mother's partial plate, only, cost her at least as much but that was six or seven years ago and it's still going strong. Best investment she ever made.

Depending on where you are in the country, the other thing you could do is explain to your GP what impact this is having on you - making you depressed, perhaps also preventing you from eating a good diet - and ask him to refer you either to a 'maxfax' clinic or to the Eastman, if you live within reasonable travelling distance of London.

If you're an NHS dental patient, your dentist can also refer you - it would be worth asking him to. If you're seeing him privately, it slightly complicates matters, is the problem.

I'm sure you already realise that with any new denture you do have to persevere, to some extent - use Bonjela to smooth over any sore bits, and so on. But it shouldn't be making your tongue go numb: clearly something's amiss. Don't give up! Good luck.