Anyone here have veneers?
 

I just got my temporary ones on (actually, these are the second set of temps). My two veneers are on each side of my front teeth.

I'm wondering because I've been reading conflicting information about when I get the permanent veneers.

1) Can I eat apples and corn on the cob ever again?
2) Have your permanent veneers ever fallen off?
3) Do you have to wear a night guard because of your veneers?

Thanks!
~CGH~

Hi,

I have some of the oldest veneers out there. : ) I got them when I was sixteen I think and I"m now forty. I even had a picture taken for some dental journal (my claim to fame).

You can eat apples and corn on the cob but you have to use your bottom teeth for the biting action and the top teeth to hold it. I personally can eat apples easily but corn on the cob isn't worth it. I cut it off.

You do need to be diligent about flossing and brushing carefully around the gum line because it's harder to find cavities.

I think they are supposed to have a lifetime that's fairly short, ten years or something like that but I've had mine for twenty four years with no problems.

I guess I should tell you that they are on my front four teeth.

P.S. no night guard.

I'm assuming (cause you didn't mention it) that they have never accidentally cracked or fallen off?

It's funny, I have had a cap on my tooth (the same one that is now going to be veneered) since I was 13 and never thought twice about eating corn or apples, etc. We didn't have internet back then to get the overload of information and scare tactics I guess!

I have one veneer, on my right front tooth to repair some damage I got when I was a little kid (a kid through a spade at me)! I've only had it about 2 years. I always cut up apples and haven't tried corn on the cob. The dumb thing cost 1200.00 so I am pretty careful with it. No nightguard though (I already sleep in retainers - JOY).

No I've had absolutely no problems with cracks, falling off etc. I did have a cavity once just under the cap near the gum line and the dentist warned it might pop off as he tried to fix it but it was fine. NO problem.

The worst thing I've noticed and you might not have this problem since you are only having one veneer on each side but my front teeth sometimes get something small stuck between them for instance a raspberry seed and the pressure is really uncomfortable. You have to floss it out right away.

They are really expensive. I got a deal and it was 20 plus years ago but all four was only six hundred dollars.

Thanks guys!

I live in Canada and mine were $700 per veneer. I'm very stressed out though, I'm living in anxiety and fear of these temporary ones falling off before next Friday (not tomorrow, NEXT friday) when I get my permanent ones on. :-(

~CGH~

I don't know what a veneer is...kinda like a cap? I broke one of my upper front teeth when I was a kid, and about thirty years ago had a dentist patch it with the new composite filling material. He didn't know how long it would last. He rebuilt the entire missing part (about 1/4 of the tooth) and put a small layer across the whole front of the tooth to blend it in, and also built up the side of the tooth to fill in a slight gap between my two front teeth. It looked great and lasted a couple of years and then broke off. I went back and had it redone and now it's been on at least 25 years and still strong (although the gap filler part has chipped off). I use my front teeth for corn and apples and all kinds of stuff, and it's never broken off, and no veneer required. I'm not sure they can't just put a layer on the front of teeth now to fix them without taking any of the tooth away. The thinner the layer, the more fragile it will be, but it's worked on my broken tooth a very long time. And it only cost as much as a regular filling at the time (even though now I'm sure it would be more, because it takes more time to make it look natural).

A veneer is thinner than a cap (crown). It is more for cosmetic purposes. The tooth is shaven a little (about 0.5 mm) for the veneer to fit on. It's almost like a fake fingernail type idea.

A cap (or crown, same thing) is more for problem teeth or decaying teeth. You have to shave a lot of the tooth down, and then fill it up with crown/cap material. It's like of like replacing almost the whole fingernail.

~Choirgirl~

yeah, half of my front left incisor is fake... i smashed my face into a sidewalk when i was 13. I've had my plasticy tooth (they built it up with powdery stuff) for ten years, and it's doing pretty well. it makes a different noise when you tap it, and the orthodontist had to be careful with it when i had braces, but i munch on apples and corn on the cob like the next guy!

How to tell the teeth
 

hmmmmm.... Not sure how you tell the teeth which ones are to do the biting. Can you tell me how to do that?

Well, today I got my permanent veneers. I am happy with one of them, not happy with the other one. But...nothing really I can do now I guess. I'm going to try and reserve my judgment for a week or so, see how things shift about.

The dentist said I could "eat apples and go live my life" lol.

So, basically I'm 75% happy. Wish it was 100% though :-(

~Choirgirl~

Congratulations. Maybe you'll like them more as you get more used to them.

: )