Sleeping with Dentures

ronk

ronk

Member
I just had another health scare. I'm just beginning to fully recover from the Salmonella I get after eating precooked chicken last week.




I didn't sleep much last night. I went to bed at 11PM, and woke at 3AM. I tried several times during the day to take a nap. A few hours ago I finally fell asleep. I woke when I heard a terrible rattling sound.




Apparently my bottom dentures had come loose, and I was trying to pop them out of my mouth. I have Sleep Apnea and use a full face mask connected to my BiPap machine. I had to pop my bottom lip out of my face mask in order to get the bottom dentures out. I woke, and stopped myself.




Now I'm afraid to sleep with my dentures in. That's difficult since sometimes I'm just plain tired, and must try several times to take a nap. I'm worried because many years ago my Grandmother choked on her "partial" plate while sleeping, and suffered a stroke. She never totally recovered from that experience.
 

My denture isn't in when I eat, never mind sleep. I live in fear of a stroke or any accident where I choke on the upper plate while they try to revive the rest. Then again I don't want to look like my Uncle Earl.
 
I've decided to remove my dentures whenever I go to bed. That's the safest way.
 

I tend to read before bed and doze off right there...so deeply my hubby or daughter will take the book out of my hands and put it away. So I got three inexpensive little trays from Target. We have steep stairs so it's a pain to go floor to floor. Each level has a tray and my accessories go into whichever floor I'm on. My teeth soak upstairs...I get up there, toss in my teeth, pick up my book and nighty night.
 
I almost never sleep with the dentures in. Always liked them to soak overnight, killing anything that might have become "attached" during the day. They go in first thing in the morning and come back out last thing at night. A few times I've slept with them in and have never had any issue doing so. Just won't get in that habit.
 
It's not a good idea to sleep with dentures.. It can damage your gums and cause infections leading to bone loss. It's really not healthy due to bacteria. Best to leave 'em in a cup at the bedside or on the bathroom sink. I know people who refuse to take out their dentures except to clean them.. It's a vanity thing I guess.. but my hubby and I both wear full dentures.. and sometimes they hurt in the evening.. we think nothing of sitting side by side watching TV while our teeth are side by side in the other room.. hahahahaha..
 
I've setup a space in my kitchen cabinet for my dentures and related stuff. It's much easier for me to handle them that way. As a rule I take my dentures out when I go to bed at night. During the day, I often struggle to stay awake, but often can't sleep when I lay on the bed. After awhile I get exhausted, going through the entire procedure of hooking up the BiPap face mask, etc.

So far today I haven't tried to take a nap. I've been trying to reorganize my stuff and find another strap for my BiPap mask. Right now the bed is covered with stuff, and my back is sore from working around the apartment. If I feel like a nap, I'll shove an empty box up to the bed & shovel everything in. Then I'll take out my dentures, and put them in "safe storage," along with the denture cleaner.
 
I attended Thanksgiving dinner with family this year. My bottom dentures came loose. I popped them out of my mouth, brought them under the table and applied denture adhesive. I was trying to be sly because the room was full, and it was hard for me to navigate around the family at the table. Dad spotted what I was doing and pulled out his own tube of Fixodent.

We joked about it, and I said I was glad the dog didn't get ahold of my dentures. We all envisioned a scene just like that cartoon!
 

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