What Living With Dental Implants Is Really Like (Two Years Later)

You chose dental implants because, you know, they are a permanent solution. But two years later, have they stood the test of time? What is it like taking care of them? There's maybe an extra step. It it takes like maybe ten seconds, ten, fifteen seconds more. Do you tell people that you have like dental implants? I didn't say nothing to anybody. Ken got his full mouth dental implants over two years ago. And today he's here to answer the most questions that people have about living with them long term and whether they still feel worth it today. Are you ready, Ken? I am ready. Let's dive in. I know like many, there's an adjustment period when you first get, you know, your teeth put in. So two years later, are you still adjusting or do you kind of forget that they're even there? I forget that they're there. I'm so used to it by now. It's, it's a part of me now. So what makes you kind of forget like that you even have them? Like what do you, what do you kind of do on a daily basis that where like they don't even come to mind anymore? Most of the time when I'm eating, talking, just, just everyday normal things that we would take for granted, you know, it just feels so natural now. That's so awesome. Well, when did they stop feeling, you know, maybe kind of foreign in your mouth? How long did it take to get to that point? I would say for talking, it took about a month for me to start talking normally. Maybe even less than that because of, what I do with all my talking and that. I'm I'm a talker. And so, when but but the eating, that that was about a month too. That see that, the eating seemed a little more, even though it was soft food, it still felt a little weird. But once I started, you know, eating a little bit more, it just seemed more natural and I got used to it and it was, it was just a second nature then. And what can you eat with them now? I know you said at first you were kind of on a soft diet, which I knew via typically like four months, but what can you eat with them now? Oh, just about anything. I won't try Jawbreakers, but I wouldn't do that with anything anyway. My favorite things are these garlic Oh, I even got it right here. Garlic herb, olive oil, almonds. I don't like almonds. They were out of stock. They they were shut down for a couple years and they brought it back just recently, so I just bought a whole bunch of them. And now I just I'm so well stocked with these these almonds. I love them. I just That was that was one of my favorite things now. I I love chomping on them. And before that, I could chomp on them, but I, it had to be like on a certain way. And, it was a little, it's a lot easier now just to, to chomp on them now. It's and Right. All the other things too, corn on the cob, you know, when you're missing your front two teeth, doesn't make it easy. So you just, you know, you end up taking a knife and cutting down the kernels off the onto the plate. It sounds like a lot less effort to do something. Yeah. Wow. Okay. So whenever, you know, you gotta eat, but then you also gotta take care of them, right? You gotta clean those bad boys. So day to day, what is it like taking care of them? Is it is it a big deal or is it kind of similar to taking care of natural teeth? There there's maybe an extra step, but it's not, it takes like maybe ten seconds, ten, fifteen seconds more, you know, you, you brush them, you know, and then you take the water pick and you go through and, it's very important to, to hit it with the water pick, you know, that's to me is, is very important because you never know if you get the little something there and you might miss it. So it's important to do the water picking and if you can, flossing is also very important as well. And if you can get to spots where you floss it, you got to floss it. So when it comes to, you know, these dental implants, they're not coming out, right? Like dentures would? No, they're not coming out of the hogs. Wow. Okay. So, and when I didn't ask this earlier, but like whenever you are like eating or talking or even like, you know, brushing them, do they feel like strong in your mouth? Or I guess, I guess, do they feel durable? What do they, I guess, in your Or they feel strong. They feel strong. When I when I just jump into something that I would have struggled with before, right, it it it feels so good to be able to do that, you know, so like, oh, you know, eating all this stuff's a lot different now and being able to do it and feel so strong and it's gonna be for the rest of my life. And it's all, it's all, you know, good stuff. All good stuff. I can imagine. Yeah, I can imagine going from not being kind of being limited in many ways and now and not really being a concern. So you chose dental implants because, you know, they are a permanent solution. But two years later, have they stood the test of time? Have they caused you problems? No, not, not one problem. I have had zero issues with them. It's just, you know, the same as when I got the very first time almost, except now I can eat solid, strong foods of course, but yeah, there's no, there's no issues. So like you said, those are the same teeth you got twenty four hours after surgery. Oh, yeah. Yeah. That is pretty amazing. And what about, you know, like appointments with Nubia after the fact? Like, is there a lot of back and forth or do they kind of just go like, oh, all right, there you go. Or how does it work after the fact? Okay. For me, I was a travel patient. So there were zoom calls for like x rays and make sure everything was good. They did that here in my hometown and then they had this stuff sent to them. And then when they, I was approved, I was brought in, they did everything there. And when I got home, it was two weeks later and then it was a zoom call for our two week meeting and they wanted to know how everything was. They wanted to see everything that I could show them. And then I was put on the four, four month diet or the four month soft food diet where then, you know, of course, was everything soft food. And then four months later, I was I flew back to Salt Lake City and then, I did my year appointment in Detroit because that because they opened up down there and it's much closer. So I was able to go in for the cleaning there. And now there's another place opened up that's closer now. Really? Yeah. In Milwaukee. Wow. That's really cool because you were able to, you know, you weren't originally located near an office and you're able to travel to go get it done. You got your teeth twenty four hours after surgery. That seems like a good deal there. Yeah, definitely is. Who would have thought, right? Twenty four hours later and pile there you are. Absolutely. And it just all worked out great. And when it comes to these appointments that you have to go back for, do those like cost anything or are there any like any hidden fees that maybe you didn't expect kind of after the fact? There's nothing hidden, no surprises to jump out at you to surprise you or whatever. And no, that was it was good that way too. Awesome. So yeah, it sounds like it's all inclusive. And there's nothing that, you know, because I'm sure people have gone to the dentist many times in their life, including myself, where after the fact they're like, pay me more. And it's like, excuse me? Because so because the cost is a is a big concern, you know? So that's good to hear that, there was nothing after the fact that they had, you know, no surprises. Yeah. Everything was right up front. Awesome. How do people find out how much this cost in the first place? Is it typically like the same for everybody? No. Everybody's very, very different. The way our moths are, the damage that was done. For me, there was some added issues with my lower jaw because my bottom teeth actually were in front of my top teeth. So there were some extra issues with that, but, no, there's, everybody's very, very different. That's why you just cannot say, oh, hey, I did this, I did this, I did this. You gotta throw that right out the window. And where can people learn more about maybe like general cost of this procedure? Noobby has got a price guide and it's very, very easy to find. You can download it and it will give you all the information that you need to, to, to decide, and see how much that, know, give you the ballpark idea of how everything's going to be and it'll work out great. Awesome. Cool. Well, I think that's a great place to start. Let's move on. Have a few more questions for you, Ken. Well, it sounds like that you don't really think about your teeth anymore. They kind of become a part of you. And I am curious, like, how has that changed social situations for you? Do you think about your teeth or how does that go for you? For the longest time, whenever I would laugh or smile, I would be like this, trying to kind of cover it up a little bit. And I did that for a while after I had it, but then once, once I saying, what are you doing? You know, you got this beautiful thing in your mouth, show it off. And, so I I had to kinda put my arm down to just like that. And, it's amazing when you're in a store and you're walking around and you're smiling and people see that and they smile back at you and, you know, it brightens up people's people's day. Oh, yes. I mean, your smile brightens up my day. It's doing that right now. So, I think that's, I think that's really amazing. And it makes sense that, you know, it took a while for you to kind of get to that point of not hiding it, right? Because you spent so many years probably doing the opposite. After going through this, is there something you wish you would have known beforehand about, you know, how it would change your life? Everything, you know, it was kind of everything was kind of how I was hoping it would be, and kind of how I figured it would be. I didn't, I I didn't think anything less. You know, I I kinda have a little bit high expectations for how this was gonna gonna be. And, you know, and that was kinda like my own high hopes, my own positivity, and has lived up to it. You know, I had most people were, most people were very encouraging. Of course, you got the one or two people who'd be like, oh, you're just fine the way you are, but you know, if you can make yourself a little bit better, a little bit healthier, you gotta remember that too. A little healthier, you gotta go for it. Well, I'm really glad to hear that. And I am curious too. I forgot to ask this, but how, like when you are in those social situations, and you're not hiding anymore, do you tell people that you have like dental implants or because I know a lot of people I've seen people ask, ask that like, do you tell people or, or, or are you, are you like, how, I guess, does that work for you? No, I don't have to really say anything. Another, here's a little, little story, if you don't mind me. When I went to, right before I went to St. Paul, I seen a friend of mine and we were walking to Walmart together and we were talking, this is right before I was going to St. Paul, or not St. Paul, to, Utah. And we were talking and she knew she, you know, she's seen that before. So we were talking and we went to the storming part of our ways. And then but I came back. I had to go to Walmart. I had to pick something up right away. And I ran into her and she didn't recognize me. And so I didn't say nothing and I didn't say nothing to anybody. If they didn't recognize me, I didn't say nothing to anybody. I was just kind of letting it all, okay, you know what, this is stuff, let's just have a little fun with this. And then, people, you know, I, I, people started knowing, you know, and then I, you know, I posted it on social media so some people knew about it before, but, some people didn't. It was kind of good to surprise them a little bit. That is so cool. Yeah. I mean, if I didn't know that you got this done, I wouldn't know. You know what I mean? Yeah. Like it, they look so beautiful and they're so you too. Right? Like everyone's smile seems very different than the next, right? Cause like you said, everyone's situation is different. Yes, exactly. Over two and a half years, Ken, knowing everything you know now, would you still choose to go through it all again? Oh, in a heartbeat. In a heartbeat. You know, when you look at right from the beginning to the very end, there were no issues. Everything went smoothly, as far as Nuvia side of it. They're, you know, having everything done and in twenty four hours and just a little uncomfortableness, no pain really, to being able to light up the next day, getting my teeth, following the instructions and then going through each step and, and here we are. This is all Nuvia does, is implants. That's, have just a crew, They have their own doctors that take care of everything. So you're in great hands, you know, it's, it was definitely worth it. I'd, ten out of ten times do it again. Well, Ken, thank you so much for sharing with us today that your experience and for those out there, if you want to learn more about the twenty four hour dental implant process and what it could cost you, make sure to check out that free dental implant cost guide in the description below. Until next time, keep smiling.