Whith dentures how does one stop the gag reflex from making you gag when talking!
Question: i just got dentures and i was wondering what can stop the gag reflex from making you gag when speaking.
Answers: i just got dentures and i was wondering what can stop the gag reflex from making you gag when speaking.
While it's possible that you are a person with a more than average sensitivity issue with regard to the back upper pallet gum area, I would make sure the real issues isn't the denture itself. If an Upper denture isn't properly finished after processing by the lab technician and he or she leaves the back edge to long, that can create a gagging sensation. Also, if the back edge is left squared across the back instead of tapered up into the tissue, that square edge will allow saliva and sinus drainage to accumulate and that can cause both excessive swallowing and a gagging sensation. The final reason could be the back edge was simply left to long and extends to far back. If you look back at your throat area you will see a piece of tissue hanging down in the middle of your palate, the Uvula. In front of it are two gland openings and the back edge of an Upper denture should never exten beyond those openings...Go back to your Dentist and ask him to make sure none of the issues I mentioned are in play.
Smile, allot til you get used to it. Smiling stops the gag reflex.
Tonsilectomy
Don't really know, I wish I could tell you. I gag whenever they take an X-ray. I have the worst gag reflex. I find when I breathe deeply and relax it's somewhat better. But that might be hard when you're trying to talk. Hope you figure something out .. I know gagging is horrible. I feel your pain.
Your dentist hasn't met me yet -- I have the same problem. I don't wear dentures (thank goodness), but I was once fitted with a partial plate to replace a missing molar. The darn thing had so much metal that kept touching the roof of my mouth, my gag reflex went into overdrive. I had to go back to the dentist, and told him about the gag thing, and also, that I couldn't taste my food -- just metal! He kept telling me I'd get used to the thing, and that people taste with their tongues, and not the roof of their mouths. He obviously didn't have a clue what I was talking about. So I went to another dentist, who made some adjustments. He pared the plate down so it no longer touched the roof of my mouth. He also stated that if I ever had to wear dentures, I'd have a heck of a time getting used to them, since they cover a lot more territory in the mouth than a partial plate. Well, to make this long story short, even with the adjusting, I couldn't get over the feeling of a foreign object in my mouth, so I quit using it altogether, having thrown out a considerable amount of money. Another thing that drives me nuts is having impressions taken, having that yucky junk in my mouth. Then it hardens, and they have to pull to get it loose. You think your teeth are coming out with it!
My only suggestion would be to go back to the dentist who made your dentures, and see if he can make some adjustments, because it sounds as though they are not fitting you properly. If they're loose, they're moving around and maybe that's what's causing your discomfort. I wish I could be of more help, but all I can do is sympathize, and hope that in time, you'll become more accustomed to wearing dentures. Millions of folks do, but there are always exceptions like you and me. Good luck!