I Flushed My Mouthguard Down The Toilet Today

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, I wear a partial. But I also have a problem with objects touching my body and I often take it out (I also can't bring myself to wear jewelry or watches or most synthetic clothing). The first time I lost it I searched the room where it should have been in thoroughly, and held off making an appt for a few weeks. Sure enough, the very day after they made the mold for a replacement and I was basically in for the expense, the old one magically appeared between 2 couch cushions.

The next one got chewed up by the dog, best guess it got knocked off the bathroom counter.

I lost another, I forget how. After that I became much more careful and kept the same device for several years. Three weeks ago, it started bothering me in the car. I took it out but was driving and set it on the dashboard instead of putting it in the pocket in my bag I use in such cases. Then I forgot to grab it going into the house and now I can't find it. And I'm embarrassed to go back to my dentist.

OP here
You have suffered many trials, you poor thing. Of course the original guard reappeared once you replaced it. I’m convinced thus is an immutable law of physics- lost things become invisible only to reappear the moment you replace them! Don’t be embarrassed, you just misplace things. It’s not like you flushed them down the toilet!

Thanks for all the kind words and helpful suggestions. I’m so looking forward to calling the office Monday morning! I’m considering blaming a fictitious dog that I was babysitting.

[Anonymous]

My dentist charges $1,000+—for a small piece of plastic.

It is the ultimate ripoff.

Please tell me who does it for loser to $500?
(Preferably Montgomery County).

(They are not hard to lose especially if you travel! )

[Anonymous]

I’m also a serial clencher. I used to have really tiny NTI guards that only covered my 4 middle teeth on the bottom. That kind of guard worked well for 16 years, but when I replaced them with a new guard in 2019, the new guard was looser and would accidentally pop off sometimes. I went to bed with the guard in my mouth one night in 2020, and when I awoke in the morning, it wasn’t in my mouth anymore. I looked everywhere. It never turned up. Because of the pandemic, I put off replacing it for a while.

I replaced it in late 2020. The replacement also didn’t fit super tightly, so the exact same thing happened in 2021: I went to bed with the guard in my mouth and awoke with no guard. Searched high and low. Tore my bed apart, moved my bed, moved all the furniture near my bed. This one never turned up either. My dentist insists I must have removed them and my dog ate them. I’m not sure. I think it’s entirely possible that I swallowed them. Because I was pissed about needing ANOTHER replacement, I didn’t get it right away. HUGE mistake. I used to have beautiful, perfectly aligned teeth, thanks to braces, but my lower teeth shifted when I went without any night guard or retainer for a while, and now a couple are crooked. I should have gotten Invisalign at the point, but I foolishly asked my dentist for another night guard and he never suggested Invisalign. I paid around $650 for the kind of night guard you’re probably talking about. They used the same wand to make 3D images of my mouth. This newest guard fits well and protects me from clenching, but it’s not going to correct the alignment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just go to a different dentist who will make a mouthguard from a mold.

If only I had though about that. Oh wait, I did! In the post just above. Did you not have enough coffee?

Only a fool throws a $700 mouth guard across the room. I am guessing that you have TMJ. I had a severe case of TMJ 20 years ago when a mouth guard was only $200. When I took it out to eat or brush my teeth, I put it in its case. I suggest you try doing the same.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just go to a different dentist who will make a mouthguard from a mold.

If only I had though about that. Oh wait, I did! In the post just above. Did you not have enough coffee?

Only a fool throws a $700 mouth guard across the room. I am guessing that you have TMJ. I had a severe case of TMJ 20 years ago when a mouth guard was only $200. When I took it out to eat or brush my teeth, I put it in its case. I suggest you try doing the same.

Yeah I am baffled by a *frequent* habit of pulling out your night guard and flinging it across the room. Especially since they are burdensome to get and cost so much. I don't understand why you have not addressed this problem sooner and just accepted this habit.

This would be like if someone said they were habitually flinging their cell phone across the room in the middle of the night and then got upset one one night, this habit led to the destruction of their cell phone. Presumably you would start looking for a way to avoid doing that the first time it happened.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just go to a different dentist who will make a mouthguard from a mold.

If only I had though about that. Oh wait, I did! In the post just above. Did you not have enough coffee?

Only a fool throws a $700 mouth guard across the room. I am guessing that you have TMJ. I had a severe case of TMJ 20 years ago when a mouth guard was only $200. When I took it out to eat or brush my teeth, I put it in its case. I suggest you try doing the same.

Yeah I am baffled by a *frequent* habit of pulling out your night guard and flinging it across the room. Especially since they are burdensome to get and cost so much. I don't understand why you have not addressed this problem sooner and just accepted this habit.

This would be like if someone said they were habitually flinging their cell phone across the room in the middle of the night and then got upset one one night, this habit led to the destruction of their cell phone. Presumably you would start looking for a way to avoid doing that the first time it happened.

Thanks so much to you and the immediate PP for your incredible endeavors at helpfulness. Unfortunately you don’t seem to have read my OP, particularly this part:

I had to replace it last year and the new one has never been quite right. I keep taking it for adjustments, but sometimes I remove in my sleep. Usually it’s near my pillow. But sometimes I must hurl it because it turns up across the room.

It’s something that occurs sometimes while I am sleeping, and I haven’t yet achieved a state of sleeping that allows me to do things like tidily placing the guard in its case. Although if I did achieve such a state, I would probably put the guard in my mouth where it could do its job. As to remedying the root issue, my dentist has made several adjustments since I’ve had this particular guard, alas, we haven’t reached perfection. Are you able to tidy and organize while sleeping? This must be an amazing life hack. Please do tell us your secret. I have so many photos to organize and my youngest child is a sweet tornado. If I could tidy while sleeping that would be grand.

[Anonymous]

And your point? Accidents happen. 🤷‍♂️

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I only have experience with the transvaginal wand! Not fun but necessary. I was jealous of all the ones who just had the ones on your belly like you see on TV all the time.

But I do need a mouthguard and I don't want to go through all that. I think I'll try the sport one first and see if it works for me.

Some dentists still use the older method (a tray of goop). I personally did not mind the wand. It feels much more modern and precise than the old method. And TRUST ME, the vaginal ultrasound is 1,000x more uncomfortable!!!!

(What I resent is when you lose the guard, and even though they have an electronic imprint of every tooth in your head, they won’t just order a new one from the lab. I swear it is so the dentist can charge his own separate fee for the measuring step!!)

[Anonymous]

I am the clencher with guard since 2007. I have TMJ and a dislocated disc from clenching before I knew I was doing that.
Mine is thick plastic on my upper teeth. The design is to make your clench impact be distributed evenly and then the teeth slide off each other instead of clench clench clench. It's not to cushion the clench as you keep biting it.
Yes it's yellowed. And when I use the toilet at night I sm careful to keep my lips closed lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I am the clencher with guard since 2007. I have TMJ and a dislocated disc from clenching before I knew I was doing that.
Mine is thick plastic on my upper teeth. The design is to make your clench impact be distributed evenly and then the teeth slide off each other instead of clench clench clench. It's not to cushion the clench as you keep biting it.
Yes it's yellowed. And when I use the toilet at night I sm careful to keep my lips closed lol.

OP
I don't even wear it into the bathroom, it seems it became entangled in my clothes, unbeknownst to me, and fell in. I don't know if that's better or worse, really. My diagnosis has been bruxism but I might ask for a re-evaluation for TMJ. I don't snap crackle pop but I clench every night!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Just go to a different dentist who will make a mouthguard from a mold.

If only I had though about that. Oh wait, I did! In the post just above. Did you not have enough coffee?

Only a fool throws a $700 mouth guard across the room. I am guessing that you have TMJ. I had a severe case of TMJ 20 years ago when a mouth guard was only $200. When I took it out to eat or brush my teeth, I put it in its case. I suggest you try doing the same.

Yeah I am baffled by a *frequent* habit of pulling out your night guard and flinging it across the room. Especially since they are burdensome to get and cost so much. I don't understand why you have not addressed this problem sooner and just accepted this habit.

This would be like if someone said they were habitually flinging their cell phone across the room in the middle of the night and then got upset one one night, this habit led to the destruction of their cell phone. Presumably you would start looking for a way to avoid doing that the first time it happened.

Thanks so much to you and the immediate PP for your incredible endeavors at helpfulness. Unfortunately you don’t seem to have read my OP, particularly this part:

I had to replace it last year and the new one has never been quite right. I keep taking it for adjustments, but sometimes I remove in my sleep. Usually it’s near my pillow. But sometimes I must hurl it because it turns up across the room.

It’s something that occurs sometimes while I am sleeping, and I haven’t yet achieved a state of sleeping that allows me to do things like tidily placing the guard in its case. Although if I did achieve such a state, I would probably put the guard in my mouth where it could do its job. As to remedying the root issue, my dentist has made several adjustments since I’ve had this particular guard, alas, we haven’t reached perfection. Are you able to tidy and organize while sleeping? This must be an amazing life hack. Please do tell us your secret. I have so many photos to organize and my youngest child is a sweet tornado. If I could tidy while sleeping that would be grand.

You need to see a dentist who knows what he/she is doing. There is no reason why even a mediocre dentist could not adjust your mouth guard in no more than two attempts on the day you got it

[Anonymous]

I am also a custom night guard wearer who used to throw her mouth guard across the room at night. I’m glad it’s not just me!

I have a weird mouth, so I prefer the wand to the trays. The old metal trays were excruciating.