I got dentures at age 33 because lithium is a salt, and it ate away (visibly) my teeth. I had to get like 11 cavities fixed and a couple root canals in my 20s when I was on it. After literally NOTHING else worked, I decided to have 24 teeth pulled (so yes, all of them) and get dentures, because frankly, brains matter more than teeth. I did fine for about 10 years, but your bone does wear down over time, and I had to get implants to "save" my remaining jawbone. It was horrific and vastly expensive, but if I hadn't done it when I did, well, I would have lost all my bone. Denture implants snap TO your dentures, and they are embedded rather deep in your jaw. I had 8 inserted, the process took about a year, as one went bad and well, a lot of stuff happened. I think it wound up costing about $15K, and I was lucky as my ortho doc cut me a break and stopped charging me for stuff, like drilling out dead and infected bone after a massive infection.
But, I can chew celery now! You have no idea the thrill.... After cutting stuff up tiny for about 4 years. Because the implants are deep in your jaw, they function like "tooth" roots, when you chew and stimulate bone health.
I had 5 surgeries (awake) and then had to get them all exposed and hooked up. Denture implants look scary, so I won't link a pic. I was thrilled to get through all the surgeries using novacane and advil, not sedation and opiates. My ortho surgeon told me I was the "best" "awake" patient he ever had, as I just lay there with my eyes closed, praying, and did what I was told, to the best of my ability.
Anna