Orthodontists - is jaw alignment or implant a priority?

[forgotaboutmyteeth]

I thought my teeth were no longer meeting because I was using my bite guard to push my upper teeth outwards while asleep. I'm a lifelong tooth grinder / clencher.
My new dentist says this is not the case, and thinks my jaws are not properly aligned any more. She also says I'm rapidly developing bone growth in my lower jaw. Both these changes have happened in the last 18 months. I had a second tooth extracted about then, having fractured it by grinding.

I'm getting an NHS referral for the torus bone growth, but she says the jaw alignment will need a private orthodontist. Aren't they likely to be linked? I'm still saving for an implant to replace my missing teeth, so not keen to spend money on more private treatment. But can I even have an implant while my teeth are out of alignment? What should I prioritise?

Not a orthodontist, but I need inplants. I've had three different assessments and I've been told that my misalignment and restoration work will have to be done first. This makes my implants unaffordable.

How bad is your misalignment @Ponoka7 ? None of my teeth meet any more - my upper jaw overhangs quite a bit, chewing is difficult and I cant bite off any hard food now. I lisp a bit too.

Was it your dentist or an orthodontist who said the other work had to be done first? And what did they say you need?

I'm feeling a bit lost, and a bit stupid that I just watched all these changes happen over the last year or so.

Any other experiences? I'm still a bit mystified about this sudden change at my advanced age

I’m a dentist and obviously it’s impossible for anyone here to give you advice without pictures, X-rays, further investigations. If you were a patient who came to my clinic and the teeth needed both orthodontic treatment and implants, the orthodontic alignment should usually be done first and the implants once the teeth are in the correct place. This is because it is more risky to move implants with any type of braces and also because if you get the teeth in correct position you can then see what shape/size/position of crown you will need to implant, it may even be that you don’t need the implant if they can use the missing tooth space to move your existing teeth into. You need to wait to speak to a professional.

Thanks @User37652 . The bit I really don't understand is why everything has gone out of alignment in my 60s. All the explanations I Google seem to be about much younger people.

I could understand if my teeth had shifted where I had two adjoining molars removed, but the difference is much greater at the front. It does seem that my whole lower jaw has moved back relative to the upper. Would this be related to the torus mandibularis? I always feel happier if I can understand what is happening. Can you point me to anything I can read to learn more about it?

@forgotaboutmyteeth teeth do generally drift forwards with time (age, sorry), and usually top teeth more than bottom because the bone is less dense here. The other main cause of teeth moving out of position is periodontitis(gum disease). It’s really impossible to say anymore without examining you. Mandibular tori don’t usually cause teeth to drift, in the unlikely event they are increasing in size, they could cause drift. If it’s a cyst or an abscess not a tori then that could cause movement of the overlying teeth.
The only thing I can think of that could cause the bottom teeth to move back would be trauma to the jaw or damage/degradation of the condyles of the mandible. Either of these things would require a refrrral for treatment. Do you know what department your dentist has referred you to? Is it oral surgery or oral medicine?