Woohoo! Done with braces!

So, Tuesday was the big reveal! We took another set of impressions and made retainers on site. I'll wear these 24 hours a day (minus eating) until my bonded retainers come in next month. It was definitely a tough visit because of doing the impressions, but I can't complain since it was for a good cause. Below is a photo of me wearing the retainer...barely visible. Pretty big change from where we began. I'm also starting ZOOM whitening and am using it in my retainers each evening.

Thanks to all of you for following my blog -- it's been a great adventure!!

Less than 1 month to go before the braces come off!

December 17 will be a magical day in my book!  Braces will COME OFF!!  That day, I'll have the chips filled on my front teeth, and a whitening process down.  The power chains will finally come off (whoo hoo!) and the brackets will be removed.  Too exciting!  I'll have to share some grand finale photos when it's all said and done.  Can't believe I'm almost done with my Six Month Smile!  (And if you count the months, it really was a six month process!)

4 Months of Braces - my Six Month Smile is nearly done!

WOW!  Time is flying! Maybe it's because the school year is in full swing or because life's just going at full speed.  All I know, is that I'm more than half way done with my Six Month Smile!  And, just look at those straight teeth :) 

I took this cell phone picture this morning, so it's a pretty accurate representation of what's going on right now.  My bottom row of teeth have straightened out and my top row looks great.  I'm SO happy with what I see in the mirror these days! 

Working at a school, I have to have my photo taken annually for the yearbook.  This year, I laughed with my kids that I'd have braces -- just like many of the students!  (Actually, you could barely tell that I was wearing them because the final yearbook photo is so small -- thankfully!)

Things are still going fine with the braces overall. A couple weeks ago, I actually ate a bracket.  Yes, it happened while eating a slice of California Pizza Kitchen thin crust BBQ.  (Yum!) One bite of crust seemed particularly, well, crunchy.  When I flossed later that night, I realized that a wire was poking out of the back (metal) bracket and the last plastic bracket was gone altogether.  (Ooops.)  I called my dentist the next morning and he had everything back in place within a few minutes. 

Next week, I'll be entering the final phase of The Six Month braces -- power chains.  I have a real fear about getting these on because my dental tech told me that they can definitely cause some soreness in your mouth.  These power chains actually help link all of the brackets together even tighter to pull teeth back and close up gaps.  It's the last step in achieving a great smile.  I'll also get the final wire put on! 

I'm still hoping to make my December goal of no braces for Christmas...guess we'll see how it goes!  Hope everyone is doing well and thanks for all of your encouraging comments!

10 Weeks Along in my Braces!

Just a quick check in!  All is well here.  No more brackets falling off and my teeth continue to straighten, slowly but surely.  Here's a quick cell phone shot of me at week 10.  If you compare this to week 6, (posted back in July) you'll see that my bottom row has straightened considerably.  Not bad progress for just one month's time!  At this point, I'm starting to notice some of the minor flaws -- like me chipped from tooth. But, until my braces come off, I can't do a darn thing about it. *sigh*  The good thing is that that will be a quick fix once everything is off.  (Or, at least the dentist has promised it will be a quick fix!!)

Hope everyone is well -- and that those of you starting your  journey in the Six Month Smile are having an easy go of it.  Signing off for now...

10 Weeks!

Oh How Far I've Come

Last night, I ran across a photo of my before I had my braces.  Amazing.  Wow.  Downright awful.  I look back at my happy smile (I was holding one of my daughters!) and just think about how far I've come.  New hair.  Better teeth.  This has already been an amazing makeover -- I can't wait to see how I look when I'm finished with my Six Month Smile braces!

8 Weeks in Braces! (And a new wire to boot)

On Monday, I celebrated the two month mark in wearing my Six Month Smile braces!  Celebrated might be a bit of a strong word, but still...two months is one third of the way there.  At my  appointment, my dentist decided that one of my upper canines wasn't rotating properly so he took off the bracket (more on that in a minute) and repositioned it by reapplying the glue and curing the bracket to my tooth.  Then he used something that sounds totally harmless called a "Quick Tie" to apply the needed tension to that tooth.  That was the part that REALLY hurt.  In fact, I told him that there was no need to move the tooth TODAY and wasn't this called the six month smile -- not the 6 minute smile?  (Dental humor...but wow, it hurt as he was attaching those.) 

Going back to removing the bracket...he basically used pliers and popped it loose.  Not the most comfortable experience, but nothing compared to the tension he put on my canine.  I had been curious about how all of those brackets would come off -- and now I know. 

After securing the canine bracket again, he placed the same wire back on my top row of teeth.  However, my bottom row is moving up in the world and got a slightly larger gauge wire.  The thicker the wire, the stronger the pressure it can put on your teeth.  It honestly was a breeze to pop the lower wire on.

Needless to say, I'm eating somewhat gingerly on top.  But, I suspect that in the next few days, I'll be back to normal again ;) 

Hope this blog is helping those of you who are trying to decide if the Six Month Smile is right for you!

10 Things Your Dentist Will Never Tell You About Braces

So, after six weeks of fun, I feel fairly well initiated into the braces "lifestyle".  And just like labor and delivery, there are things that NO ONE will ever tell you.  You just have to experience it for yourself!  Without further ado...here's my list of things no one will ever tell you about what getting and having braces is really like.

1)  When your dentist/orthodontist puts braces on, he or she will need to hold your tongue in place using a "tongue retractor."  Reason being is that they need to keep your teeth very dry to make the brackets adhere.  This torture device -- I mean, tool -- didn't work for me.  It hurt to get into place!  I have a very small mouth, so maybe that was the problem.  Truly, I think the problem is with the guy (or gal) who designed the darn thing.  If they can't fit that in your mouth, they'll use a large, soft rubber circle (looks like a huge bracelet) to prop your lips open.  No pain involved there.  I'd highly recommend you ask for that instead of the dreaded tongue retractor.

2) It doesn't matter what you eat, stuff is going to get stuck in your braces.  If you eat a salad for lunch, I guarantee you'll find a piece of lettuce entwined in your back teeth later.  Don't even get me started on how pasta -- or an entire chicken sandwich -- can hide out for hours in your braces.  Gross.  Bottom line: bring a toothbrush to work and make sure you brush after lunch.

3) Your lips/cheeks will be stuck inside your brackets every morning when you wake up.  It's not pleasant, but as your mouth dries out at night, your lips and gums seem to find their way into your brackets.  For me, it's my lower lip.  Your best bet?  Make sure you put a bunch of dental wax on at night to protect those areas that are most susceptible to being pinched.

4) Your bite will change. I've gone through stages where I suddenly feel that nothing "matches up" anymore.  Meaning, when I bite into my food, my teeth don't feel like they're meeting properly.  I've bitten the heck out of the inside of my cheek a couple times. The reason for this is that your teeth are moving and shifting.  And, the top and bottom aren't always going to align perfectly as you transition to your new smile.  A few days later, I'll adjust to my new way of eating.  Take smaller bites than you did before braces and chew carefully.

5) I've said it before and I'll say it again -- dental wax is the only way to survive. As you get more adept at applying it, you'll use less and less.  Buy stock in the stuff and don't skimp!

6) Your teeth will ache randomly and then they'll be fine a day later.  I can only chalk this up to the fact that they may be adjusting to their new place -- or they just may be shifting slightly.  Take some Tylenol or Motrin (with food) and wait it out.  
 
7) You'll have to learn to floss a whole new way.  Because of the wire going across your braces, you won't be able to floss like you used to.  Instead, your dentist or orthdontist will give you special floss that can fit under each wire.  You'll need to do each tooth individually.  No one will tell you this before you get braces, but the whole maintenance and cleaning of your mouth takes a LONG time at night.

8) Speaking of, brushing your teeth is downright disgusting and challenging at the same time.  You had NO idea how much stuff really was stuck in your mouth.  Every time you spit out some toothpaste, a bunch of food particles will come out too.  Of course, that's the goal of brushing, but before you had braces, you never "stored it for later" either. It's also a bit tricky to brush because you don't want to pull on the wires or brackets.

9) If your toddler gleefully tosses her blanket over your head and then pulls it off quickly in a game of peek-a-boo, make sure you're not laughing out loud with your teeth showing.  It's very probable -- and downright likely -- that a spare thread from the blanket will get caught in your front brackets and blow your mind with pain and she whips the blanket away.  Ouch. Sorry. No solution to that problem here.

10)Your teeth won't seem like they're changing much at first, and then suddenly you'll realize that your mouth looks just a bit different.  Take photos and keep track of your progress. It makes a lot of the pain worth it!