A bit about my background. I have had crowded teeth for a long time, but due to lots of different circumstances growing up, my teeth were never high on the priority list. It's actually surreal now thinking that I am actually going to have a beautiful smile at the end of all this
Sparking a string of appointments was a small abscess that occurred on the 23rd of December 2014, due to public holidays I could not see a dentist so I went to a local doctor. He prescribed antibiotics, but advised me that I should be seen by a dentist because it can happen again.
First time I saw a dentist for a long time, it was quickly apparent from the xrays that my wisdom teeth were pretty much the cause. All 4 were impacted. So I had a few appts cleaning up my teeth and then I was referred to an OS.
The oral surgeon could remove all 4 wisdom teeth at his office under general anaesthesia. But he asked me, "are you interested in fixing the appearance of your teeth?"
Well of course I was, so he referred me to my Orthodontist. He thought it best to consult an ortho before removing teeth.
Orthodontist gave 2 options. - Removal of all 4 wisdom teeth, 4 more teeth and braces. Or. - SARPE /SARME (surgically assisted rapid palatal/maxillary expansion) surgery to correct my very narrow top jaw plus wisdom teeth removal, followed by braces.
So back to the OS, who gave me the cost breakdown. It would cost between $2600-3000 to have the teeth removed. But SARME could not be done in his office.
Because he worked at a teaching hospital and could put me on a waiting list I could have both the wisdom teeth removal and the SARME surgery done at the same time under Medicare (public health here in Aus). So due to the cost, and also the better long term result, I opted to go on a waiting list and have the SARME surgery.
I feel like I have written an essay already so will update again later x
So happy to be moving on to the next stage. I will update this post with some more pics of my teeth before the braces are put on. 
