by Harvey from Ontario, Canada
I’m a 47 year old male who has been having problems with an overbite, and severe crowding on the bottom. My crowding has been so bad that I have to make routine visits to my family dentist every three months for “soft tissue management” as I am unable to properly clean between the crowded teeth. My dentist has regularly suggested that I see an Orthodontist to correct the situation but I have been putting it off because I had a terrible traumatic experience with a dentist at age 6 which prevented me from regularly visiting my dentist. But I decided it was time to get over that earlier trauma and see an Orthodontist.
My first day getting my braces installed was a little terrifying for me (my hands were like ice cubes) but I managed to get through it. I have the ceramic braces on the uppers and the metal ones on the lower teeth. The whole procedure took about 1.5 hours and I wasn’t home an hour when I was having lunch eating a tuna fish sandwich when the sound of a gun going off echoed through my head. One of my brackets came off. So it was back to the orthodontist. He said it is not uncommon for brackets to come off. He looked at the situation and decided instead of putting the bracket back on to insert a metal separator in between my lower molars. On my next visit he will replace the separator with a band around the tooth which will support the bracket.
My diet for me right now is a problem as I find I am only able to eat very soft foods and it takes forever to eat. But I understand this will improve with time. Also my best friend is wax! The ceramic brackets don’t irritate my cheeks and lips, but the metal ones do. So I apply wax after every brushing.
Although this is only my second day in braces, I have a long way to go. I need to have 3 teeth extracted to “make room” and allow the teeth to be moved around. My orthodontist said my braces will need to stay on for at least 2 years and then I will have to wear retainers most likely for the rest of my life. I sure hope all this is worth it.