Teeth Dysphoria

[macgirl4ever]

I've noticed on several occasions since joining this board that while the majority of people who complete orthodontic treatment are pleased with their results, there are also those who find fault in seemingly beautiful teeth. While I agree that the most important person who should be happy with the results of the treatment is the patient, I can not help but wonder if some adults after years of imperfect teeth develop an unhealthy attitude toward their teeth similar to body dysphoria where no matter how straight/well fitting/aligned their teeth become, they will only see the imperfections.

Sometimes I worry that I have already tread down that path. I often look in the mirror and think of what needs bonding, or filing or worry that braces won't fix a space or a gap to my liking. Do others ever think that their obsession with their teeth borders on psychosis?

[jeh]

This thread is the perfect opportunity to make some observations outside of the context of discussing a particular individual's case. Wouldn't want to offend anyone in particular

There are quite a few threads I read here that make me think that the person's issue is not their teeth but something in their head. I often see pictures of supposedly "terrible" teeth and think to myself "I would pay $20,000 to have those teeth right this instant and I wouldn't even think about putting braces on them." I think a lot of unhappy people think that their teeth are what is keeping them from being happy, when it is simply their attitude (or maybe depression), and when debanding day approaches/passes and the unhappiness does not wane... well, there can be a variety of responses.

Whenever I see keywords in a post, such as "crying," "panic attack," or something along the lines of "I told 5 orthos and none of them understand," I start to think to myself that teeth aren't the problem. Maybe since I'm a man I have a different outlook on this sort of thing than a woman would (most adults with braces are women), and I am just unable to understand.

I don't wish ill on any of these people, I genuinely feel bad, and I hope we can all eventually find happiness, which is so much more important than straight teeth

[macgirl4ever]

No, my intention wasn't to offend anyone at all. I agree that the phenomenon could very likely be linked to self esteem. I think most of us have thoughts, however, that if our teeth looked better or if we lost a few pounds, or if we could get our breasts/thighs/belly/butt tucked, enlarged or toned we would feel better about ourselves. Unfortunately, I think if people were asked what they expected braces to do for them, they would logically be able to rationalize that braces will not turn them into Angelina Jolie but I don't think that it's the rational part of the brain that causes such panic.

[evilnel]

I definitely see a lot of this around here. I see beautiful smiles that people would kill to have, and people are unhappy with them! Personally, I know my teeth aren't going to be 'movie star perfect' but they are going to be straight and healthy, and that's what matters. But I think you're right, I bet there would be a correlation between perceptions of imperfections and underlying emotional/self-esteem issues in some people.

[Bellalalala]

Patience is an incredibly difficult thing to maintain.

When it comes to braces, people's teeth are often a source of incredible insecurity. The process is long, confusing, painful, and the patient has virtually no control.

Trying to stay patient and sane through a process where the final product is unknown is extremely taxing on even the most balanced of people.

It's much easier for people to worry than to stay confident that everything will work out fine or that their teeth are finally done.

Also, after so long, it's very difficult to pull the plug and say, "this is it, I am prepared to accept no more improvement will occur here."

Lastly, it's completely normal for people to habituate to whatever state they are presently in. Therefore, someone with crooked teeth will look at much straighter teeth and think they would be happy with them, but it's a very different experience for the person who has the "good enough" teeth.

[fosterp]

Its American culture. Think of how many times in the average day you have media thrown at you. Advertisements, magazines, movies, television, the news, etc. Nearly everything has paid actors who have their job in part because they fit the aesthetic ideals of appearance. If you're constantly seeing people that are beautiful, have nice bodies, perfect teeth, you begin to think that is how the world is. Even though in your everyday interactions you may see otherwise, its hard to overcome our imperfections when we are always encountering perfection in mass quantities.

A person that is not overly conscious about their appearance probably does so out of ignorance rather than acceptance. They know they are not the brad pitt or angelina jolie of the world, but they just accept that some people are born beautiful and others are not.

However in the trials of getting braces, I think a lot of us, I know me especially, want to know as much as possible about the process that we are about to invest a ton of money and time into. In the process of educating ourselves we are able to pin specifically exactly what is wrong with our appearance. We already knew we didn't have pretty teeth, but now we know exactly why they are not pretty and what would be required to correct them. Sometimes we can't always get perfection, but since our brain realizes exactly what the problem is, its hard to dismiss the nagging impulse in our brain to want more ("if I could just fill in that triangle, or turn that tooth a little more").

I guess that is why some people are addicted to plastic surgery once they get started. They discover what exactly it is that doesn't just "look right" and so begins an obsession to correct it.

[loz876]

I think it's because we scrutinise our teeth daily and we see the tiniest things, things that other people would never notice, which feel so much worse than they actually are. So if someone has a slightly misplaced tooth, that would not be noticable from a normal distance, the person with this insecurity would think it extremly noticable (like me) just because all of us look at our teeth daily and study them in front of the mirror (well, I do ).