which braces are best?

[Tobilei]

. It was an easy decision in the end!!

I am totally mental. Nothing is an easy decision.

Oh this is me!! I agonized for a month and a half every day! I did so much research my brain was spinning and my head hurt!! I was worried about whether or not I would look like I had really weird teeth, who would see them, would they stain etc etc.

I didn't go the incognito. My ortho said that I would get a better result from regular style braces and also the cost was a whole lot more. He was also upfront about the incognito's they use here being relatively new technology (plus I had to wait 6 weeks for them to be made and sent here from the US).

I did choose the clear in the end. I have Damon Clear Self ligating on top and I think clarity 3m on the bottom (they have ligatures). I have smoke coloured ligs and I drink 2-3 coffee's a day (and eat tomato pasta sauces and soup). I haven't had a problem with any kind of staining and I'm a month in. I think if you eat curry though it's a different story (from what I've read, I've not been game enough to try-I too would consider yellow ligs a dental emergency!). I decided though that I couldn't face looking at metal (as vain as that sounds, generally I'm not a vain person).

A girl at my ortho's office has metal on the bottom and clear self ligating on the top and she said she loves the clear one's way more than her metal one's because they cause her a lot less ulceration and problems. I've had a few with mine but can't compare because I have clear top and bottom.

Once you have them on your teeth though I think it stops mattering. Good luck with making your decision (sorry to go on so much! Still fresh in my memory!)

[oldfart]

" I did so much research my brain was spinning and my head hurt!"

This is me. I am the worst patient as I read about everything before I go in.

My personal motto is that I know a little bit about everything and a lot about nothing.

Tonights google category: "Orthodontic Tooth Movement through Maxillary Sinus".

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[Tobilei]

" I did so much research my brain was spinning and my head hurt!"

This is me. I am the worst patient as I read about everything before I go in.

My personal motto is that I know a little bit about everything and a lot about nothing.

Tonights google category: "Orthodontic Tooth Movement through Maxillary Sinus".

of

Haha, you win! Although I do remember researching different types of brackets, how much they hurt, how big they felt, staining issues and looking at endless photo's of metal vs clear braces. I had invisalign as an option also so before I even decided on which brackets I spent 2 weeks trying to decide invisalign or braces! Argh!

[oldfart]

It's like going into your closet, and trying to decide. What color shirt you want to wear for the next two bleeping years.. and maybe longer.. Now you can accessorize the shirt with a tie or something. But this shirt is what everyone will be looking at for many many days.

[Tobilei]

Hahahaha, exactly! And what if you choose a shirt that looks weird?!?! Or if you're like me you can't accessorize at all because what you put on is what you get!

[Happyteachk]

I have a full set of metal braces at 42 and love them!

[oldfart]

On guys trying to maintain some professionalism in their look. What do you think is more attractive. Metal or ceramic? I should just let my wife decide but think her response would just be. Whatever is cheapest.

[Tobilei]

No one can answer for you exactly but I think a lot of people who are in professional jobs do choose the clear. For me, the extra I have spent is definitely worth it (it really wasn't *that* much extra overall in comparison to how much they cost anyway).

[Ellabelle]

@oldfart:

I vote for metal. My FI is getting metal braces with me in 16 days (but who's counting?). He's older than you (45), and his attitude is "I don't care what anyone thinks. I'm doing what's good for me. Metal is more durable, faster treatment time, and cheaper. I see no downsides." He has a professional career and didn't give that a second thought. I'm trying to adopt his attitude more, as I tend to be more nervous about what other people think, and as an active step towards achieving this confidence level I've opted for metal and we're both planning on doing colored ligs. If I'm going to do this, I'm going to use it as a growth experience, and a lesson in humility, confidence, and maybe to even have a little fun along the way.

I don't begrudge anyone their decision, I know it's a very personal choice that we all have spent countless hours agonizing about. I'm like you, googling like mad, to the point of near-obsession. But at the end of the day, braces are braces. Anyone relatively close when interacting with you knows you're wearing them anyway. I feel like ceramics are the toupee of braces, you're not fooling anyone. If that's your personal preference, more power to you and I completely respect that. But no one should get ceramics because they think other people will be more accepting of/oblivious to them.

And as to your other question, top vs full, I say if it's worth doing, it's worth doing right. I'd say go full monty and do both arches.

[TMJJill]

I'm in the Damon self-ligating braces. Clear on my front top 10 and the rest are metal.

I really love the self-ligating braces. No worry at all about dealing with ligs. My ortho visits are usually quick and easy too. They just pop open the doors, pull the wire out, I get to brush and floss, the dentist checks things out, then the wire (or a new one) is placed back in and the doors are popped closed.

I can't say I physically notice a difference between the metal and the clear ones. The clears are a bit larger, but not much of a differnece. They were both pretty comfortable. I've never had issues with the brackets rubbing. I had a bunch of hooks added a couple months ago. I like the hooks on the metal much better than the wires they use on the clear ones so if you are getting a ton hooks, I'd recommend all metal.

I had my clear braces on for quite a while until some of my co-workers even noticed I had them so I'd say if you are looking for something less conspicuous that you might want to consider the clears.

[oldfart]

"I'd say go full monty and do both arches."

That could be interesting.

[Ellabelle]

Haha I mean go all out and do both top and bottom braces. Do remain clothed, at least til winter's over.

[Jerseygirl]

On guys trying to maintain some professionalism in their look. What do you think is more attractive. Metal or ceramic? I should just let my wife decide but think her response would just be. Whatever is cheapest.

I've seen several male colleagues (very high level corporate executives) at my company with braces - and all wear clear. I think they look great. I've yet to see metal on anyone recently - since I began to notice.

I'm 46, female and care a lot about how I look both professionally and personally. I work with people all day long - so it was a big decision for me and I, like you, went back and forth with the decisions. Self ligating was not something I had to think about as my ortho only uses traditional brackets with ligatures. But I did have the choice of metal top and bottom or metal bottom and ceramic on top.

I let my ortho help me with the decision and I went with clear ceramics on top and metals on the bottom. You really do not see the metal in my mouth - it all depends on your smile though, each person is different. I have silver or gray ligatures that go on the metal brackets. On top I have tooth colored ligatures - and I get adjustments every 3 weeks. I drink about 2 cups of coffee a day and I'm not a red wine drinker. I don't watch every thing I eat or drink for fear it will stain - but I do brush 3 times a day.

I have to admit I was terrified of all this STAINING people were talking about. The last thing I wanted was to look like I had a mouth full of corn kernels! But for me, it has NOT been an issue. Do the ligs stain individually from three weeks of coffee? Yes they do - but it's minimal. If I look at my braces with a magnifying mirror I can see all the stains but do others notice? NOPE! When I leave after and adjustment my smile definitely looks whiter because the ligs are now back to original color, but it is nothing I am ashamed of before they are changed. I guess for some people it's been a big issue and perhaps it has to do with how often they brush and what all they eat - but for me I've been very pleasantly surprised.

My ceramics and metals cost exactly the same. Not sure why some orthos charge more for ceramics - but it's a shame they do. Durability and strength - my ortho has had no problems with the strength and durability of my ceramics doing their job on top. If you click on my previous posts you can see some of my photos of just how quickly my top teeth have moved - in fact they've lined up faster then my bottom teeth. And I was also told that metals will not move my teeth quicker than my ceramics - my timeframe for being braced remains the same. But if others are told this is the case - perhaps it is an individual thing.

Lastly - comfort factor. I also wondered about this. And again different brackets by different companies are going to feel different - but for me, I think the metals are actually a big rougher. Ceramics feel smoother to me - but you get use to both, so I would definitely not let that be a deciding factor.

Best of luck - you'll make the right decision and I guarantee you will say to yourself "why did that seem so difficult?"

[cocobear]

I went with a full mouth of ceramic, mostly because I feel better in them. Of course, there's no hiding the fact you have braces, everyone will know, but for a few hundred bucks more, it makes me feel a bit less like a teenager so I went for it. In hindsight, I think that in a few months it won't make any difference so metal would have been fine too. Ceramic is a bit smoother though.

[kennyandrew85]

Good choice, you'll be happy 6 months down the line when you're comfortable to smile in photos long before they come off