How much does a second consultation cost?

[penguino]

Before I settled for my current orthodontist, I saw another one about a mile away from him, and had a free consultation there. He didn't take X-rays or pictures, just had me lie back in the chair and looked at my teeth. Anyway, I'm thinking about switching to him, but how would I even start, I've already had my consultation with him. I feel embarrassed that I didn't pick him and now I want him to take over my case.

Has anyone ever gotten a second consultation from the same orthodontist before? I don't know what I'll say if he asks why I didn't choose him in the first place. I can't lie and say it's because he's farther from my house, or say that his price was higher, because he is closer and his price was only $200 more than what I'm paying now. Tbh, the reason I was suckered into my current ortho is all the raving 5 star reviews he has. Whereas the ortho I want to switch to only has a few reviews, but I've seen pictures of his patients and their teeth look fantastic, in and after braces. He seems to put brackets centered on all of his patients, something that has been driving me mad with my mom. I've been complaining to her that my brackets are too low on my teeth and she said "the dr told you he did that because your teeth are long, just listen to him" my teeth are not long btw they are average sized. I feel like everything is wrong with my mouth: the wires, the lack of ligatures, the way my brackets are placed, and the caving in of my teeth just proves my point.

That's why I'm scared to try to work things out with my current ortho, because I feel like he hasn't done anything right since day 1, and will never do anything right. I'm still reeling over the fact that he told me he would only file between a few of my bottom teeth and then proceeded to file between every single fricken tooth. I wish I could show you pictures. Only four teeth on the bottom and two teeth on the top were "crowded" really they just needed to be rotated. I have all these gaps now, and I'm freaking out, because with all the space he created he might as well have extracted some teeth, which I was dead set against, as I've heard horror stories about people who've had teeth extracted.

I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place and desperately want to switch, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[Beckett]

My gut reaction is to side with your mom. He does know what he's talking about, you probably should listen to him. He's trained, you're not. How do you know your wires are wrong? Do you not have ligatures because you have self ligating brackets? A wire wouldn't stay in place without ligatures if they are standard brackets, but it will if you have Damon type brackets.

Reading reviews is a good thing, I wouldn't say you were suckered into the other guy because of that, but those reviews helped you make an informed decision. Where're or not it was the right one, well, we can't decide that for you. And neither can we even remotely tell you how much a second consultation would cost. That's up to the ortho. But taking over a case is not the same thing as a consult, he's going to be making a decision if he wants to take over existing work.

Gaps are important. Sometimes you can't even rotate teeth without some extra space for the tooth to fit into. Give it time, things often look way worse before they start to look better. How long exactly have you had your braces on anyway? I think you owe it to your current orthodontist to discuss your concerns before bailing out, because honestly, nothing you've said indicates he's terrible, just that you don't agree but you don't have anything to back it up except irritation.

My intention wasn't to come off sounding harsh, i apologize if it does.

[verso]

I'm also siding with mom on this one

[angelina]

I really think you're overthinking things and need to find a way to overcome your anxiety. For the record, I think some level of anxiety is completely normal when it comes to braces - they're big and painful and can be quite horrible.

But do try and trust your orthodontist, it sounds like they have fantastic reviews and that's very positive. Sometimes when we start out in braces our teeth look worse before they start to look better. I had a huge gap between my two front teeth at the start which never existed prior - and very quickly it started to close up. I know sometimes mine appear to 'spread out' and then I'll have a powerchain put on and they'll quickly close up again. I figure it's because they need to space out to straighten, then be pulled back in to get rid of the gaps.

Please try to stop yourself from panicking for your own wellbeing

[sirwired]

The consult would probably be free, but switching would cost quite a bit, as your current ortho has already put a lot of money and effort into you. It's not a matter of just stopping payments one place and starting them with another.

And, as other posters have said, you probably don't have ligatures because you likely have self-ligating brackets.

Your teeth themselves might not be "long" but if they are extruded they'll look that way.

Were you offered an extraction plan and refused or did you insist on no-extractions before the plan was even formulated? Because if you need space (and it's nearly impossible for a layman to evaluate how much space is needed), that space needs to come from somewhere. ("Horror stories on the internet" are a really bad way of making decisions... the vast majority of extractions go just fine, and if they aren't done when necessary, there are risks there too.)

Every case is unique, you can't judge the proper course of action by casually glancing at other folk's braces.

[verso]

Here, I think I can allay any fears that you might have, as you seem to be an incredibly anxious but otherwise reasonable individual...

First, know this: your orthodontist stands to lose A LOT on every patient he takes on. Every time a bracket touches tooth, his license, board certification, private practice; his income, livelihood, reputation... it's all on the line. If he screws up a patient's mouth due to negligence, he's finished.

So there's just no reason for him to throw on your braces all wonky and incorrectly and then leave them that way. If he tells you that it's correct and it's the way it should be, you might be reluctant to believe him with a couple thousand dollars already invested in this thing, but he's got his entire livelihood riding on you too. You should believe him.

Do doctors and dentists and orthodontists sometimes make mistakes? Sure. But I'd be really, really surprised if this were one of those mistakes. It would be an enormous, monumental mistake to make. I think your orthodontist knows what he's doing.

[oldfart]

Type up your list of questions. And send it to your office. Maybe someone can answer all your concerns. I remember you posted a pic some time ago, and I thought either your front teeth were too low, or your back teeth were too high. Having a wire that is lower in the front than the back may adjust that also. Filing between teeth is pretty common. You say lack of ligatures? Do you have self closing brackets? or do you actually have teeth where there is nothing holding the wire in the brackets. If you want additional ligatures for colors so you can have fun a bit, just ask. I've heard of quite a few that would do them just to make their patients happy. But also I know that adding ligatures to self closing brackets can actually slow down braces.

The other question you can ask is "How many months would it add to treatment, and what would be the additional cost if the brackets were moved to the middle. If this added another 6 months.. or a year.. or $1000 to the treatment cost would you be doing it? Most orthos will work with you in regards to the treatment plan. Or at least work with your parents. Patience satisfaction is important and often they can do things different.

[Ziggy]

It sounds like you need to make an appointment with your current ortho. I think braces are both science AND art. It never looks right in the beginning as trying to build symmetry in your mouth often requires some very unsymmetrical processes. Make a list of questions and make an appt. with your ortho to answer them. Don't say you're thinking about seeing someone else, just that you don't understand the process and want him/her to answer some questions. I'm sure you will get good answers and feel less anxious about your treatment. Now, if your ortho won't see you, or won't answer your questions, you have a good case for seeing someone else. Keep us posted on what happens.

[Welshrarebit]

Oldfart, I think you may be confusing me and penguino. I posted a photo of my braces where the brackets are placed on the edges of the teeth, not the centres.

I was as freaked out as penguino, at the start. I even rang another Ortho, convinced I'd made the wrong choice and I hated the way my braces looked. But I decided to wait and trust.

4 months in and they are progressing exactly as I wanted. I think the best thing you can do is write an email outlining your concerns and admit that you may just be being paranoid but an explanation would be really reassuring for you. Your ortho would much rather have the chance to put your mind at rest than just lose you as a client for (potentially) no reason.

[DrJasonKTam]

The cost of a consultation is going to depend on each office. Not all offices offer a free initial visit or secondary visits.

In our office, there is a difference between a consultation for someone who has braces on (locally) and someone who does not. The idea of the free consultation is to lower the barriers to a potential patient who is looking for orthodontic treatment. Over the course of my career, for whatever reason, there are patients that do not choose our office, but wish to be seen again afterwards for an opinion. We do have a fee for these patients to book their visit and be seen, but will apply this towards their visit, since we receive a lot of requests for 2nd opinions while in treatment. Someone from out of town who has moved into the area is different.

Keep in mind that your treatment is now likely more complicated because every orthodontist has a different plan and likely uses different appliances.

Sometimes it just takes time to let the teeth get into place. Space is a good thing in orthodontics. Without enough room, teeth cannot move. If you have concerns, speak directly to your doctor and let them know your concerns. Good luck!