Considering braces

[Gia]

I had braces from 11-13 and wore upper retainer only through college, when my wisdom teeth came in and it didn't fit any more. In my late 20s my lower central incisor started to move. I saw an orthodontist who made an appliance (kind of like a retainer). I wore it as much as possible at work and religiously otherwise for more than a year. It worked, but even after a few hours out the tooth would move visibly albeit slightly. For lots of reasons, including serious health issues over the next few years, I stopped wearing it and diet go back. Fast forward. My teeth have shifted much more and multiple are crowded and crooked. The aesthetic bothers me, but over the past year my bite has become more problematic. At my dental appointment the other day, it appears I'm now bribing and am wearing porcelain off 3 molar/premolar crows on one side, upper central incisor is chipped and have microfractures on other incisors from bite issues. Dentist offered option as retainer to prevent further movement and night guard (which he said I should wear even during the day). It's probably the most economical option but doesn't make sense. I'm guessing braces are the other options and made appointments for two orthodontic consults. But just not sure can do braces, though I know the benefit of longer term solution.

[assertives]

Personally, I feel if your bite is getting uncomfortable and your teeth are showing premature wear, it would be worth it to get braces to correct your bite. The issues that come with a bad bite will not get better and would only get worse as time goes by because it is degenerative. I would say, just go for the consult and see what the orthodontist says.

[Gia]

Thanks.

[YankeeFan62]

Good Afternoon

I put off getting braces for many years. I am now in my 60's and 3 weeks into a full set of metal braces. I have some similar issues plus a few extras. While having braces at my age is a bit inconvenient, I am looking forward to the end result. My ortho said 12 to 18 months in braces while my regular dentist said probably closer to 18 months. I am figuring on 18 months.

No matter the journey, the end result is the prize. I say Go For It!

[cakers]

An orthodontist consultation can’t hurt. I am 38 and my teeth have been spacing out over time, in addition to a crossbite, and a couple rotated teeth. They look straight, but my bite was worsening, my lisp was worsening, and it seemed I was delaying the inevitable. I got my braces almost 4 weeks ago. I will have them for 2 years, but better now than ten or twenty years from now, eh? At any age, better to get it over with.

[Jami1]

I had several minor fixes through my regular dentist over the years which made small improvements but nothing major ( probably wanted the insurance coverage) . My smile has always bothered me and as I have gotten older, I seemed to be having more difficulty keeping my teeth clean. My teeth are otherwise very healthy. I decided to take the plunge in my mid fifties and have had ceramic braces for just under 4 weeks. The visible changes I am seeing are amazing even at this early stage. I was told the standard 18-24 months.... time will tell. Inconvenient? Heck yes, but I am so excited to finally have the smile I have always dreamed of!

[Gia]

I have several consultations next week. Once you made you decision how long did it take to get started. I'm on vacation the week of Labor Day and was thinking that might be a good chance to get used to things. Appreciate the advice from folks. This just feels a little overwhelming at my age, though I'm not normally someone who pays attention to age.

[assertives]

I think it depends on what you need to get sorted out before you get braced, i.e.: fillings? cleanings? teeth to be extracted? etc. I think if you don't need to get much done before getting braced, it would be faster.

For me, after I made my decision to go ahead, I had an appointment where my ortho took some photos, sent me for xrays and took a mould of my teeth. After this appointment, it would be another month or so before I got my top braces on because I had to get my wisdom teeth extracted together with 4 premolars. 2 of my wisdom teeth were impacted, so I had them out under general anaesthesia. I was braced at about 11 days after my extractions.

[EmilyTravels]

I got my braces on one week after my consultation; however, there was no requirement or pressure to do so. I wanted them on ASAP. I had scheduled a dental cleaning and checkup (with x-rays) one day before my orthodontic consultation just in case there was anything that needed addressing before braces. Fortunately there wasn't.

[jwbraces]

Just go with the braces if that is the best option. I just got mine on at 35 and regret not doing it sooner. The long-term benefits will be worth it.

[Gia]

Saw the first orthodontist, the same I saw 30 years ago. He examined x-rays and me. No surprise, my bite is problematic and likely to continue to worsen. Fixable but not a quick fix. Requires moving upper incisors out, torqing upper canines, opening the bite (70-80% closed versus being 10%), aligning crooked lower teeth, etc. He's recommending Invisalign which I have some concerns about in terms of speech, not really being able to drink coffee or tea during the day or eating breakfast and having coffee during my 1-1/2 hour commute each way. Speech is the biggest concern as I'm seeing patients, supervising staff or discussing/presenting cases during the day. He estimates 2+ years with 22 hour wear. We didn't discuss attachments or elastics. Because of the speech concern, he suggested making me an Essix retainer that albeit not the same, would be similar for me to get an idea. He's charging $90 which he would deduct from the Invisalign cost if I do that. Otherwise braces would be the option though not his preferred. I get the retainer to try for a week next Tuesday. I liked that he listened to the concerns and is trying to work with me including not wasting my money and crediting it if I go ahead. We didn't discuss overall cost. He also said he had a lisp when he did Invisalign 16 years ago, but his assistants said it was much slighter than he thought it was.

[Speck]

Among my chief concernth wath having a lithp with Invithalign. Luckily, no thuch thpeech impediment rethulted.

Best of luck to you!

[Gia]

thanks

[EmilyTravels]

It sounds like this first orthodontist is a real Invisalign man. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but you were smart to schedule several consultations. My ortho also does Invisalign (per a sign in his waiting room), but everyone I've seen/heard in there is wearing regular braces, so that is his bias. They are all so different!

From everything I've read, Invisalign is not as good for bite issues as standard brackets/elastics, but that may be an old wive's tale. Not sure! I didn't want Invisalign personally because of the same reasons you mention -- I am a coffee drinker and want to be able to sip for awhile in the morning. I am also a cyclist and need to be able to stop and have a snack during a long bike ride. I didn't want to have to remove an aligner for that and either leave it out for the rest of the ride or have to clean it off somehow to put it back in my mouth.

I think if you're a frequent nibbler or like to sip on liquids other than water throughout the day, braces are just simpler than Invisalign, but YMMV, of course.

[Gia]

Thanks. I agree with what you've said generally. He is a platinum provider, so I suspect that is his bias. I had done some general reading about Invisalign, and have concerns about addressing bite based on that. It does seem though that Invisalign has tried to improve in this area. I'm in healthcare and fortunate to work for a medical school, so today went and did a lot search. It appears that innovations like attachments, elastics, virtual bite ramps and power ridges are some of the developments to better address bite. That said they still say it's not as effective with rotated canines or intruding incisors. He mentioned my canines were rotated but we didn't discuss intrusion or extrusion. So I have a lot more questions. But having had second consult today, there's an even bigger quandry that I'll mention below.