Disappointing results ever?

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#1 Post by **weird_wired** » Tue Dec 27, 2005 12:18 pm

Kind of a weird question, I know, but every single picture and experience I have ever read (here and elsewhere) seems to be positive and have a really good ending. Even the most alarmingly crooked or gappy or "double parked" mouths end up straight, perfect, gleaming rows.

So is it in fact possible to give pretty much everyone picture-perfect teeth?

Because if there really is pretty much a 100% success rate, that should give overwhelming confidence to people here wavering over having treatment.

#2 Post by **Evelyn** » Tue Dec 27, 2005 2:31 pm

I don't know about a 100% success rate but it must be pretty high, I don't know anyone who really thinks that their teeth were better before they got braces.

There are some instances that I can think of where you're not guaranteed a perfect result. For example there's a lot of us impacted canine people and I know when I was starting out they told me that there was a very small chance that the canine in question was ankylosed (I've probably butchered the spelling of that word

) but it basically means that the tooth is actually attached to the top of your mouth and can't come down. I'm not an expert on the subject thank goodness I didn't have to deal with that but that's my basic understanding of the whole deal, and that would be one of the many examples of why people can be hesitant to start.

The major reason though I believe as to why people are hesitant is because it really is a big deal and can be hassle to deal with cleaning, the questions/misunderstandings about braces, and when it comes down to it it requires a certain amount of humility for lack of a better word because you know you'll look different for the next couple years, a look that some may not like as much as they looked before, and you really have to keep your eyes on the prize and just trust that it will be worth it.

Just my 2 cents
~Eve

#3 Post by **asianflow** » Tue Dec 27, 2005 3:10 pm

I recently had my braces removed.

My teeth aren't model straight. My 2 top front teeth still stick out a little bit if you look at it from the side. Three of my teeth even have small white spots that couldn't be removed by the dentist. But even with this said, I'm extremely thrilled with the end result. I probably had the worst teeth and bite before I had my braces.

I'm no longer embarassed to smile or laugh with my mouth open.

#4 Post by **shinyam** » Tue Dec 27, 2005 3:34 pm

I had the exact same question, thanks for posting it for me.

I am not sure what the ortho is doing to me. My front teeth are still overlapping, and I have a large overjet and overbite. And it appears that he is in the finishing phase, since he said he only has one more wire after this.

I don't think anyone could ever be happy with my teeth the way they are now, and am worried that he thinks the teeth are fine the way they are.

#5 Post by **jenns91civic** » Tue Dec 27, 2005 10:37 pm

One more wire doesn't mean you're done. That just means you will have the same wire while he tweaks teeth around. You need a fairly strong wire for elastics to fix the bite issues so hakuna matata.

#6 Post by **warning1024** » Wed Dec 28, 2005 3:15 pm

I recently got my braces off after 2.5 years of treatment. I am 100% satisfied with the top teeth (which are, in my opinion, close to perfect), but would say that there is still probably a little room for improvement in my bottom teeth. I had a lot of crowding in the bottom teeth which has been greatly improved by braces, but the bottom arch is still just a touch off on one of my front four teeth. This particular tooth has been troublesome throughout my treatment so I don't think it would have been worth keeping the braces on any longer in the hope that it would suddenly shift into the perfect finishing position (furthermore, I think that if I have some minor shaving done on the tops of the front four teeth they will look closer to "perfect").

Both my upper and lower teeth look a lot better than they did prior to braces, so I am certainly happy with my results. However, I would say that there is still some minor improvement that could be done to my lower arch before I could call them "picture perfect" (then again, you pretty much only see upper teeth in a picture so maybe the term is appropriate ....

)

#7 Post by **Jennifer** » Fri Dec 30, 2005 7:22 pm

It will be 2 yrs with braces come January 7th. A far cry from 16 months . That is how long the orthodontist told me it would take. If they ever come off

I am looking at having to get veeners due to gaps that won't close due to a receding gumline and some boneloss. I had no idea that I would end up going through all this. Not to mention the price tag.

I am 46 yrs old and to be perfectly honest I am getting so sick of these food catching gadgets that I have lived with for 2 yrs. I just hope one day I can look into the mirror and be happy that I made the decision to straighted my teeth.

Sorry for being so negative, I'm just having one of those days.

#8 Post by **weird_wired** » Mon Jan 02, 2006 2:18 am

Thanks so much everyone for the honest replies!

I wonder though even with the complications how lovely your teeth will still look at the end. I know I can't wait to see your final pics!

I think a lot of the reason final pics look so amazing is because people get whitening done too - if you've ever played around with photoshop, you'll know just how effective lightening can be to your whole look. I think when I post my finals up, I will fake-lighten them (because the bleaching will take a month or so, and I'll want to see what they should be looking like!!)

#9 Post by **Chris** » Mon Jan 02, 2006 7:44 pm

Jennifer wrote:It will be 2 yrs with braces come January 7th. A far cry from 16 months . That is how long the orthodontist told me it would take. If they ever come off I am looking at having to get veeners due to gaps that won't close due to a receding gumline and some boneloss. I had no idea that I would end up going through all this. Not to mention the price tag. I am 46 yrs old and to be perfectly honest I am getting so sick of these food catching gadgets that I have lived with for 2 yrs. I just hope one day I can look into the mirror and be happy that I made the decision to straighted my teeth. Sorry for being so negative, I'm just having one of those days.

Jennifer...I know exactly how you feel...I'm 49 and been braced for 1 1/2 yrs now...I can't wait till its over and I can say I made the right decision. Right now, I wish I hadn't gone through with this to be honest with you all. BUT, I will stay somewhat positive and hope it all works out in the end. I knew I wasn't going to get everything perfect but I was hoping for a better bite. I wasn't expecting to have so many gaps, so much flare and uncomfortableness while eating. BUT, I am going to stay hopeful that the ortho I chose will do the best he can and somehow I can live with the final results.

I hate waiting.

#10 Post by **eurydice** » Sat Jan 07, 2006 7:16 am

I've been worrying about this issue too - when I saw my ortho yesterday she said my braces could be off in the next couple of months, but I'm far from happy with the results at the moment. Admittedly they're much much better and I'm loving having them change and get straighter but I still have a horrible overbite and the gaps top and bottom where I had 4 pre-molars out still haven't closed. I was told that I would be in braces for 18 months but I've only had them for just over 8 months so far. I'm supposed to be having moulds taken for my retainers next month? What does that mean? Will they come off soon after that? Arrrgghhh!! Whilst I can't wait to have them come off, I'd rather keep them on and achieve a better result - does there come a point at which they just won't move any more?

#11 Post by **vanilla** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 8:27 am

I'm not too fussed about attaining perfection. Sometimes I feel I may be the only one with lower standards on these boards.

I've never lost sight that I wanted my teeth straight. All the things that had annoyed me originally are now straightened out. However, I also have 2 peg laterals which were tucked behind my 2 top teeth and now they look like cool mini fangs! I kinda want to keep them cos I don't want to lose that character that perfect teeth don't seem to have. My ortho wants to bond them. I'll mull it over since I have a LONG time before I need to make that decision.

#12 Post by **dena** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 11:11 am

vanilla--I think I have low standards, too! My teeth have bothered me for so long that I think anything will make me super-happy. But I may become more of a perfectionist as I start to see real improvements. Who knows?

Chris and Jennifer--you may have your full stories somewhere else, so forgive the question if it's a repeat. But, were your teeth very crooked to begin with? I'm wondering if your teeth were alright to begin with and that's part of the frustration. And/or is it a situation where issues developed that couldn't have been anticipated (ie bone loss)? Sorry about your frustration. If either of you want to vent, we're happy to listen. It's frankly useful info to us, too. Thanks for sharing. Take care.

#13 Post by **asianflow** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 3:44 pm

I think there might be something about expectations in relation to how bad your teeth were when you started.

Just like what I said in my previous post, I'm brace free now and my top set of teeth aren't model perfect. Heck it's not even close yet I'm thrilled with the results.

With the exception of maybe 4 or 5 people, my teeth were worse off than anybody else on this site (at least the one's that provided pictures) and I'm including the old board that I started visiting over 3 years ago.
I remember my teeth/bite were so bad I was actually worried braces wouldn't even be able to help me at all.

#14 Post by **Chris** » Sun Jan 08, 2006 8:14 pm

dena wrote:vanilla--
Chris and Jennifer--you may have your full stories somewhere else, so forgive the question if it's a repeat. But, were your teeth very crooked to begin with? I'm wondering if your teeth were alright to begin with and that's part of the frustration. And/or is it a situation where issues developed that couldn't have been anticipated (ie bone loss)? Sorry about your frustration. If either of you want to vent, we're happy to listen. It's frankly useful info to us, too. Thanks for sharing. Take care.

My teeth weren't so crooked that I couldn't possibly live with them without ortho treatment. I needed to get 2 molar implants and a dentist suggested I first straighten my teeth and get things lined up. My bite was not the best and that was my main reason for getting braces. Some of the orthos in my pre-consult warned me that getting the bite better is alot more difficult in adults then just straightening teeth. Some of my front teeth were rotated a bit and the bottom crowded and somewhat crooked. Unfortunately, the canines were the worst and they are the most difficult to rotate because of long roots. I opted for the non-extraction route, some orthos wanted to extract and some didn't. Without extractions I knew I would have a fuller smile and it looks from the front very good but it FEELS so awkward. My deep bite isn't less deep and thats what I am really frustrated about. I thought by now my molars would be easily touching first instead of the front teeth. One side of my teeth are not straightening up at all. (I'm getting the "I think thats all we can do" look from my ortho). As I said before, I'm not finished yet so I am going to try to stay positive as to the final results. I'm just venting at this stage because I was expecting different results right now.