Metal Mouth Message Board

I was just wondering if anyone had any pictures of themselves after the removal of their upper (first, I think?) bicuspids? It's just a suggestion at the moment, but I figured since I'm in it for the long haul, I might as well just go for it to make everything perfect.

I'm just wondering how visible it'll be when you smile. Also, how long does it take for the extraction gaps to close?

EDIT: Does anyone have a picture of a bite plane? Or can tell me what to expect with getting one? I have an overbite, and my ortho wants to make sure I don't pop off my bottom brackets, so I'm getting one.

I'll let you know tomorrow! I'm having 4 bicuspids pulled, upper firsts and lower seconds. I've started a blog to track the progress so once the bleeding and gross stuff is gone, I'll be sure to put up some pics!

http://becksbraces.blogspot.com

I have had 4 bicuspids removed.. here is my smile.



Cant really see the holes.. But my tongue sure knows they are there hehe. My tongue is always playing with the wire that runs over the gap. But in general I have to pull my cheek back to see my holes, so dont worry.. You wont notice them gone

Kriz

Kriz, thank you for the picture! You're right, you can hardly tell. How long has it been? I'm curious as to how fast the gaps close.

I agree that the gaps are hard to see. I am not sure what type of "bite plane" you will get I had a fixed one but if you search the posts for "bite plate" there are pics of removable ones that look much like a retainer.
As for how fast the gaps close it depends on if the ortho is trying to close them or not. mine remained the same size from january until my adjustment in early june. that was the point when the ortho felt my canines had finally rotated into place and the gaps could be closed. now they are vanishing quickly and should be gone by my next adjustment in sept. there are lots of pics on my blog. feel free to check them out.

Hi there

If you visit my blog http://www.blog.co.uk/sarsarre
You will see I had the top and bottom two removed and to be honest they weren't really that noticable. After four months in braces my gaps have also closed up 2/3rds.

Here's my story, I had all four first bicuspids extracted:

viewtopic.php?t=9397

The first picture with the blue ligs is about two weeks after my extractions. On the second page you can see how the gaps healed up. The bottom extractions are a little more visible than the top ones, but that's only when I really bare my teeth (which only happens when I'm taking photos of them!) There's really no need to worry about what it will look like unless people are looking at you from the side and you are pulling your lip back.

My ortho hasn't tried to close the extraction gaps on the top yet. The bottom ones have had powerchains for about two months and are about halfway closed by now, but I think she's just trying to make room for one tooth on the bottom - not actually closing gaps.

Best of luck with your extractions!

Hi Toothfairy

I have shown below a photo of my bite plane. It is a removable one, so I just take it out to clean after meals. Apart from that it stays in 247. I have it to stop me biting the roof of my mouth as I have a 13mm overjet and it also prevents me biting off my lowers braces. At the beginning, this was the most difficult part of my treatment to adjust to. My ortho said 'You will hate this'. The first day I did think 'OMG What have I done'. I found speaking difficult as I had a lisp and couldn't pronounce certain words. But, please don't let this put you off, I just wanted to be honest with you, after about 4 days things became much easier. At this stage I'd advise anyone to stick with it, as your end result will far outway 4 days of inconvenience. I am 2 months further on now and I will say, if my ortho took it away from me now, then I'd be lost. As it is, it's with me for the duration! Hope it helps some and Good Luck

http://i94.photobucket.com/albums/l95/f ... L10918.jpg

PS. My ortho advised me to take a few days off work to adjust to the bite plane after I had it fitted, and I'm glad I took his advice. So if you haven't already made appts, I'd recommend getting it on a Friday to give you the weekend to adjust.

Julie

Fitchick, thanks for all your help. I'm not exactly looking forward to getting my bite plane because of the speech thing, but like you said, it's a few days of discomfort for good teeth.

Toothfairy,

You are right, that is the best way to look at it. Just keep telling yourself that perseverance will give you those straight, perfect teeth. I dreaded going to work as I speak to the public everday, but my colleagues were all so supportive. One even said that I sounded 'cute' with the lisp. In the end we all just laughed everytime I struggled with 'S' words. I also found lots of other words to replace the ones I'd normally use. Now I don't think about it, so stick with it, and if the going gets tough then just post on the board and we'll be here with lots of support to keep you going.

Julie