Getting braced up tomorrow

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#1 Post by **motoyen** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 6:04 pm

Hey gang,

I'm a 35yo male and I'm currently on a 6 month holiday in Thailand and I decided to take advantage of the time here by fixing my teeth. I'm getting the damon system and I've been told my treatment time is 12-14 months. Kinda nervous about how it's going to feel tomorrow, a year seems like a long time until I get them off. I'll try to get some pictures up tomorrow.

#2 Post by **berkshirebraces** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 7:03 pm

Good luck with your experience. I will be 40 next month and getting braced tomorrow as well (for the 2nd time - I was 13 the first go around). I need to take some before pics as well!

#3 Post by **Kaluna** » Mon Jan 21, 2008 11:33 pm

Congratulations on getting braces tomorrow. Hope all goes well!

#4 Post by **KatieBug** » Tue Jan 22, 2008 12:42 pm

Congrats and hope today went well. How big is the cost difference over there?

#5 Post by **motoyen** » Wed Jan 23, 2008 8:53 pm

Well it's done and quite a different experience from the last time I had braces at age 11. Right now my mouth feels tight but not painful. I have a deep overbite so the ortho built up my back molars so that my front teeth do not hit the bracket. My question for those that have had a similar procedure what do you eat? I'm in Asia right now and I tried to eat some noodles but couldn't really bite down on them. I was eating a lot of rice here but is that going to be possible now?

As for cost. The total cost to me was just under 70,000THB or just over $2000. You can actually get it cheaper than that but the ortho I chose caters to mostly Japanese and European clients and therefore his cost and service are higher.

#6 Post by **SolarFeline** » Tue Jan 29, 2008 4:41 am

motoyen wrote:Well it's done and quite a different experience from the last time I had braces at age 11. Right now my mouth feels tight but not painful. I have a deep overbite so the ortho built up my back molars so that my front teeth do not hit the bracket. My question for those that have had a similar procedure what do you eat? I'm in Asia right now and I tried to eat some noodles but couldn't really bite down on them. I was eating a lot of rice here but is that going to be possible now?.

You had your teeth built up too! Feels weird at first, and then the ortho is able to move your teeth back to where they are supposed to be. Eating rice is going to be "interesting"! I have found that after eating a rice dish in Australia, I have to wash my mouth out, then brush, then wash my mouth out to make sure I don't have any food between my teeth and brackets and arch-wire. I still eat steak and other meats, I just don't after an adjustment, and a few days after an adjustment. Soft foods are the go until your mouth doesn't hurt.

motoyen wrote:As for cost. The total cost to me was just under 70,000THB or just over $2000. You can actually get it cheaper than that but the ortho I chose caters to mostly Japanese and European clients and therefore his cost and service are higher.

Is this including your retainer?

Tue Jan 29, 2008 7:53 pm

I never took any before pictures

Don't make that mistake like I did!

- mariah

#8 Post by **moonchick** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 9:28 am

When eating rice, I found that adding hot water and letting it soak for a bit tends to soften it up and make it easier to eat. And right after an adjustment, I'm usually eating foods that involve alot of tofu or stews where the ingredients have been softened from long cooking.

#9 Post by **motoyen** » Wed Jan 30, 2008 9:32 pm

1 week on now and eating isn't getting much better. I think my ortho built up one side too much as I can only really bite down on my left side. I'm going to make an appointment to have him correct this.

I've been eating or swallowing a lot of soft rice. I had some teriyaki steak the other day and it took me a looooong time to eat it. One thing I have to be careful about is Thai food is incredibly spicy and not to get some of those spices stuck in my braces!

Here's some before and 1 week pictures. I got the braces mainly for my bottom teeth as they were very crowded.

#10 Post by **motoyen** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 12:55 am

Had a major setback today. I had to cut my trip in Thailand short so I'm back in Canada and I went to my ortho today to talk about continuing my treatment.

I've had my braces on now for about 6 months and I was told in Thailand that my total treatment time would be 12-14 months.

Well today my ortho told me that he needs to make a correction to my current treatment and that I'm looking at another 12 months from today! But the worse part is he's going to charge me $5000 to continue my treatment. On top of the $2000 I spent in Thailand that will bring my total treatment to over $7000!

Right now I'm tempted just to tell him to yank these things off. I really can't stand having braces on, I thought I would get used to it but I'm not and I really hate them. If I rip them off now I'm only out $2000 instead of $7000 if I continue with the treatment. This really sucks!

#11 Post by **Audra** » Wed Jul 16, 2008 7:37 am

What type of correction does your new Ortho want to make?

#12 Post by **motoyen** » Thu Jul 17, 2008 6:11 am

He said my teeth aren't aligning properly so he needs me to wear elastics.

#13 Post by **Audra** » Thu Jul 17, 2008 6:55 am

If the alignment is off - meaning your bite - then I think it's important for you to stick with it. An improper bite can affect a lot of things so it's not something to decide lightly. A few crooked teeth, with only an aesthetic component would be a different story entirely.

I know it sucks. I've only had braces for about 10 days and I can't say that I love it. But I know it will be worth it in the end because I have such a wonky bite.

It's completely natural for you to want to just get them off. Maybe think about it for a bit before you make the decision.

Good luck in whatever decision you make.