If u r Not happy: Would you change your Ortho ?

[Noni]

I am actually not very comfortable with my ortho , he lacks of planning , very random person .

I never know his plans , not even an estimation , I thought I'm goigng to have my upper braces off very soon , until I realized there are other issues needs to be fixed , which he doesn't really agree .

First : My bite issue , when I say I know that crossbite is almost corrected and my TMj is better than before but I still feel uncomfortable with my bite , or even when I chew!!! His response is you will get used to it bc for years you have been chewing differently .
I agree , but I still have pain I can't find my correct bite .

Second , it took him a while to be convinced to fix my second molar which needs to be moved inward , and finally I got the molar band but the wire is not reached yet , I should be getting new wire in the next visit, and he said if this molar impacted the other teeth I will remove the molar band .so i said its ok to extract the wisdom teeth if it is about the space , but he doesn't want to .

As I said earlier in my story , I had a straight teeth , and I liked my smile , now my front teeth are missed up !! Im very upset , the left one was longer , and now it is shorter and instead of being straight like this || , my front teeth are like that now |/ .

When he he repositioned the bracket to fix it , he also missed positioning the bracket which made it too short and not straight , he is not very precise ,he works in a rush , doesn't even like when I complain about my teeth , isn't his job to calm me down by saying that all will be fixed at then of the treatment .


Now , I have consulted another ortho ( the first ortho i visited and wanted to extract my wisdom teeth ) who is better in communication and he raised all the points that are of my concern . I regret that I ran away last time for not extracting my wisdom teeth .
It has become clear the reason I needed to have them extracted .


What do you think guys ??? If you don't trust your ortho not even the quality , and they way of communication , would you change to another one ???


The new ortho said the treatment migt needs a year !! I am very stressed with the braces I hate them , but I want to have nice and healthy teeth .

[BetsyBug]

Noni,
I think you have valid concerns. However before you jump ship, I think I would make an appointment to meet the ortho face to face again. (not in the dental chair) and express your concerns including him seeming rushed, his lack of purpose and all the other things you mentioned. Then I would request a new plan of action addressing all the concerns you have with your teeth. If he still doesn't seem overly concerned about your wellbeing then I would dump him.

I hope this helps, I'm not sure if I actually answered your question. But thats how I would handle it.

[Noni]

Thanks elizabith , I actually talked about my concerns , and his answer for some : it is not possible to correct !! And for some he says this is normal .

Actually from the second month I had this feeling , and tried to give him chances , every time I go I used to tel my self let's see how does this visit go and what would his responses be , but Iam afraid that I will waist more time by giving chances every month , than I did before .

For the three past months I don't see any improvements , but rather as I mentioned my straight teeth are missed up .

[kreyFL]

So sorry to hear of your experience

However, you are only 6 months in. Did he ever give you a general estimate? I mean 1 year or 3 years? That would make a big difference IMO. If you had a standard sentence of 18-24 months there is still plenty of time for things to change and be addressed. If you are just unhappy in general, I wouldn't hesitate to change orthos and I would suggest doing it now rather than later. If its really just a matter of his bedside manners, or lackadaisical attitude, I don't know that I would be able to put up with that either...but it could be something that you could speak with him about, you just have to be very blunt and direct about it. Sometimes saying things like "I want to be proud to tell people I had my teeth fixed by you, but I am unhappy with the progress..." will change his attitude about how hes doing things.

I wouldn't stop at just one opinion if you are actually considering changing orthos. I'd probably go speak with another one and see what they say. If #3 repeats what #2 said - then that should make the decision of switching even easier.

To answer your question directly - Yes, I would considering switching if I really felt that it was best for the quality of my treatment.

Good luck to you!

[Noni]

Thanks KreyFL , I'm not happy in general , I actually prefer not to change my Ortho And want to continue the treatment with him rather than going to another one.

But it too overwhelming for me , Hating the braces and not feeling comfortable with my ortho. That's too much for me


I might visit 3rd ortho to see what advice would he give me .

Thank you guys for your responses .

[ArchWired28]

Noni
do you know how long has your ortho been in business? I am asking because my ortho may also seem rush (I think most of them are - this is just the way they do it) and I am not always happy with what he says, but deep down I know he's probably right. He has been practicing for 30 years though.

Some points you mentioned I actually agree with him, you WILL get used to a new bite. I also had crossbite that was corrected. I also am not comfortable with my bite yet, but I know that my bite was changed and my teeth and jaws are not used to it. I need to give it time, this was a serious change. And you said "almost" corrected, again, this "almost" may be a big deal.

I have also had TMJD which got a lot better with braces. I am not 100% pain free but A LOT better. Do I want to be 100% pain free? Of course. Do I believe it is possible? Probably not. And if it is, this will happen with time when my teeth get used to a new bite and not because they tilt a tooth a bit this way or that way.

Another ortho may agree with you now because he wants your money. But when you actually transfer, you may find out that hardly anything has changed. If you will be Ok should this happen, go ahead. If not, wait. You are only 6 months in. What is your total time? Even if it's only one year, a lot may change in 6 months. You can always transfer later if you are so not happy. Think about this.

[nikkibabie19]

I most definately would. But i mean i dont know how plausible that would be.

I am on a 2year monthly installment plan for the braces. So changing orthos would mean that I have to pay him off and then start another treatment plan with another ortho after i have shopped around to find someone that I liked.

So for me I would try talking or expressing my concerns with him/her and see where it goes from there.

[rtergeggde]

it depends on how far into the original treatment and if the new treatment is going to add to the duration because i refuse to waste the rest of my 20s being in braces any more than now.

[Noni]

Thank you all for your responses , I decided to switch to another ortho , and have already started the treatment with him .

One thing , very important to me , is to feel comfortable , and I hope that I don't regret it .

Adding more months to my treatment , I really don't know , but I had an estimation of 6-9 months . At least I have estimation now ( hope it won't take 9 months though )

It has been busy week with my ortho and I did spent around 4 hours in the clinic today , for. Deboneding and getting rebraced again , and the I had my wisdom teeth removed which I can't believe I have done it !! I was so scared .

I had all the brackets removed , and it was painful my teeth are so sensitive and my ortho planned to place thee braces again by the coming days , and said enjoy couple of days without the braces and I thought it was a nice idea, when I saw my teeth cleaned and naked , I thought to not have them again lool , I had to see the dentist in the same clinic and I really had this fleeing of going back to my ortho and tell him that I don't want the braces while I was sitting there ,what a relieved feeling it was .

But then he called and said I have enought time today to put the braces again


I will be updating my story with details .