Metal Mouth Message Board

So this morning was my ortho appointment to have my spacers taken out and braces on... Ceramic upper, metal lower. Thinking I was totally prepared for this, the orthodontist decided that she was not putting the bottoms on until my bite opens up more. She talked to me about my options, bump guards, turbo bite, or delay for 6-8 weeks. So, here is sit, uppers on and no bottoms until September. She told me my treatment will not be extended by this delay. But now glad for the decision that was made since this allows me to ease into this process a bit.

Same thing happened with me. I actually did not like having my bottoms done later, even though I understood why it was necessary. I felt like I had just adjusted to having braces when I had to go through that adjustment period all over again once I got my bottoms braced. I wished that I could have got all the initial discomfort out of the way right away. But, really, the alternative of bite guards and turbos sound just as annoying if not more, so it really doesn't matter either way. How do you feel with your uppers right now? I bet it feels weird, huh!

My total treatment time was estimated at 24 months. I didn't get my lowers on until 11 months in when my uppers were in place bite-wise. This didn't change my treatment estimated time. I'm going long, but that is because I have a couple really really pokey teeth, not because of the treatment plan.

This was what happened with me too. Initially, my treatment plan was for brackets on my upper teeth, a bite plate, then brackets on my lower. However, my bite opened much more quickly than my ortho expected so I never needed the bite plate. I got my lower brackets on in March. I think it is pretty common.