TPA, extractions, oh my!

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luxekitty
Posts: 80
Joined: Mon Dec 05, 2005 3:28 am
Location: California (land of annoyingly beautiful smiles)

TPA, extractions, oh my!

#1 Post by luxekitty »

I just got back from my appointment, my TPA expander was fitted and placed. Now I truly know what the term "metal mouth" is, and I don't even have my full top arch wire on the top, and no arch wire on the bottom! Let alone all the brackets, needless to say I don't understand how I'm going to talk in a few months! lol

So far the TPA isn't bugging too much, just a bit wierd when I eat. But, it's only been on an hour, so I know the fun is yet to begin. =/ I asked my ortho how long I'd have to wear it and got bombshell #1: until the end of my treatment (since my case is apparently "complex")! Arrrugh!

Bombshell #2? I need all 4 of my extractions done by my next appointment in a month! *another deep sigh* He also removed a bracket so the tooth could be extracted.

I'm worried about the TPA because I already have a speech impediment due to celft palette repair when I was young, now I'm afraid I'll sound worse. :( And, the extractions are gonna make me looked like Gappy Toothed Joe, I'm already having dating worries with the braces alone...sigh.

Once again I'm left thinking, "What'd I get myself into". :roll: :shock:

Added: Can you use whitening products (like that crest paint-on stuff) while in braces? obviously you can't use the strips but I was just wondering about the other products.
Braces off 9/19/08!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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Bianca
Posts: 82
Joined: Sun Jan 15, 2006 11:45 am
Location: WA State

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#2 Post by Bianca »

First thing - welcome to the world of TPA's... I've had mine for just over a month, and it's okay most of the time, and really frickin' annoying occasionally.

Talking is still annoying, and eating is a pain in the butt... It takes me forever to eat salads. :) It's good for portion control, I guess!

About tooth whitening - I don't think it's recommended while wearing braces. Consider this - you have brackets on your teeth and use tooth whitening, which turns your smile beautifully white. What happens when the brackets come off? Yep, you guessed it - you will have beautiful white teeth, and awful yellow squares where your brackets used to be. Not a pretty picture!
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It's a two year process.......
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sophielafille
Posts: 25
Joined: Thu Nov 17, 2005 2:06 pm

#3 Post by sophielafille »

Good luck luxekitty!!

You sound like me....TPA, 4 extracted teeth, and really wanting to whiten! I'm going to the ortho to get my ties changed today. Thinking about going pink.

The TPA is not too bad, like someone said, it makes salad very hard to eat! Also, I went out for vietnamese the other night, there was shredded cabbage and thin noodles in the food. These ended up all wound around the TPA. Argh.

xoxox
SOPHIE
Braces on November 16, 2005: Ceramic Uppers, Metal Lowers
Frenectomy done on December 5, 2005
4 extractions done on December 10
TPA installed Jan 16, 2006
Elastic Triangles started June 8, 2006
BRACES OFF!!!!!!!!!! July 17, 2007
now wearing two removable retainers. Yeah!!!!
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