Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi, I am a 15 year old with an overjet and a weak chin. I used to have braces for 3 years, and as given a pair of retainers (but I lost my upper one, I didn't really get to use it) and a few months I noticed that my upper teeth began to stick out, an overjet. I can't get it checked by a professional as of this moment because we just migrated from a different country, and my parents can't support us financially at the moment because they don't have any source of income. I have my own options, and surgery... I'm not willing to take it. It's a high risk for me, because I am really scared about getting my jaw split into half, that and such. I've also heard sometimes I doesn't turn out quite well. There's some horrifying post-op pics that I saw, all the bruising and discomfort. And they mentioned something about permanent numbness (yikes). My best bet is probably functional orthodontics, but I'm worried that maybe it's a bit late for me (mostly, younger patients are treated with functional appliance and it does work efficiently) and maybe it wouldn't really turn out as I expect. And as of the weak chin, I wouldn't like tohave any cosmetic procedures done as well (augmentations, fillers, etc.) because It doesn't really fix your bite. If it's probably too late, and my options are out maybe I'll resort to surgery. It costs so much money, and I'm afraid to take the risks. I feel really bad about it each day. And I don't know what to do. Any help would be much appreciated. Thanks

Hello, well it is very hard to gauge if you need surgery based on your description. Plus you are still young. I am not very sure about the dental health in the country you live in but you could just consult an orthodontist from a decent dental clinic in your area, im sure it wouldn't cost that much. My school dentist told me I needed surgery so it was pretty quick and clear cut.

I used to be like you when I was younger, I had an underbite, and underbites are not as common, so I had a lot of self esteem and image issue. I started to not care after awhile but the horror came back when my good friends made nasty comments about my jaw. It was a terrible emotional roller coaster I recently got jaw surgery like 4months back and I am generally quite happy now

At 15, the thought of surgery was quite terrifying, I HATED needles, so surgery was like a confirmed NO then. But I grew older (im 19 now), and well i started to loosen up a little. Corrective jaw surgery is classed under functional and cosmetic, because of that, we didn't have to pay A LOT, or more than expected.

Oh and, the years in which I didn't care about my jaw was when I surrounded myself with people that loved and enjoy me for who I am, I think that really helped.