Already one year into my quest and now I find y'all!

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#1 Post by **Wired1** » Tue Oct 24, 2006 10:57 am

I didn't even know about this message board until I was surfing yesterday. Boy do I feel silly, but awfully happy to find this board...

I'm about a year into my journey already: my palate expander was put in place Oct. 29 2005, my buccal corticotomy (and wisdom teeth extractions) happened on Nov. 10, 2005, I got some of my braces mid-December and the full set was completed in January.

I suppose the toughest part of all this has been the fact that my teeth haven't meshed since the surgery, so I haven't been able to chew food in almost a year; the expansion put about 1/4" of width into my top jaw -- it's pretty incredible. But - I have lost 70 lbs, and my teeth are getting straighter every day, so I'm pretty happy.

I'd love to hear from anyone who has had this type of expansion -- I have absolutely no expectations left as to when I might be able to chew again... but would like to get some feeling for it. My ortho just says it will happen. Kinda like when they told me I'd have my expander for 6-8 weeks... and that lasted 10 months.

Oh, a bit about myself: I'm a 49 year old wife, mom to two teenage boys, and archer.

Hope I can contribute a bit to easing anyone's anxiety over this process -- I've had some bumps in the road, but nothing that couldn't be fixed.

Thanks for reading!

#2 Post by **Wired1** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 11:26 am

Thanks for the SUPER warm welcome!

Losing all the weight was a really cool secondary effect of the surgery -- my doc said that most of his patients either gain 30 lbs or lose 30 lbs. depending on how they managed food (McDonald's shakes become standard fare for lots of people). I worked with my physician on finding non-chewable food that would get me 40g of protein and be healthy. Holding to a fairly stable regimen, I was able to also experiment with the cause of high cholesterol (suspected and confirmed genetics). It's also taught me how much food I reallly need... and don't need. It's been a really incredible year.

And no, I'm no angel about food -- I had to walk out of the kitchen the other day when my husband brought home a Carl's Jr. burger... I just wanted to smush my face in it!! It's actually my family who keeps asking me when I'll be able to eat "real" food again. They feel guilty eating in front of me... especially with Thankgiving coming up and I'll be making stuff I can't eat.

I guess it is a bit hard to visualize how nothing is meshing. I'll try to get my "before" photos from the ortho in order to show you where we started. My lower molars had collapsed inward around 60 degrees, so the braces have been pulling them up. I suspect I'll be getting elastics this week to pull two stubborn molars out further. My upper molars are flared out slightly and the upper jaw is wider than the lower jaw. As soon as the lower molars are in place, the pressure will be released on the uppers so that they can tip inwards to match the lowers. The only teeth that hit are premolars caught in a crossbite war....

So my ETF should be October-ish 2007, although it might take 3-4 more months.... then retainers! I love the countdown timeline signatures y'all are using -- I would love to do that too... I guess I'll have to work up a signature.

Gosh, it really feels great to have a place to read and talk about all this stuff -- I've been doing it on my own for way too long! Thanks SO much!!

#3 Post by **xtrememkovr** » Wed Oct 25, 2006 2:39 pm

Welcome Wired - and Congrats on not only your teeth but also your incredible weight loss. I've lost prior to braces 55+ lbs myself - (with plenty! more to go - but one day at a time) so I can truly appreciate the dedication and strength it takes. I'm kinda giggling a bit too because my family automatically thought that my not being able to chew would cause me to drop pounds with little to no effort. I guess they don't have a food addiction like me - because yeah - I could easily live on MCDONALD'S Milk shakes and be up the 55 lbs I just rid my body of in no time flat!

Where there is an appetite there is a way - and I'm glad that you have used the time braced up to find the foods and nourishment that will fuel and feed your body correctly!

Congrats and welcome again. Glad you found "us".

X.