I've been lurking on these boards for a while now, time to make an introduction.
So far it's been reassuring to read the Archwired community's feedback about the braces worries and fears I have.I also want to keep a record/diary of my braces journey, so this seems like the perfect place. Will try to update after every appointment.
Some background: 32 yo woman from Belgium. Never had braces, although I should have. Had an anterior deep bite since childhood + a top incisor that's wandered off in the last 10ish years. Also my top left premolar is rotated. My bottom teeth are relatively okay, though they are not in line horizontally (see pics).
I'd gone to the orthodontist about 2 years ago to see what could be done, but at that time the cost, discomfort and looking-like-a-dork-for-2-years factor didn't seem worth it. (Which I terribly regret; I could have had perfectly fixed teeth by now!) A few months ago I suddenly had a wisdom tooth surface, which completely pushed my teeth (especially the incisor) askew. I decided I wanted to get everything fixed once and for all.
Got an appointment to get the wisdom teeth removed + a treatment plan with two options basically, depending on whether I just want to straighten out the top row or fix the bottom and bite as well. I was leaning towards just the top, aka getting it over with as fast as possible, but I think I might just get everything done while I'm at it. All in all, the extra cost and time are relatively small. (Not looking forward to the unslightly elastics, but oh well :/) It would also mean I can get two wires put behind my teeth instead of having to wear a retainer at night. Fixing just the top would mean I'd probably bite down on the wire and break it.
After the wisdom teeth were extracted I had two weeks to recover before my ortho put spacers between my molars. That was last week, and my teeth have never been so sore.
Had a week of 'last suppers' (ribs, curry, crunchy bread,...) to say goodbye to all the food I'd probably have to miss for 2+ years
And so TODAY I got my braces! Ceramic ones with clear/opalescent rubber bands. (I wanted the Damon clear ones, but it seemed the classic kind would work better and faster for the purpose)
Feels really weird to have all this junk in my mouth, but so far (touch wood) it doesn't hurt as much as having the spacers in. The screws on the inside of my molars keep rubbing my tongue, which is very annoying. Will call the ortho tomorrow to see if something can be done about that.
I can talk pretty much normally but eating is horrible. I feel like a complete idiot. Also, as long as the wire isn't straight I think my teeth look way worse than before. Being single sure doesn't help
I know it's day 1, so I'm looking ahead and trying to focus on the result.
I will post some pictures as soon as possible!
) Also when I tried lipstick on two occasions, it got all over my braces, even with the "finger" trick and using matte lipstick. 