Debanding Fears and What you Did - Anyone push back date?

[Chicagogal]

As so many other's expressed i'm trying to balance the excitement of having a debanding date with the other fears that come along with it. While I'm not looking forward to the process, I'm not scared of having these darn things ripped out of my mouth.

What I AM worried about is that I'm not really "done." I think once you go through orthodontics you're so insanely aware of each movement and imperfection that suddenly you see so many more things to fix. I'd LOVE to be done in 6 weeks as the ortho said, but my two front teeth aren't level and my midline is off by a couple mm (my ortho said not to fix it b/c no one would notice?). Anyone (you not your ortho) ever push back their debracing date in order to try and achieve "perfection"?

[Bullfighter]

If your front teeth aren't level, I would point this out, because that probably isn't fixable with a retainer. Minor straightening actually can be done with a Hawley-type retainer, which you'll probably be wearing 24 hours a day for a while anyway.

I held my ortho to my debanding date, because career-wise I was never comfortable in braces and would not have had them at all if I could have had my BSSO without them. My teeth weren't perfect -- maybe A-/B+ upper, B-/C+ lower. (On the American scale, where we judge teeth with more scrutiny...)

I think orthodontia makes you "insanely aware" or every imperfection, as you said. My teeth are probably magazine-cover quality at this point, so now I worry about them constantly, but retainers seem to be doing the job. If anything my bite has improved with retainers, with no odd gaps anywhere. If you need encouragement, I'd say that orthodontia isn't completely done when your braces come off -- they can tweak things a bit.

[TumbleDryLow]

Your ortho is right. No one is going to notice if your midline is off. Fixing it at this point may be opening a huge can of worms. There's no harm in asking though, so by all means, ask your ortho what would be involved in fixing it. Once you hear the answer, you may decide it's not worth it.
The leveling thing should definitely be fixed though--that would drive me crazy too.
Congrats on nearing the end!

[Chicagogal]

thank you both! I think your insight is dead on. The midline I can live with I think, not sure if I'm being insane about the leveling in the front (see pic) or if that could be tweaked now.

To bullfighter's point, I feel the same way. unlike some others, the time hasn't flown by, as I've been acutely aware of my braces in every single career situation and can't wait to get them off. But I would hate to spend so much time and money only to get them off and find out I could've fixed it with another month of treatment. I overheard my ortho telling another woman in for her 1 year post-debanding appt that the things she wanted fixed would require putting brackets back on. Aaaack!! I'm so torn!

[TumbleDryLow]

Looking at the photo I think maybe the one front tooth needs to be pulled down just a bit. Seems like something that could be done easily with a bend in the wire.
And I didn't notice the midline at all. Actually had to remember to go look at it. It's not bad. But as I said, may be worth asking what it would take to fix.

[Bullfighter]

Looking at the photo I think maybe the one front tooth needs to be pulled down just a bit. Seems like something that could be done easily with a bend in the wire.
And I didn't notice the midline at all. Actually had to remember to go look at it. It's not bad. But as I said, may be worth asking what it would take to fix.

Agreed.

[Snowglobe32]

I can completely understand how you are feeling as I am there right now. I still have a few more months to go but I am afraid to get these off. I feel once these are off, everything is going to shift even though I plan on wearing my retainers as instructed. Then it will be a waste of time and money. I read stories here and think, "Is it even possible to not have movement after?" I refuse to have to wear braces a second time. All of these things are scary but we can hope for the best!

Some midlines just can not be fixed and I am sure if your ortho doesn't think it is necessary, then you should be okay. Who really notices midlines anyway, besides those who have/had braces?

Can you add a bit of bonding to the front tooth to make it like the other one?

[Katvo]

[quote="Snowglobe32"]

Can you add a bit of bonding to the front tooth to make it like the other one?[/quote]


I can't see the picture to see how uneven the teeth are, but... bonding to incisal edges is a high maintenance ordeal and likely to come off. Your better bet is to turn your dentist loose on a bit of aesthetic filing/grinding down of your teeth to even them out. (assuming that it's not a big difference in levelness.) I was very reluctant to let my dentist do any aesthetic shaping, as I've ground my teeth for 30 years- to the point of sensitivity. He and the assistants talked me into letting him do a bit of shaping here and there on deband day- it made a very nice difference. I'm glad I went that route. Build ups are high maintenance and just asking to turn into crowns or veneers.

-Kat

[Chicagogal]

thanks for the help everyone! I did decide to tell my ortho that it bothered me, even if it pushed back the date (still set for two weeks from now, we'll see) he still didn't notice it until I told him, but then couldn't believe that he hadn't fixed it. literally, he acted baffled. though the appointment wasn't fun, he tried bending a more powerful wire, but it woudln't fit in the molar band tube after several painful tries so he just ripped off the bracket and re-attached it in a "hopefully" favorable position with a power chain. after he did, the assistant told me to definitely called them if I notcied anything strange (what?!). Aaaaand here we go again!

(katvo, I also really appreciate the insight about adding bonding, not sure I want to mess with it and the instability on front teeth)