Dr Jon's Braces journey

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi Friends
Well its been a while since my last visit, and i guess that is because I have been feeling so down about my ortho treatment, I have avoided anything ortho in order to make me feel a little better, as it was, i know that this was the very incorrect thing to do, as all you guys would have been there for support, unlike those friends who dont really understand the issues.
So, the issues, i saw my dentist the other day, and she is really concerned about my chipped front teeth, she has built them up, but they are all chipped again, so she is having to do this on an almost twice weekly basis. Also to add to the issues, my old bruxing bite plate no longer fits, so I am clenching badly at night..(all anxiety and stress of my illness), to the point that I dislocated my jaw the other day, which the GP managed to sort, but it has also meant that He is now involved in all the braces, crap ortho saga.
So the orthodontist i have is not addressing the over bite and the TMJ disorder...again He seemed to give me the blank stare look, which says hmm I have no real idea.......
So the issues are that my hospital ortho, my dentist, etc felt that my ortho should have used metal brackets on the bottom arch, because of the issues of wear on the top arch...this is actually warned about in the British Orthodontic Society guidelines on ceramic brackets...but in reply my ortho just says looks are more important in this case and should take priority
So the reply from the dentist had been to refer me for a second opinion, with another orthodontist, this is going to happen in about three weeks, in fact it is, just the day after my next appointment, The new (?) ortho had phoned me already and asked me lots of questions, sent through a medical form, and wants to meet me before the actual appointment, to assess me generally...and its all going to take a couple of hours, which is longer than the time I have had with my present ortho by about an hour..my first appointment with Him was 10 minutes, then another five for moulds...hmmm x rays? ...what x rays !!!!!
So I have been told i will have to make a decision on what the new ortho says when I have the actual consultation with Her, but there is talk of removing the brackets i have and replacing them...so what do others think ? is this a good and pro active idea on the part of my dentist...or is it just going to seek to piss the present ortho off , although He in truth has not been much help so perhaps a change would be a good and positive move, i have heard good things about the practice...but thequestion remains..why did my dentist not refer me there in the first place , instead of making me go through all the anxiety and stress...thanks goodness for prozac at present..its the only thing keeping me on an even keel....and Im an expert on what is happening to me!!!!!!!!!!!!
So friends any thoughts
Bye for now
Jon XXX

[Carolinahigh12]

I am sorry to hear about all the issues you are having ( especially with the ortho). I am just starting with all of the pre-ortho work ( wisdom teeth removal, dental cleaning and the horriable debridement).

I have learned here in the states, that some dentist refer to certain orthodontist by professional relationship ( not by patient preference) or if the orthodontist can log into a server that they use to house their xray images instead of the old fashion "driving them" to the office. Maybe your dentist is doing what some here do in the states, refering by professional relationship, which doesn't always work out for the patient. I hope that when you go to your second consultation, that all of your questions would be address and you feel a little more comfortable with the treatment options that they propose.

By the way, I've been reading your thread and notice you had Chron's disease. My father also has Chrons and he had major issues with maintaining weight. He opted for surgery and has been doing very well for the past 10yrs. Good luck on all of your treatments.

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi friends
well what can i say, another journey to ortho on sunday as an emergency, as my archwire came off on my sleep on saturday night, along with a few brackets as well,so thats ia the result of the grinding so I am informed,and i ve also been back to see him today(Monday), as he spent last night fashioning some sort of bite plate thing, which is now fitted to my top brackets and is there for the duration,also get this , he has decided, with my dentist, that perhaps ceramic brackets were not ideal for me, so he wants to replace them with metal ones, tops in three weeks and the bottoms a couple of weeks later...hmmmm... do i get a refund..or can someone tell me what the f*~k is going on , is this usual /unusual in treatment, as he feels they are conjucive to my treament pattern and that the metals may be stronger for pulling etc etc.
I bet this is all because i ruined his sunday lunch....... , or he had an acidic note frm meryaten , only joking I promise..
So it looks like unless I can talk my way out of the situation, perhaps with the new ortho, I'm in for a fun time .....watch this space.
Jon XXX

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi Friends
Well again, I have not been here for a while, its been a back and forth to the hospital, with a crohns problem, ie a fistula...actually two fistulas, which are causing a major headache to my consultants, mainly because they cannot decide on the best treatment. So tomorrow I'm off again for an MRI scan and i hope then they can make that essential decision...I expect it will mean more surgery, but then that is life to us crohns sufferers, we come to expect it at some time..or occasionally lots of times
So how are the braces , actually not too bad, did I tell you all about the bite plate , I can't remember if i did, well that is now fitted, glued in to stop me taking it out now, and the continuing offending coming off ligs are now wire tied, as well as having the ligs on them, so extra reinforcements, and i can say it seems to be helping.I have not had to have any emergency appointments at all this week, and the teeth have not got anymore chipped, the fact that i can't put my upper and lower arch
together would account for that , it was a strange feeling at first, especially when eating and trying to put pressure on chewing food, and I have also had to buy a pair of nail scissors..I can't bite my nails at all, it was hard with the brackets, but is impossible now!, so that looks like another persistent habit broken..well at least until the braces are off
So Karen, I have got the issues all sorted out, it has been a real issue to not be in control, especially as I'm really in control with my own health care, in relation to the diabetes, the crohns etc. its just that the orthodontist is really not used to dealing with adults, I am one of a very few He has had, so His usual patient age is the 13 to 17 age group, who probably..actually they do..turn up with their mums and dads to the appointments, and listen, and don't ask questions..so what fun to have a Professor of psychological medicine to sit in your chair, and have to work on your own communication skills...which He is finding difficult. As for the dentist...She actually does not get on with the ortho, at all, so that makes for extra good communications, or should i say non existant ones between them both, as I feel the feel is recipricated by the ortho.
I have my second opinion appointment on tuesday, and i am really looking forward to it, i have already spoken to the orthodontist on the phone, about my health problems, and i have filled out loads of health forms, which I did not do at all for the present ortho, and I have a two hour slot with her to discuss, treatment types, have panoramic X-rays and other photographs taken, all of which was not done by the present ortho, so it seems that from first impressions...I could soon be changing, that is if the funding can be transferred, and she is willing to take me on, we shall see
Im actually getting excited about it, its like starting all over again, but with a really positive attitude. The week afterwards, my present ortho is going to change my bottom brackets, at least he is not doing them all on the same day, I have got to wait 4 weeks until the tops are changed, karen i have no idea why he wants to do so, he just mentioned that He does not like to see a mixture of brackets, especially as treatment gets more complicated.so does it really hurt when the brackets are taken off?, should i expect the worst??
By the way the comments about the refund..it was a joke, Its that English humour again, sorry
So there is a lot happening, perhaps i can escape the clutches of the present ortho before treatment is done, although i have been told from the outset that the other ortho does not like ceramics at all (? ), so metal anyway if I end up there. Ho Humm great system in the South eh
Anyway I'm off for now
Bye for now
Jon XXX

[Nickie]

Hi Jon

How was the appointment today?

I've had the odd bracket replaced and it's unpleasant but not painful, providing that it is done a month or two after your last adjustment. The glue grinding is the bad part but I wasn't too bothered, really, except when it was done the day after I first had my brace put on!

I can see no reason why you'd replace the top brackets - it's very common to have metal on the bottom and ceramic on the top! Hopefully the new ortho was good.

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi Friends
Well its been a bad day all around, no actually its been a horrible day , I saw the ortho at 8.30am yes!! 8.30 am this morning, and well He just got straight down to things, no warning about how it would feel etc, so... a big rough tug and a crunch...then a mouth full of bits of mothers best china tea service...no i mean bits of ceramic, which give Him His due, He did quickly suck up, then prewarned me that it would be uncomfortable..hey man!..you are meant to do that before the removal of the first one.
..unless its a cunning plan, so that i did not exit the chair quickly and one step ahead of His removal tool.
So after a couple of minutes of general discomfort...hey who am i kidding.. it was really uncomfortable!! it really pulled me about...I think he should invest in a head vice or clamp for His toolkit!!!!!! Anyway, then came the scraping of glue, which actually was not too bad, well after the earlier stuff, I ve actually still got a tooth ache now at 6pm...hence the off out for a quick pint shortly, all purely medicinal of course.
Then the new brackets were put on, new wire, a tightening, and then it was all over....well there it was anyway.
I'm back on the 7th June for the tops to be replaced, so I shall really look forward to that with pleasure
Well, of course then i came home, put my feet up and rested for the rest of the day......like bloody hell and fat chance I did...I was then off to the hospital for the results of a blood test.... the Crohns is back big, i mean BIG time, so I'm back on the chemo again...just a few weeks after the last dose completely finshed off my immune system...
then they have also booked me a date for surgery, for a jejunal terminal ileum resection, and possibly the removal of the rest of my bladder stump..if its that adhered to my terminal ileum..what can i say...sesame sesame sesame..and other sweary words, I am severely pissed off with going through all this, I really think that enough is enough, I ve had enough with all the crap diet for gluten intolerence, the no sugar diet for diabetes the TPN, and NG (nasal) feeding for crohns, the having to change two stoma bags daily. if not more, the having to rely on two sticks because of diabetic neurapathy, and osteoarthritis. Sometimes life is really crap, other days its just there, like mine...I really think i need a dose increase on my anti depressants..and to cap it all the consultant has decided it would be a good idea for me to quit all employment full stop.... I really need that going out now...and my teeth hurt still, despite the extra pain control...hmmm lets hope tomorrow is a better day.
I still have not found out about the surgery for the overbite, a friend who is an ortho nurse is trying to find out more,i will see her at the pub, she did say the real problem with me is that my bite is incorrect, or overcompensated due to the loss of the two lower molars, and that it may take some jaw reshaping to sort it... the real issue, is can I be bothered, along with everything else, and is it feasable, by NHS standards, given that I'm about to lose a job that pays a six figure salary,and my NHS pension is bird feed...and UK benefits are pittiful my any standard, but especially if you have to have a carer in to help ( Im a singleton so no one to keep an eye on me, so a community nurse is sent to support me on the days I'm home), and theres the ortho to pay as well.
I'm off out, more tomorrow.
Jon XXX

[lionfish]

Really sorry to read about all this, Jon. Your orthodontic problems sound like the least of your worries at the moment.

I'm not sure I'd be in a hurry to chuck the job.

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi everyone
Well its friday, the holiday weekend, and i have got a whole three days away from the hospital...that is as a patient, they have given me the weekend off, and at home, so i spent this morning in bed, got up and had a late breakfast, or is that early lunch, and am now catching up on mail, and this forum.
Thanks Lionfish, for your thoughts, i don't want to stop working, its the only way i can keeep registered, and that is essensial for all the other jobs and things i like to involve myself in., plus the cash comes in very handy for those essential items.
Im actually feeling a little better, well actually a lot better really, i ve got to see the gastroenterologist on tuesday, managed to bring the appointment forward from August!!, and im hoping he will have some ideas on how to procede long term with the crohns and also liase with the endocrinologist on finding chemo meds that do not mess up my diabetes routine as well.
The ortho stuff... well at the moment its just there and im managing it. My teeth have setted from the having the ceramics removed, K Karen you were not wrong, when you said about the pain. i shall take some oramorph before my removal of the uppers on the 7th...just two weeks away.
Well, the surgery? Im not thinking about it at the moment, the ortho said wait until i have the making of an arch, then She will re assess the possibilities of further treatment, which may take place after the first ortho finishes, i have got to see the maxillofacial surgeon at that point anyway...so for now lets think about that being at least 24/36 months in the future, and get on with the present journey. I will keep you informed when i find out more.
So long may the sun continue to shine over the weekend and beyond, i might even get the sprite out..(.that will make it rain )
Bye for now
Jon XXX

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi friends
No I had not been abducted by aliens, and a worm hole did not appear in the bathroom causing me to fall into a parallel dimension, but it seemed like it..
I have been back into hospital for a couple of weeks, went for a routine appointment, but alas it was a cunning rouse by the gastroenterology team to have me stay for a while... no invite, or cream cakes, just another exciting episode of being woken up to be asked if I'm having trouble sleeping, being told I'm anorexic, because I'm very underweight( its the crohns),but being given the smallest portions of crappy food I would not give, to a house mouse. I know it is said doctors make the worst patients..its all true, we like to be sarcastic to other medical professionals, not be the brunt of this type of comment, so I managed to get enough material for another series of GW..
Anyway, the out come is I will need more surgery...hey guys could have told me this over the phone... not kept me in a bed next to a 95 yr old who dribbled and had the nurses at His beck and call...mainly because he pissed in the bed every hour..(hmm have they heard of inco pads....or a large cork and clamp?? )
Anyway I hade my top brackets replaced the end of last week, it really felt strage removing the ceramics...so Im now in all metal with alternating Purple and blue ligs, the ortho said it was a second childhood.....only the second????, but still he is much happier with the metals, as he prefers them....so why not mention that in the first place then Mr No Communication?
Anyway Im keeping away from the hospital for the time being, Im on a promise to rest and stay local...so Im off to France in a month and a half to work in one of the old hospitals i used to work in..its a favour for an old friend....Im really looking forward to it
Bye for now
Jon XXX

[minlou01]

Sounds like things are starting to work out Jon. Have a great time in France!

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi friends
guess what?, no still not found the entrance to that wrom hole...well unless the local hospital can be classed as a worm hole(or should that be hell hole!! )Anyway another routine appointment ended up with me being back in, but im out for a few days, then back in again , but this time i'm hoping for just a week or so, so that my holiday is not jepodised, i know i can go later, Im not stuck to flights, or hotels or the such like, ah the joy of the Channel tunnel, so as long as I'm fit to drive. Anyway, the braces stuff is sort of okay, still pain, but since I ve been on IV morphine, its not been an issue, but the real issue has been toothbrushing , in that the nursing staff do not see the reason for keeping teeth clean!!, could not believe it...its on my nursing notes that I'm obsessional about wanting to keep my teeth clean. The problem is being confined to bed, and so not being able to go to a sink, or a washbasin.Instead Im given a bowl of water (not very hot either) , and expected to keep clean with that.hmmmmm.
So at least its official, about being OCD about teeth cleaning, I can't wait to tell my ortho the news
So i hope to be back soon, Im trying to arrange a telephone connection for my laptop in my room, so that i can keep in touch with everyone, here and on my blog as well.
So more exciting news when I am able to be back again, an adjustment to look forward to...and there was talk of elastics when i last spoke to the ortho..
Bye for now
Jon XXX

[Laurie]

I think I might come unglued if not allowed to brush my teeth as I wished. I think you have every right to raise a bit of heck over it.

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi Friends
I have returned from hospital, for good this time i hope, or until the next time they want to do some more surgery, or an emergency arises and they need to operate in a hurry...oh oh they joy of crohns disease..NOT!!!
Anyway after i arrived home from hospital I had just enough time to get my teeth really clean before a visit to the orthodontist. As i said in the metal mouth forum post "I got rotation wedges".. i well did get rotation wedges, oh and a really thick square wire on the top arch which is really tight after the original thin one, it also has a sort of loop in it, to which an elastic is attached, which is then connected to the tooth beyond a gap... i suppose the reason is to close the gap (large one), and so the elastic is doing a pulling job. Anyway all this activity in my mouth..its quite uncomfortable...especially as i had almost forgotten i had braces up to that point ..now I can feel they are there...thank goodness for lots of wax
Anyway I also had to go to the dentist this week...some fillings to do..next weeks excitement to come ..and She said, ooooohhh you don't see them very often... She was refering to the wedges, and another friend who is an ortho nurse also said She had never seen them used...so some visual activity for friends...as well as being told by someone id never met before i had groovy lig colours I opted for purple and red alternate this time.
So well not much else is new at the moment...Im enjoying this watery sunshine we are all not enjoying in the UK at present. I think Im one of the lucky ones... i don't have my own personal water feature in the lounge, the kitchen, the dining room etc... we got off quite lightly in the south... hope UK archwired friends in the North and other flood affected areas are all okay
One piece of news... the ortho has a new nurse, as the old one was very pregnant....its a good choice...in 'guy' talk Shes a babe (sorry Ladies, but sometimes boys will always be boys)...so we talked, I told Her about my band.. or rather the ortho told her about my band and She was impressed, but then forgot to ask her name Doh!
Enough said.
Bye for now
Jon XXX

[Miss Smiley]

At least you had something to keep your mind off the appointment, regardless if she was a babe. You've had tons to deal with, what's a little eye candy?

[Dr Jon Harrow]

Hi Friends
Guess what I am still with you, no not abducted by aliens, but rather working in Darfur for MSF, with very occasional visits back to the UK for med check ups etc...but alas no e-mail where i was..in fact, no real shelter, clean water, or secure safe places..sesame..how do we do this to one another?.I feel so fortunate to be alive and safe living in a country where we have all the stuff we need and more,I will be thinking of my patients every time I turn on the tap, or run to the larder when im peckish.
So braces good and groovy, have got some power chain to help with the movement of the molars, as well as some really thin nylon stuff keeping a couple of the front ones in place...they moved even though they did not need to
hope to hear from some of you all soon
Hey guys I promise i will update the ticker when I have some spare time... Jon XXXX