Finally Braced - Michelle005's Story! ***Update 5/2/08***

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#31 Post by **michelle005** » Wed Apr 16, 2008 3:10 pm

The inside of my cheeks have been getting pretty raw and sore and I was wondering what on earth was making the brackets on my premolars so darn sharp all of a sudden. The wires were clipped down all nice so it wasn't those as I had originally assumed...then I saw it. The premolar brackets, both top and bottom, have the ligs in a figure eight while the rest are a normal o, therefore the ligs are stretched more thin, leaving more metal exposed. I assume this is for extra holding power, perhaps so the wire doesn't slip out and poke (as my wires only go to my premolars so far)? I dunno. I had a different assistant this time so maybe it's just her way of doing things, but those brackets are really sharp without that extra cushion! Thank goodness I stocked up on wax while I was there!

#32 Post by **michelle005** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 1:16 pm

So one of my spacers popped out yesterday. I went in today at 10am to get it replaced which took about 30 mins out of my day. At 11:30am I ate lunch. I had a pb & honey sandwich, a yogurt, applesauce, and my brand new spacer. Doh!

It's not a big deal that it came out again, the assistant said it might and not to worry about it if it does because my next appointment is on Tuesday and I've got a nice space between my teeth. It just sucks that I have to work an extra half hour to make up for the time it took to put in...for it to come right back out.

Good thing they're lo-cal!

#33 Post by ***melissa*** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 2:03 pm

Hi Michelle, you're still wearing spacers?? I thought it you would get them out after 2 weeks??

#34 Post by **michelle005** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 2:17 pm

Hi, melissa!

Ha, yeah, I thought so, too...but turns out all the 2 week appt was for was to take the spacers out, fit the molar bands, take new impressions with the molar bands in, take the molar bands out and put the spacers back in.

The bands are going to be attached to the TPA and lower lingual bar that I'm getting. My appointment to get those in is this Tuesday, but the assistant told me to call in tomorrow to see if I can move the appointment up to Saturday. That would rock if I could, then I wont have to use more sick time and I'll have a day to practice talking without spitting on everyone.

Either way, I'll be spacer free no later than Tuesday!

p.s. Love your avatar!!

#35 Post by ***melissa*** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 2:23 pm

ohhh...i see!

ha, well this tuesday must be a lucky day, thats when I get my spacers out too!! wooohooo

#36 Post by **jenny101101** » Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:03 pm

Hmmm, I've never had spacers for lunch...how do they taste?

Haha, I laughed when I read what you had for lunch!

Well, glad to hear you'll be spacer-free by Tuesday at the latest...here's hoping you get in on Saturday!!

BTW, I love the hot pink ligs!

#37 Post by **michelle005** » Fri Apr 25, 2008 11:23 pm

Thanks, Jenny! They taste like chicken.

And yay Melissa for getting our spacers out the same day!

Another spacer has come out. Ha, super. I called to triple check that the gaps wont be compromised within the next four days. I don't want to risk having prolonged treatment because I had to get spacers in for another week. One of the assistants will be calling me tomorrow, as they had all left for the day by the time I had called.

I noticed they're both on the side that I use to chew the most, so that makes sense.

The Saturday appointment is a no-go. They don't do longer appointments on that day, so Tuesday it is.

Ooh, I totally forgot to mention I had my first makeout session whilst in braces last Saturday. Heheh...good times.............................................
Oh yeah, anyway, I'm pleased to report I had absolutely no problems...it's just like normal.

Has anyone had a TPA or lower lingual arch? I have one concern. Not if it's uncomfortable or painful...no, I could care less about that. What I really care about is WILL I BE ABLE TO CHEW GUM??? Omg...it would be absolutely tragic if I can't. I know according to the orthos you shouldn't chew gum anyway, but that's not an option for me. It's my crack. Since I've gotten my braces on I've had gum every day (sugarless of course...pink Extra is my favorite, and also my trademark, heh), but I'm not actively chewing it the whole time...I press it against the roof of my mouth and kinda just keep it there for a while. I'm thinking this probably wont work while I've got a bar going across the top.

And I can't stick it under my tongue since I'll have a bar there, too.

And if I stick it in my cheek it gets caught up on my hooks.

I guess I'll have to do what Violet from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory does and stick it behind my ear...and hope it might have the same properties that those ear magnets have that help people stop smoking.

#38 Post by **Luella** » Sat Apr 26, 2008 8:23 am

Michelle- I've read all 3 pages and I love it! You're too funny. And congrats on getting your braces even when people around you tell you you shouldn't. My husband thinks I'm nuts since I do have fairly straight teeth in the front. My pano x-ray tells a different story! I look forward to following your story!

#39 Post by **michelle005** » Wed Apr 30, 2008 12:35 am

If you can get through the spacers, braces are a breeze....right?

NO! Not if you get a TPA!!

Alright, I'll start at the beginning of my appt today. It was rather simple. Went in, assistant removed my wires and spacers (aahh, relief...for about a minute), she fit the appliances, which was a little annoying...lots of pressing and biting and such. The lower arch didn't fit right so she had the ortho tweak it a little. Then she put on the cement, blech...horrible taste, stuck the appliances in, had the ortho give his blessing and cured them. She then fit a new, slightly thicker wire, all the way to the back now, and put on the ligs according to my color choices. Took about 45 mins total.

Here's the deal. We live in a highly technologically and scientifically advanced society, do we not? Is it so hard to design orthodontic appliances so as not to be horribly uncomfortable for the patient? They are, after all, placed in one of the most sensitive areas of our bodies. I'm talking simple things such as getting rid of sharp, pointy objects and edges that like to burrow their way into your sensitive gum tissue, and especially obvious things like creating oral etchants and cements that have a more pleasant "taste" than they do now. They flavor everything nowadays. Even the latex gloves are minty. I think all dental substances should be flavored. Even someone who doesn't like the taste of mint would probably appreciate it more than the rotten flavor it is now.

Okay, enough of that rant...on to the next. I'm not ALL that much of a complainer with this stuff, really. It's been somewhat painful but I can always manage it with OTC pain meds, and overall I'm really excited to see progress and am SUPER happy I did this. However, I am going to complain right now. About this TPA. It's horrible (give me back the spacers!). It spans across the roof of my mouth from #6 molar to molar. It sits back more than I expected...I'm lucky I don't have a sensitive gag reflex. It's about 1mm below the top of my mouth, but it feels like an inch. Eating with this thing is nearly impossible, and I also believe it to be somewhat life threatening and here's why...

Imagine you are walking along at a somewhat quick pace and all of a sudden you run right into a waist-high bar that is somehow floating there in mid air. Oomph! It will probably throw you off and delay you for a couple seconds while you back up and go either underneath or over it. This is exactly how food is with this TPA, and any delay in the swallowing of food totally throws you off and makes you feel like you are going to CHOKE TO DEATH. Therefore, with every bite I take I can't help but think it might be my last.

Now I know us humans are awesome at adapting. My 27 year old brother has bone cancer and had to have his right thumb amputated and he can work a pen or a fork, or anything else really, as if he never had one (also, I am VERY happy to say he is cancer free). So I know I can adapt to this, right? It's only 3 months hopefully.

This is only temporary.
This is only temporary.
This is only temporary.

The lower lingual arch isn't bad at all, except for a slightly sharp molar band edge that is doing a number on the side/bottom of my tongue, but I can manage that with wax. I am thrilled to have gotten new wires. My teeth are already getting a little sore which means hopefully more noticeable movement soon! Yay! I'm interested to see how things move around with these bars in place as I'm still not quite sure exactly what's gonna happen with them. My next appt is in 6 weeks.

Here is a reminder pic of the first day...

Here are the pics of my teeth today...

Light blue and teal ligs (it matched my outfit

), clear on top...

The TPA. I now believe it to be the Torturing Patient Apparatus...

Lower lingual arch...

Hi, Luella and Ken! Thanks for checking up on my story and the really kind words!

P.S. I can't chew my pink gum...gets stuck. Somehow today I managed to get it wrapped around both top and bottom bars at the same time and had to go to the bathroom to get it all out. I got some Freedent gum which seems to work alright though. We'll see.

#40 Post by **michelle005** » Fri May 02, 2008 11:34 pm

I was really looking at my newly wired-in bottom molars after my appointment on Tuesday and I saw that my lower left #6 molar's bracket was way off. Remember when I first got the molar build ups I thought the right molar's bracket was off because I was biting it and not the other side? Well that side's wire was perfectly straight so it appeared to be in the proper position. The left one's bracket was way down by the gum line and for it to be wired-in the wire dipped way down. I was highly concerned about this because I knew that once the dip started straightening out, it would start pulling my molar up out of the gums more (just like my front lower incisor, but in that case it was good). I did not have any bite issues so this seemed wrong to me to have one molar sticking up more than the rest.

So yesterday I called my ortho's office and explained to the treatment coordinator the issue. She got the ortho on the phone and I explained it to him. He said the bracket was probably placed there for a reason like my molars were off to begin with. He said if I was still concerned to come in and he'd look at it and explain it to me in detail.

I got off the phone with him thinking that maybe it was in the correct spot, but I was still skeptical. Just didn't sound right...my molars weren't off at all to begin with...they are completely symmetrical. However, I'm not an ortho and I felt bad second guessing him. So I was contemplating going in...I don't want the doc to think I'm trying to go over him, you know? Plus, this would have been my 6th visit there in a month when I should only have been in 3 times. I really don't want to be THAT kind of patient. But, all in all, I'm paying a lot of money and I just didn't feel right so I went in.

The assistant looked at it first. She was thinking it was correct. Then the ortho came over and took a look. He had me open and bite a million times. Then he ground off my build ups to get a more accurate idea of my natural bite (even though the molar bands were still hitting together). He looked at it for quite a while, then finally asked the assistant to bring him something and told me, "We are going to reposition the bracket." BAM! I KNEW it! I was soooo happy I got it checked out afterall.

So the process of removing the bracket was nothing at all. He used a tool to snap off the bracket, but I didn't even feel a "snap" at all...it just was off. Then he shaved off the glue. The assistant put the cheek separators in and re-prepped my tooth with etchant. She placed the bracket, the ortho came over and adjusted it, she cured it and re-wired it. It was waaaay higher, almost to the top of my tooth. I could have gotten new colors but since I had my teal/light blue for only two days, I decided to go with them again. I love them, so purty. This assistant figure-eighted all of them this time so they look even more purty (more color on the surface). She also replaced the build ups...boo!

Then I asked if the ortho could smooth that one molar band that was killing my tongue. He did and it feels great now. So, I killed two birds with one stone with this trip. And yeah, all the assistants who saw me there go, "You're back AGAIN, Michelle??" But they were all joking so it was alright. They're all really nice and I told them I just couldn't wait another 6 weeks to see them again so I had to come in!

Last night I ate a granola bar and afterwards my lower wire felt a little weird. I looked at it and it had completely bent downwards between the #6 and #7 molars. Omg, I was about to die since I thought I'd have to go in AGAIN to get this fixed. I was flipping out. They'd kill me! Ha. So I tried tweaking it back with tweezers and guess what...it slid right back into place. I guess it had just slipped out from the tube a little, thank goodness!

Anyway, moral of the story, if you ever think something just is not right, go with it and get it checked out no matter what! It could pay off greatly, as mine obviously has. I can't even imagine how long it would have taken to reverse the position of that molar if it came way up out of my gums, not to mention the discomfort I'm sure there would have been. Now hopefully I wont have to go back in for anything until my next appointment!

P.S. I have gotten a tiny bit more used to my TPA, but it still sucks. It's cutting into the top of my tongue a tiny bit which is a PITA when I eat. Oh, and I finally got me a WaterPik...gonna use it for the first time tonight.

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Finally Braced - Michelle005's Story! Update 5/2/08