Braced at 23 - Nooo

[5kYL1n3]

Hi all,

Just got braced last week - In-ovation C's! I was really dreading getting them on and thought I'd feel better about them by now, especially after reading a lot of other people's inspiring stories here. However, I don't really.

Background: I had braces in middle school for about 2 years and even though they advised me to do teeth extractions I was way too pansy back then and said no. Fast forward to today: my jaw has grown, leaving me with:

* A slightly protruded jaw, making my lips not close naturally which has lead me to breathe through my mouth
* A bite that grinds my front teeth together (normally your top is supposed to be slightly in front of your bottom, mine just hit each other)
* Although my teeth look fairly straight, when you look closely my centerline on the bottom is off and the alignment in general is not the best (it's just ok)

Needless to say, my orthodontist advised I do something about it. She said Invisalign could work, but she showed me the improvements and the improvements would have been just moderate at best. The optimal solution, she claimed, was to extract 4 premolars and use braces. I was pretty appalled at this suggestion initially since like most people at my age, they would balk at getting braces again. But the more we discussed the more I realized braces would bring me the largest longer term benefit, so here I am today.

I have yet to get my premolars extracted yet, I will in about a month. She also said treatment time will be around 18 months, but I'm hoping if I go in every 3 weeks instead of 4 weeks we can maybe cut that down to < 16 months.

So far I hate them though.

1) I personally find braces to be pretty ugly, so it's affected my self confidence, especially as a single 23 year old male.
2) Second, I believe eating is one of the great joys in life and braces have completely taken the joy out of eating. I can't really chew that well anymore and getting food stuck between every single brace is not fun.
3) I am a web entrepreneur and have to meet with investors constantly and braces have affected my speaking ability. Certain letters and vowels will slur together and I don't feel as confident presenting anymore.
4) Working in the web sector is also very fast paced, with everything being measured in weeks and months, not years, so having to have braces for 1.5 years sounds like an eternity to me.

At the same time, I try to keep thinking about the long term benefits and say to myself if I just act confidently in front of others like I don't care about my braces, then no one will even notice/care. It's definitely easier said than done though... does anyone have any tips?

[chocomorsel]

Words of encouragement.

Eating gets a lot better after the first month and you can eat pretty much anything, just have to modify HOW you eat it, i.e, cut things into smaller pieces first. But it does not hurt except for the 3-4 days after adjustments. Eating, will be enjoyable again soon. Although the food getting stuck in places doesn't change, you will learn to swish with water every time you eat to minimize that.

18 months is not a very long time considering most people get them for 24-30 months. If everything goes as planned you will have had moderately shorter sentence than most poeple.

I am a single woman in my 30's, so imagine how I felt when I first got them. The self-consciousness disappeared after about 4 months and now I play with colors although I pretty much stay clear/light colors on the tops.

You have an expected life span of 74 years, so still over 50 years of enjoying a fantastic smile after all is said and done. That's what I keep telling myself. My initial great smile, is going to be fantabulous after all this is said and done.

It gets better. Everyone on this board will tell you that.
Good luck.

[bridget51992]

Hi! I feel like I understand your pain, not wanting to get braces at 23. I'm an (almost) 19 year old female in university, so I feel pretty awkward. Hopefully you will get used to them soon, and it will be wonderful when they get taken off!
Maybe if you stop thinking about how much you hate your braces and concentrate on other things, they'll stop seeming so annoying to you? It's hard, but being positive can help a person get through problems a lot easier than concentrating on how terrible it is. It's wonderful that we have the opportunity to get our teeth fixed in the first place : )
I think you're right about being confident - if you sound well-informed and confident with the people you're speaking to at work, then they'll probably respect what you're saying enough not to concentrate on your braces. It's probably best to show them you don't care, and after a while, you probably won't : )

[5kYL1n3]

Thanks for the encouraging words both of you! I'm starting to get used to them, and yes I'm trying to be positive as well. I'm much more used to speaking with them now too. I had this HUGE canker sore for the first week and I teared up a few times eating with it just because it hurt so bad, and I consider myself pretty pain tolerant.

Just went in for my first adjustment this morning. They changed the wire to a stronger one and I can already feel it tightening! I'm afraid that even though I'm starting to get used to my braces, I have to get 4 premolars extracted in 2 weeks which will be a whole 'nother ordeal, both physically and mentally.

Just gotta think to that Hollywood smile I'll have at the end of all of this!

[bridget51992]

!!! I'm getting 4 premolars extracted in two weeks as well! Awesome XD We will be eating tremendous amounts of ice cream at about the same time!
Glad to hear you're getting used to the braces

[5kYL1n3]

Wow, hahaha what a coincidence. I'm going to be drinking lots of protein shakes.

Since I can post pictures now I figured I'd post some:

before_edited.jpg

1_edited.jpg

[5kYL1n3]

Going in tomorrow afternoon to remove 4 premolars.... nervous! Will let everyone know how it goes

[Dressy1]

Thank you for the pictures and keep us posted on the holywood smile business!

[5kYL1n3]

Got 4 premolars extracted today and they ache quite a bit right now... probably because they also put back in the wire immediately after extracting. When I look in the mirror, part of me thinks "OMG WHAT DID YOU DO TO YOURSELF", but then I think to the great smile I'll have in the end... it just seems so far away. Hoping they heal fast! I'll take pictures when I'm feeling better.

[bridget51992]

Hey how are you feeling with your extractions? Just wondering because we got ours out on the same day

[khart84]

I am a 26 year old female and this is my first experience with braces. For the first 2 weeks I was really self conscience and didn't want to smile or talk very much around people at work, etc. I have had them for a little over 3 weeks and now I kind of forget that they are even there! Not being able to eat food I was used to has probably been the worst part for me. I was eating an apple or two a day and haven't had one in over 3 weeks! Applesauce just isn't cutting it but I know it will be worth it in the end and can't wait to see the results. Good luck to you!

[5kYL1n3]

Hey bridget, I actually felt pretty normal the next day and I started eating normal food yesterday ( I basically subsisted on protein shakes for the first 36 hours). Hoping they heal fast so I can get back to the real treatment! What about you?

[bridget51992]

That's awesome! I feel normal now, but the day and a half after my extractions was not too great haha; my extraction sites felt really sore and such. I actually just started chewing stuff on Saturday! But it's a lot better now just trying to get my stitches to dissolve now!