Metal Mouth Message Board

LOL.. That is sooo funny of Leslie022. Sorry to hear about that lady being so damn rude. Hang in there. Next time it may be better appt for you.

Your pics looks great, im due to get damon3 braces 11th Sep 06.
Im really looking forward to it now.

However i must say i am alittle nervous of what the reaction of my friends and mates at work will say.

My teeth are a little similar to yours, i have crowding at the front top and bottom parts of my teeth. with 2 teeth that have fallen behind a little that causes a shadow in photos, i tend to not open my mouth when im in photos

Here is the before picture...... hopefully this smile will change once i get DAMON3 braces

Hello! I think that tooth came into alignment really nicely! It looked like Avril Lavigne's teeth be4. And your lowers look amaysing too.
Keep us updated.
Joanna

Hi belmikry

I just want to add my HUGE thanks to everyone else who's posted to say what an inspiration you are! You have made such amazing progress and your attitude is so unbelievably positive - I'm still at the deciding stage and go back to my ortho in two weeks to see exactly what can be done, costs, times etc and even though I'm about 99.9% decided to go ahead and get braced, reading stories like yours are pushing me very quickly to the 100% mark! Especially as my teeth look pretty much exactly like your old ones - I wonder just how many people out there are struggling with a pesky little lateral incisor hiding out round the back....???! (mine's on the left though) Everything you write about it rings true with me, like constantly running your tongue over it because it's sticking out back there in the middle of your mouth...

I think I'm going to be getting (look, I don't even say "might" be getting - I guess I must be 100% decided already!) Clarity braces so I highly doubt I'll move at lightning speed like you but I just can't wait now to get started!

Your teeth are beautiful and your smile is breathtaking - keep up the great work and keep us posted!

p.s. sorry to gush - I'm just so glad to have found this forum with so many inspiring and unbelieavably supportive people

(25 years old, UK - yep, that means ortho fees in sterling. Ouch!)

Hiya belmikry,

Sorry to hear your recent progress has been sloppy, I hope thing improve for you. My case looks similar to yours and I can't wait to get my braces journey underway, still waiting for the pesky wisdom teeth to come out (see signature below) - You've been an inspiration and your photo's are great! Hope your journey continues to show you great things

Take Care
Chantel.

hey guys- sorry for the delay, working as usual- and still trying to find a camera in these moving boxes o_o....

I've been thinking about my last experience, and I really will say something this time if I feel ignored or rudely kept- if I'm paying this much for a service, I expect to be treated with politeness- period. wish me luck guys!
MY next appointment is on the 24th, so I will update you afterwards- hopefully with pictures ... I may resort to purchasing an actual disposable camera for the time being- since my boxes aren't being unpacked any time soon ...
I'm not 100% sure what will be done this appointment, especially since I didn't get to see the ortho last time [>_>...] but they did put the new wire on last time, so I assume its staying put for the time being. on the top- I think the wire has moved/shifted to the right- because the once ever so well placed curve between my two front teeth is now right against my right one- as well as a cm of wire in the back of my mouth o_O...
[ouch!]
... but that does mean movement right?

Bell: congrats on joining the journey!
no matter what- even though the nerves make you unsure of why you started- just keep coming here and checking out those progress reports- it's what kept me sane! I didn't even want to see in the mirror when they first went on- now, I smile for everyone- not just because my teeth are straighter- because I feel good about my decision. I feel like for once I was able to do something strictly for me- they've always bothered me personnally, and while I was growing up at first I Thought I was lucky not to have them, then saw all of the pretty smiles my friends had- and now its my turn just wait- I promise the day you wake up being happy about your decsion comes alot sooner than you think! It hought the only day I would feel good is the day they come off! [lol] although that will be a great day, it's only 1% of the journey- promise!

florencegal: oh wow- thank you so much! when I joined this forum- I started because I needed reassurance that I wasn't "crazy for undertaking something so late in life"- wow, have I grown since then!~ now, I realize there is no set date to get braces- its not a race to the finish line, but a progression to inner and outer peace with yourself. IT's waking up and saying: "I don't like something- and I can fix it. It won't be a quick fix, but a long one- full of good moments and really long time periods between them" [snickers ] I promise you that the hardest part is taking the first step- walking into that office on brace day was one of the hardest things I've done before- you'd be surprised how self conscious even the people who 'don't care' about others can get- I don't think I've ever felt so 'watched' by others- but now- I realize it's me who noticed, no one else- sure, people see the braces and comment sometimes, but honestly- think about the last person you saw in braces/ Did you mock/think how silly are they/watch their speaking in them? no- you saw a person- not an appliance. You may have noticed them, but it's not all they are. Congrats on your decision and I am soooo happy I could help in any way This forum is fantastic- please keep in touch!
ps: I've noticed those incisors have a tendancey to do that! lol they are pesky little guys
pps: ... I still constantly run my tongue on my incisor- lol I think it's a mixture of old habit and checking to make sure it's still in line!


M1K3y: I'm afraid to ask- lol... my first estimate was 18-21 months, but I've been told my progress has been very wuick so it may of been bumped up sooner than that, but honestly- I think i'm too afraid to ask, and I'm not sure they would know either- my next appointment is next week so maybe I'll get the courage then o_o...

ppppps:
linda21: I totally just figured out this morning where your avator came from- Arrested Development is a great series! I just watched that episode yesterday- my friend gavve me the DVD first series to watch

Good luck on your next appointment! Hopefully you won't have another experience with rudeness--but if you do, just remember what you said; that you are PAYING for this! They have no right to be impolite to you.

And good luck on finding that camera. It seems like no matter how organized one can be when they move, something still gets lost for ages, hahaha.

--oops! Double post.

Hi Belimkry!

Sorry to join you so late into your journey, I joined this site not long ago and there is so much stuff here - am taking ages just reading everything!

Like so many others have said before me, I've been really inspired by your journey - not just your awesome attitude in spite of all those rude ortho assistants , but also (and again lots of people have also mentioned this), my case is very similar to yours. I have the exact same tooth that is pushed back (same side) - in my case I'm fairly sure it's due to me sucking my thumb when I was little, as it is also the side where I have crossbite....any other previous thumbsuckers out there? With so many of us with that pushed back incisor, there must be a common factor somewhere!!

Anyway, your progress is really encouraging , which gives me hope that when i start treatment (I hope in the next 2-3 months), I will get movement too - that would be so cool. Hope you're settling back into canadian life - keep the progress reports coming!

kiwi: oh I agree! here's to hoping that they will be polite, if not- I will definately have a sit down this time- I hate being the complainer- but honestly, sometimes it does need to be done.

swiss1: welcome to the forum! i'm starting to wonder how common this problem is, since someone i work with has it too! but I wasn't a thumbsucker, I know for a fact because my sister was and they watched me to make sure I didn't develop the nasty "habit" ... I was told alot of it coems from grinding in your sleep- something I definately did/DO here's to blue cement lifters stopping that!
and it's not too late- i'm not even half way there! I love hearing from other members- hopefully I can help you out with any problems you face- let me know if you need anything ...

bracedagain: thanks for the encouragement! I will try really hard to tell them whats on my mind next time- it's difficult when I'm used to being the complaint-taker [customer service ] and then being placed in the other seat

Congrats on taking the plunge BelMikry! It's funny - I think we have the same thoughts - I didn't think my teeth were that bad....that is UNTIL I saw the up close pictures of my teeth. That was the decision maker for me. My braces will be going on Oct 20th and I can't wait.

Wishing you the best!
Carla

Fourth adjustment recap

...eventfull day!

first off, may I say I finally got hooked up with a fantastic assistant- her name was Mary- and even though she was still working on another patient when I came to sit down, she looked up- got up and shook my hand and introduced herself- this made my day. finally an assistant who hasn't ignored me, acted rude or assumed I was 12 ....

she kept talking to me the whole time, was super polite and honestly was listening to my concerns and gabbing nature- I hope I can request her next time

so at first, she clipped the excess wire on my right top side [thank GOD!] and said that maybe the doc could take out my last lifter- since apparently he doesn't use them, also being that my other one is non existant-

the doc came over- noticed my top wire's torque was misaligned and place a new wire on instead! I though I wasn't due for one until next appt- but I'm not complaining! [well- I probably will later when i try to eat- lol] so now I have a hugggge torque stainless steel wire- which I could honestly feel it's mammoth size when he tried to get the sucker in [ieee o_o]... and he left the bottoms alone- since the were doing fine as per schedule.

I got my first elastic today! o_o.... ouch is all I'm going to say ...

basically I was asking about my bite- since I've noticed my right top side moving ever so off alignment to make way for the incisor and canine to shift over... he basically ssat down and told me all of the options, and since my teeth do not need extractions or my wisdoms, he said surgery isn't the best option- so elastics it is! apparently I will never have a perfect alignment, but ironically he said its my bottom teeth out of whack, not my top! :O ...
I always thought it was my top!
so I'm not too worried- we can try as much as we can with elastics, and he said there is no reason to 'keep me around forever' just to try and fix 2 mm - I agreed

Now- ever since my first adjustment- all I ever hear about is how fast my teeth has moved- today was no exception... he started discussing elastics as a final option for tweeking [yes- that lovely word! tweeking!]
.. I even got bold enough to ask how much longer for my treatment!!!
apparently depending on "how far I want to go" he says at maximum another six months!!! yahooo! [confetti thrown]

this means i'm a month OVER my treatment time! here here for being "over the hump!"

so alas- I know have a hook attached directly to my wire in between my right incisor and canine, which the elastic is connected to, and below is attached to a hook which was originally placed on my bottom molar [the second from the back- loooooong stretch!] and he said the more I wear it, the better my alignment will get [ignore that i'm eating a plate of grilled zucchinni with parmesan right now so i took it out!] but I will wear it at night and when I'm not eating- promise! he said he understands not wearing it at work, although I probably still will some days ...

so alas- great day! I even finally got my quote for the financial aspect- when I left my original ortho, I was rembursed 2500 from my original full payment of 5000- and my new ortho said that 2000 from that [Canadian to boot!] was more than enough for the rest of my treatment!

so- great day- lol... now I just need to go to work...

ps: pictures are coming! promise! I will be in CO on tuesday- so I will be able to get pics up then with my friends camera

ps: I added a new ticker- one for my approx braces off day! this time, I put my turtle in a winter landscape, since it will be in winter when I see my teeth! yippiiiee!

Wow! Only 6 months left and you just started 6 months ago? That's wonderful! I thought it took at least 18 months (that's what they've given me 18 - 20 months). If I stay on schedule I'll have them off in 20 months for my 40th - which would be a wonderful birthday gift

Post those pics soon - I love all your progress reports and your great attitude !!!

thanks for commenting nandini

wsell, in 3 days it will be 7 months- but yes, I was originally given the time of 18-21 months- so I guess that means I have dropped my time by 6-8 months of treatment! [estatic] but in all seriousness, I will keep them on as long as I need to make sure I get the proper treatment necessary- no getting impatient- at least I'll try

that imte can always be delayed for whatever reasons- so I'm trying to not get tooo excited- but I am excited that I can at least see the horizon now, before I was much too afraid to ask!

and congrats on such a wonderful gift to give yourself for your 40th!

mine was a 21st birthday present to myself in a sense- so glad to have done it!