Dom's Story

[braceface74]

I hope it heals up soon and you don't need to postpone "B-day"

[Domino]

Thanks, braceface!

I'm happy to report that I had my emergency appointment today and my dentist has worked wonders!

He cleaned out the dry socket with a syringe. Apparently there was a lot of nasty debris in there, some of which he couldn't even identify — yuck! He then showed me what he was going to put in; he jokingly said it looks like manure, lol. It was this sort of brown soft wiry stuff that was soaked in this sort of medical thing (it stinks of cloves). He plugged it into the hole and told me it will eventually dissolve and allow the area to heal.

Oddly, he did the exact same thing for the top! I didn't even realise it was suspect, but he said it was looking 'angry' and would benefit from it. I really wasn't sure, but I let him go ahead and he stuffed some of the stuff into the top too. I didn't even realise there was a hole up there to allow it, but I'm sure he knows best!

Since he did it, the pain has been so much better. To begin with it was slightly tender, obviously because of all the poking and cleaning he had to do, but now, as I write this, there is absolutely no pain from either socket. I am so pleased and relieved. Plus, it was completely free!

I just hope now they'll both heal okay. He told me that if the dressing/whatever-it-is starts to come out, to just push it back in... I'm hoping that won't happen as I don't look forward to having to do that, haha!

Oh, and he said it should all be healed in time for the 2nd, so I won't need to delay my braces if it heals in the time he expects Yay!

[Domino]

Braces tomorrow!!! Omg, I'm quite excited to finally be getting them on, but also quite nervous at the amount of discomfort and shock I'll be getting. Will be nice to finally have them on and know my teeth are improving, though!

Holes are getting better, but still have a way to go yet before they're properly healed. My first two are doing nicely, especially the first which seems completely healed now and is not tender at all. The second isn't really tender at all either — it looks worse than it is. As for the last two they're still healing slowly. I'm quite surprised they still hurt, but it's not bad at all. I can cope with the pain, and a couple of paracetamol a day gets me through. The one with dry socket seems to barely hurt anymore, although the hole is still open. Some of the brown stuff came out, but luckily just at the top, so the root section has healed (I believe!). The top one is still seeming to be very 'angry', unfortunately, and is definitely taking its time to heal! I'm just hoping they'll be okay for the braces tomorrow.

I had a cleaning appointment with my hygienist yesterday, and I think the cleaning disturbed the holes slightly as they're a bit more painful today, but I think they'll be okay!

Here are the pictures to show my teeth now after extractions, so you can see which teeth are missing. I'll upload some more after braces tomorrow


I had some better lighting conditions for these photos, as you can probably tell from the comparison of the first pictures. I haven't been biting my lips either! I also tried to improve the angle on the lowers and uppers. Hope you all like

[resort454]

Great story i am so thankful i dont have to get any. good luck on ur braces I get mine on march 8th.

[Domino]

Great story i am so thankful i dont have to get any. good luck on ur braces I get mine on march 8th.

Thanks, Desmond! That's funny, we must have been writing a post on each other's thread at the same time, as I just left one on yours before I read this one!

Not long for both of us now

[kellyb]

Good luck tomorrow
I can't wait to see your pics tomorrow with braces on

[kitsune]

Hi Dom!

I had dry socket after a particularly stubborn wisdom teeth extraction. The pain was absolutely unbelievable, so I really feel for you! Isn't it amazing how the weird clove stuff instantly helps?

Today is your brace day...very exciting! Now you will be able to update us regarding your ligature status, and we can hopefully start planning out your future lig colors together. I actually just noticed that today is my 6 month brace-a-versary, so you and I are braces twins separated by half a year...hehe.

I hope everything goes well for you today, and be sure to stock up on soft food this weekend!

[Domino]

Thanks kellyb and kitsune! Kitsune, that is awesome that we are brace twins by 6 months! Funny how that worked out As you'll read below, I've had clear ligatures on top and silver on bottom so far, but we can certainly discuss colours for a later date! Congrats on your 6 month anniversary!

Brace Day!
Hi all! Very happy to report I got my braces, yay! My ortho said my holes, while not healed, would be fine for braces. I'll share a summary of what happened, though I'm not totally sure the exact steps he took as, of course, I was blind to what he was doing, but I'll recount what I can.

Firstly, he put one of those mouth opener things in to keep my mouth open and my cheeks out of the way. He spread the surface of my teeth with this stuff, then something else I think, and then used some sort of high-powered water thing on them. Not sure what was really happening here! From there, he put each bracket on and moved it into place. After each time he did that, he'd subject it to this blue light thing that I believe made the cement harden and adhere the brackets to the teeth.

It took maybe 40 minutes in total to get all the brackets on. He did the front ones first, while the cheek retractor thing was in, then took it out and did the backs, using his hand to keep my cheek out of the way. I had a break at this point and had my first sensation of my mouth closed over the brackets. It's weird! It felt like my mouth was full of metal, which I guess it is, hehe.

After that, he put the archwire in. It's really thin and flexible, but I took note of its original shape before he put it in, and it's a perfect arch! I guess this makes sense as that's the shape the teeth need to go to. He used clear ligatures on top, to match the clear brackets, and silver ligatures on bottom to match the metal. He clipped the ends, I believe, which was a nasty sound!

And that was it! Then I got to see! See for yourselves:

I think they look pretty cool! In total it took just over an hour.

It has been nearly 5 hours since they went on, and I must admit I'm not in that much discomfort or pain. The only pain I'm feeling at the moment is the extraction holes still. There were a few moments when he was applying the braces that he caused them to hurt a bit, so I think they're sore from that.

I must say that it is a really weird feeling, though. It literally is like my mouth is full of metal. It's kind of uncomfortable, but there are moments when I almost forget; it's not until I move that I notice and remember. I tried eating earlier and it's awkward, but not painful. The horrible bit is the fact that once I've swallowed the food, the braces make me feel as if there's food still in my mouth when there isn't. Also, at the end of the archwire on my right side, it's a bit sharp and I can feel it scratching my tooth whenever I bite. I hope this won't last!

I expect (and also sort of hope!) that I'm going to feel more than this. At the moment I really don't feel that much pressure on my teeth, but I'm wondering if it's dulled by the pain from the holes; they're still hurting quite a bit

Next step is to have my first adjustment in 5 weeks, and also a oral hygiene lesson with an assistant on Wednesday. She's going to teach me exactly how to clean and floss and such now that I have braces. I think that's rather cool I also got given some floss threaders, a twin interdental brush, and some wax. I'm not really sure how to use the wax, yet, although my ortho did explain to me, but I forgot! Luckily, I don't think I need to use any yet.

I'm really happy to finally have my braces! I think they're great and I can't wait to see movement! I look forward to hearing your thoughts on the pics

[stevo1985]

Nice one! Looking good. I'm surprised i've been told circa 18 months and yours said 2yrs. I guess it is all subject to change.

[VioletJay]

Yay Dom! Nice braces!

My extractions were a little difficult because the roots were curved but the teeth did eventually come out. The Novocaine was wearing off majorly by the time I left the office so I was in quite unbearable pain by the time I collected my painkiller prescription. Thank God for Vicodin - that day, anyway! Now they're fine though. I've been brushing but avoiding the holes and so far, they seem ok - no horrendous pain, which is a relief!

Next Thursday is braces day and I am SO excited - ridiculous, I know, but I am almost 30 and it's been a long time coming...

Hope you continue to get better and don't experience any more complications!

[Domino]

Nice one! Looking good. I'm surprised i've been told circa 18 months and yours said 2yrs. I guess it is all subject to change.

Thanks I'm not sure about the timing, either! I hear a lot of people say 18 months, so it's odd mine is 24. But as you said, it is subject to change. I might finish earlier or even later.

Yay Dom! Nice braces!

My extractions were a little difficult because the roots were curved but the teeth did eventually come out. The Novocaine was wearing off majorly by the time I left the office so I was in quite unbearable pain by the time I collected my painkiller prescription. Thank God for Vicodin - that day, anyway! Now they're fine though. I've been brushing but avoiding the holes and so far, they seem ok - no horrendous pain, which is a relief!

Next Thursday is braces day and I am SO excited - ridiculous, I know, but I am almost 30 and it's been a long time coming...

Hope you continue to get better and don't experience any more complications!

Thanks! Ah, the joy of extractions! I'm not sure what it was my dentist used to numb me, but it worked really well and lasted hours and hours after I had even gotten home. In fact, I found it really uncomfortable and wanted it to stop, despite knowing there'd be pain instead! And yeah, definitely be careful with brushing, you don't want to catch the blood clot and get a dry socket like I did

Hehe, I totally understand your excitement. I was so glad to get mine today, especially after going through the extractions to get them. I'm just really excited about seeing my teeth move


Oh, and a quick update. Things have changed a bit since my last post... I definitely think the archwire has 'settled in' now, because my teeth are really aching now. I tried to eat a Cheestring and had a real shock... My teeth are so sensitive suddenly! (And they've never really been sensitive in my life, so I'd say it's definitely due to the braces.) Biting down even lightly on anything but my molars just kills. I hope it won't last long. At least I know for sure now that the braces are going to be doing something to my teeth! I was a bit worried when I wasn't feeling anything. I hear about 3-5 days before the pain stops, so that'll be good after then. I'll keep with the paracetamol and ibuprofen for now.

Might be a liquid/sloppy diet for a while! Hehe.

[kellyb]

oh dom
it's beautiful. great to know all went well on the day. don't worry about the discomfort, you will be fine in a couple of days. when i first had mine fitted, the tenderness only lasted about 3 days. by about a week i had forgotten i was wearing braces as i didn't have that full mouth feeling anymore. looking forward to seeing your progress pictures

[kitsune]

Hey, looking good! You will absolutely LOVE watching the wires straighten out over time. I think it is easier to see changes by keeping track of the kinks in the archwire.

On the first day that I got braces I couldn't understand what the big deal was about pain. "Pfffttt" I said to myself while munching on pizza. But the next morning...hoo boy. I didn't think it was possible to have such achey teeth! It was mainly my front teeth too, which I thought was odd. I couldn't bite anything using my front teeth for a while, but it does pass.

Best of luck flossing and such.

[Domino]

Thanks, kellyb, kitsune.

Teeth are still quite sensitive. Like you described, kitsune, it's the front ones and not really the back ones. My cheeks have gotten pretty sore today, too. I think the brackets are taking their toll on the cheeks now, so it might be a little while before my cheeks adjust. They're actually hurting more than the teeth. And, unfortunately, something is hurting nearer the back of my mouth, by my throat. Not sure if it's an infection or just some sort of sore. Hopefully it won't last long, because it's really quite nasty. It's like a really bad scratchy feeling when I swallow or touch it.

Oh, and kitsune, I just noticed! I made the exact same ticker as you and I didn't even realise. I'm sorry! I didn't mean to copy you, lol. Perhaps there's more to the twin thing than we first thought! Hehe.

[jem]

Looking good Dom. I'll bet you see quick progress.
Jem