Braces at 63

[Uptown Girl]

Thanks, Ridingboots. The holiday is now over. It was fantastic and my braces did not cause any trouble. Tomorrow is my six monthly clean at the dentist and the day after is my next adjustment after two months since my last one. My ortho went on holidays just before I got back so it's been a while. I will take a photo afterwards as the ligs are stained from all that coffee and red wine I've had in the last two months.

[Uptown Girl]

I was so lucky to have no problems in two months especially as most of that time I was overseas. Since my last adjustment two things have gone wrong. Fortunately it is only a ten minute drive to the ortho.

Going back to Monday. I caught the train to Sydney for my clean as my Health Fund gives me two free cleans a year at their Dental Surgery. The dentist said the back and top teeth were in great condition but there was some plaque around the lower front teeth. He thought I may have been so obsessed with the back teeth I didn't spend enough time on the front. I only use a Waterpik and then a brush so decided to use Piksters on the bottom front teeth every day or two as well. I'll also devote more time to those lower teeth.

Next day at the ortho he only changed the top wire. He took the coil spring off the pre-molar and attached the tooth using a thinner wire than last time. I thought it was already attached but I must have been wrong. He wants that tooth to line up with the others before putting the elastics on so thinks that will happen at the next adjustment in six week's time.

This morning I was cleaning my teeth and thinking I might call the ortho about a bit of wire poking out (that pre-molar is moving fast) when I felt something move on the lower left of my mouth. It looked like a metal bracket was sitting up on top of the tooth and I couldn't close my teeth together. I rang the office and was able to go in straight away. The assistant looked at it, checked with the ortho who was busy with a patient, and removed the bracket, saying I could do without it until the next adjustment. She also snipped the wire but said it will probably poke out again as the tooth moves so to come in anytime to get it trimmed.

I'm so glad I wasn't on a plane to Paris when all this happened. With eight months in braces coming up soon I suppose there should be a "one third the way there" celebration. I imagine the "half way there" celebration will be even better!

[Uptown Girl]

Another visit to the ortho after six weeks and this time he put the elastics on. I was very surprised that he made two small loops in the new top archwire to attach the elastics. They are a short distance away from the hooks on the brackets but how he knows where to put the loops beats me.

Here are some photos. The two front teeth (crowns) have moved to become the same length as the other teeth (they used to be longer). Everything is lined up ready for the elastics to do their work. I have been told if I do not wear my elastics my teeth will GO EVERYWHERE!!! As a result I will wear them at all times except when eating. I may even try some eating with them as well.




Here is an early photo to compare.

[newbite]

Your teeth are looking beautiful! Woohoo!

I got the same hooks on my wires. They told me they place the hooks on the wire (instead of the brackets) because they exert more force that way. I had the opposite elastic configuration (for underbite). Now I don't wear elastics at all but have tiebacks from all 4 front hooks going back to all four 2nd molars.

Congratulations on being 1/3 complete!

[Ridingboots]

Uptown girl you teeth have really improved how are the elastics going I hope they are not to annoying. Can you believe it has been 9 months

[Uptown Girl]

There has been a bit of a disaster. We set off on a one month holiday to Queensland in our caravan (one of the perks of getting older-retirement!). A thousand kilometres from home, at Carnarvon Gorge, I noticed a bracket had come off my upper front tooth. This is on one of the crowns so nearly ten months is more than I had hoped for. It just happened at a bad time in the middle of nowhere.

I have managed to get in to the ortho a week before my next appointment and we will be home in two days. I didn't cut the holiday short and just lived with it as it wasn't painful or even too annoying. What is alarming is that the tooth has moved considerably from where it was so now I have two very irregular front teeth. I am looking forward to getting everything fixed as I feel like I am not making any progress, just going backwards.

The elastics are OK most of the time although I hate the look of them. I feel like a vampire. I leave a trail of little rings wherever I eat. I used to put them on my little finger when I took them off to eat until I woke up one night in pain because the blood supply to my finger had been cut off

[Uptown Girl]

I got to see the ortho a week early. He replaced the broken bracket and put the wire back on. He had to polish the tooth (crown) to remove the previous glue so now it looks white and the others look yellow. Putting on the wire was scary as he had to push the tooth back into place. I thought it was going to come out and nearly leapt out of my seat. Another bracket had let go at the back so he put an extra tie on it which is very sharp. Surprisingly I am getting used to gouges in my gums. I suppose I am just so relieved to have the front tooth back on the wire. It already is moving to where it should be.

The new elastics are smaller. They are still light but are now 1/4" instead of 3/8". For Aussies that is 6.35 mm instead of 9.53 mm.

I am looking forward to celebrating 12 months in braces. The last ten months has flown and I can live with them although I am always conscious they are there.

[Bracesat57]

Glad to hear that you are back on track with your progress. A broken bracket can set back your treatment time if not fixed in a timely manner.

I am a few weeks ahead of you in treatment. It truly is amazing on how fast the year has flown by.

[metalliKa]

I had two emergency visits to the ortho within just the last week and a half alone! First, my wire was bent and it hurt like heck...then a week later, the bracket where that bent was came loose. My last emergency visit, my ortho decided that I didn't need the power chain anymore so he didn't lace the chain back on. It's been two days today and now the gap has opened again. I'm not thrilled because it feels like I'm going backwards in treatment with this gap and I haven't been noticing much change lately. I'm not due for my next adjustment for another three weeks...hopefully the gap remains the same.

[avngal]

How is your treatment progressing? I just got braces today and am in my 50's.

[Uptown Girl]

Hi avngal,
I'll be back at the ortho next week so not sure what he has in store. The main reason I had braces was to stop my bottom teeth wearing away as they came in contact with the top teeth. They no longer do that but whether my bite is correct now I don't know. I can chew well but can't imagine biting with my front teeth where they are now as they have moved outwards. As I have retired from the work force (teaching) and don't have to talk much I think it is a lot easier for me than most people. I was not worried about the appearance of the braces but when I started wearing elastics I thought they looked pretty awful. Maybe I will try and get coloured ones.

It is incredible to think I will be a pensioner before this is over!!!

Good luck with your braces. Apart from a few hiccups I have found the whole business fairly painless and can't believe how fast the time has gone with them on.

metalliKa, you must have been back to the ortho by now so hope all is well with the gap.

[newbite]

The elastics are disconcerting aren't they? I feel like people noticed them more than my actual braces. They look like strings of saliva or something! But they do their job and that's what matters, right?

What do you mean when you say you can't imagine biting with your front teeth? Do you have an overjet now or are the teeth flared out? I have an overjet now and am still not used to not being able to grab lettuce with my front teeth. My top front teeth have always hit my bottom front teeth (too much so!), so feeling the lettuce slip out now is quite strange!

[Uptown Girl]

I am sure I have an overjet now but hope it is not like this in twelve month's time. I am also wary of biting with my front teeth (crowns) because the brackets have come off twice and had to be reglued. I could not bite lettuce with my front teeth and have to push it up the back. I still manage to eat far too much food, however!

[Uptown Girl]

Another visit to the ortho and I found I had another broken bracket. My front teeth were becoming uneven and I did not realise that the bracket had come off on my other crown. The bottom teeth were not touched this time and the same wire was put back on the top after the bracket was repaired. When i mentioned I had booked a holiday to North America next May the ortho said I may be out of braces by then. That would only be another six months! I was counting on another twelve months at least so am a bit shocked. Every time I break a bracket the teeth start moving in all directions so I'm not ready to debrace! I have smaller elastics this time but nothing else has changed. I am pleased to see the front teeth have lined up again after a couple of days.

[Uptown Girl]

Just thought I'd post a Happy First Birthday to my braces. Who would have thought a whole year could go by and I have survived! They still have some way to go as my top teeth seem to be higher on one side of my mouth than the other. That has happened since I started wearing elastics but I suppose the ortho knows what he's doing!