If you want to share the detailed saga of your braces story, this is the place to do it. You can use this forum as a braces journal, editing and updating your posts as your treatment goes on. Remember to also visit the main ArchWired.com site for additional stories from other readers!
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One of my cousins had a similar case, where she had an open bite and an overjet and the ortho did everything he could to intrude and move the molars... She wore the elastics religiously and while it helped her with the angling of the
front teeth, the molars weren't really cooperating and moving backwards and up as fast as they were supposed to. She actually got night time headgear in the end and it really sped up the process, everything fell into place in a time span of 2 months and she's really satisfied with her results now.
So if you don't mind wearing headgear at night, which surely isn't too bad (loads of kids have to endure it lol), the results will probably be faster than just elastics. Hopefully everything works out, keep up with the updates man!
And PS.: you can eat or make out with the elastics, worst thing that can happen is that they snap off, not a big deal
Just racked up 1 year as an adult in braces! My mouth is still very much a work in progress; I'd argue that the overjet and open bite are more pronounced now than they were a year ago. My orthodontist is also quite flustered. I looked over at the computer during my appointment this week and noticed that my estimated completion date has been pushed back to July 2018; 6 months later than initially forecast!
At my appointment, he did decide to start me on elastics. The arrangement is a box shape, with 1 large rubber band attaching to all my canines. In theory, this should close my open bite. The pain in my teeth over the past 3 days is welcome, as I haven't had much (any!) pain during my time in braces, and at least I know my teeth are moving. However, due to the flaring of my upper incisors, the elastic rests not on the tooth or bracket, but at the base of the upper incisor at the gum line, causing it to dig into the gum and bleed, hurting quite a bit. I called my ortho to see if this was normal, and was given some reassurance, but I'm skeptical they understood what I was describing to them. I'd post a picture, but my camera can't seem to capture a macro photo with any great fidelity, not to mention my teeth are stained as hell since it's been a few months since my last dentist visit. I'll work on getting a pic posted after my dental cleaning next month.
Alas, I still have the TPA hanging out on my palate, even though it's not needed since the TADs aren't attached. I have been assured that it will definitely come out at next visit. It's not really a nuisance, but with painful elastics in my mouth now and the possibility of headgear in the future, I want it out as kind of a moral victory.
The oral surgeon was booked solid this summer with wisdom teeth extractions, but I finally have a date set for my TADs to come out: September 8, under conscious sedation. It felt a little silly to get sedation for the placing of the TADs, and it seems completely ridiculous to get knocked out just to have them unscrewed from my skull. But the oral surgeon insisted, and it's at no additional cost to me, so who am I to argue?
I feel as though I've rambled long enough for one post, so I'll keep the next one short & sweet with more in the way of pics. Any thoughts or advice on any of the above is greatly appreciated, as always!
Update/Braces off soon!
Sorry for the hiatus in posting my story. Since my last post, things have slowly come together. The initial elastic configuration wasn't working well, so now I'm wearing 24/7 sling-style elastics. They were a bit more difficult to get used to (felt like my mouth was wired shut at first!), but I've managed. The end result is about 90% of what I had hoped to accomplish with braces. My front teeth still do not touch, but they're much closer than before, and it's the best I am going to be able to do without surgery.
That being said, I now have a de-bracing date! It is August 15, exactly 25 months after starting treatment, about 7 months slower than predicted. I took impressions for retainers 2 days ago. I'll be going with a Hawley-style retainer on top and permanent retainer on the front lower 6 teeth with + lower Essix (clear) retainer.
Braces are off! I had them for exactly 25 months (up from an estimated 18 months). Debanding process was fairly uneventful, though there was a lot more polishing this time around than I remember from my previous debanding... I do drink a lot more tea now, so there was a lot of staining. I was given free reign of what retainers to choose, so I went with bonded retainer on the bottom, Hawley on the top, with an Essix for nighttime use on the bottom. I picked up the retainers right before labor day weekend, and was glad to have the extended weekend to practice speaking. I'm comfortable with the Hawley now, a week into wearing it full time. I've even ventured out of the house with the Essix a couple of times to get used to it, but it's still a noticeable lisp with both retainers in.
The end result of my braces I am quite satisfied with. I can just barely touch my front incisors together, but they lose that if my retainers are out for any length of time. I had hoped for a more significant reduction of the open bite, but between this and orthognathic surgery, I'm happy with the choice I made. I will definitely wear my retainer longer than the 3-6 months that was recommended.
I'm still a bit worried about my tongue thrust... thinking about requesting a bonded retainer for the top teeth or Hawley with tongue crib, as I definitely notice my tongue resting firmly on the acrylic of the retainer.
Unfortunately, it was too bothersome to get things working well on photobucket and imageshack (each time I posted pictures, it took the better part of an hour), so I don't have any more pictures to share, though if I get a bunch of free time I'll look into posting some.
Great posts, looking forward to following your journey, I started treatment round 2 August 06th and will be in for 1.5 years this time around. You can see my story here <--- Click red text for link.
Adjustment Sept 14th, 2018
Braces back on August 06, 2018
Braces off April 02, 2008
Congrats! Good to hear everything turned out okay, even if a bit of the bite problems still remain.
As for image sharing try https://imgbb.com/, easy to upload without an account and share the link, would be nice to see your results and the retainers!
How did you choose that combo of retainers? Are there pros and cons to each one? My contract offers bonded ones "if requested" but I have no idea if they're worth it!
16 month sentence December 2018 to April 2020... Debraced May 2020 with only a 2 month COVID-19 delay!
My braces story: viewtopic.php?f=9&t=54116
