Kish - Orthodontic Saga [ Pre B-day Pics ]

[wallywest]

Hi Guys ,
My friends call me Kish, 21 turning 22 soon . I am from Ontario, Canada. I have been a silent peruser of the site for a long time. It has given me the drive and knowledge required to make an informed decision about orthodontics.

I have known that I needed braces since high school, but then I realized how superficial this world has become and every inch of you is scrutinized. Hated smiling in pictures. Decided to take the step get it fixed.

I consulted with 4 Ortho's all of them gave me different prognosis and estimated time, 2 of them highly recommended extractions but I have extraction-averse , so I picked one of the two who said extractions are unlikely and I quote " less than 5% chance of extractions" - I am banking on the remaining 95%.

I opted Damon Braces, ( even though I wanted clear ceramic ones, I love eating thai food and was warned that the curry stains will defeat the purpose of opting ceramic braces in the first place.)

I am really skeptical and worried about my social life with braces, I mean carrying a brush everywhere, I mean its not exactly going to be easy when you are coming home drunk from a kegger


Here are the Pics of my teeth as of today ,





[/img][/b]

[Tommm]

Congrats on starting your journey! I have clear self ligating braces called Innovation C. They have no ligs so they don't stain and supposedly are as effective as the damons. Here's the website for more info:

http://www.gacinovation.com/categories/ ... ystems.cfm

[brika]

Hi Kish!
Congrats on taking the plunge into braces! I know how hard the decision to make such a huge commitment can be, but the inconveniences will be worth it in the end.
You've got a lovely set of teeth, so I'm glad you were able to find an ortho that didn't need to extract any! Your upper lateral incisors don't have as far to travel as mine does, so hopefully those guys will be all lined up soon.
I look forward to seeing your progress! I know you're going to have amazing results.
Good luck on Tuesday! Let us know how it goes!

[wallywest]

Thanks Brika ,
I really commend you taking that leap, I see now that it takes a lot of courage to do this . Thanks for the motivation. I try and be diligent of keeping you guys updated with the progress.

Hey Tom ,
I talked to my ortho and he does not use those, said he specializes in using damon, Thanks though, I now wish my ortho used those ones. You can barely notice those even within distance reach.

[sdawdy]

Congrats on taking the plunge in this journey. Things to remember and said many times on this site....keep yourself hydrated and things may get worse before they get better. But it is all worth it in the end!!

I don't know anything about Damon's or clear brackets (other than what I have read on here) as I have a full metal traditional brackets.

You are making one of the best decisions of your life!

SD

[wallywest]

Thanks Sdawdy,
Noted. I know and I am mentally preparing myself for every step of the way.
I read numerous reviews and medical journals, from what I have gathered, the self ligating is most a gimmick and has some truth to it but not whole.
So the way I see , traditional or otherwise its all in the hands of the Ortho.

[danish]

hi wallywest,

Your concerns regarding your social life are understandable. But when your treatment is behind you and you have a Hollywood smile you will be glad that you did take the plunge while still being relatively young.

Let me tell you that it's not necessarily easier for a mature adult to undergo orthodontic treatment with regard to one's social life. I'm 37-years-old and as much as I'm glad that I finally decided to do something about my teeth, I regret that I didn't do it before... Like when I was in your age (hmm...now THAT sounds as if I'm preserved from a past geologic age ! Hehe) So your timing is definitively right!

And there are more good news: treatment time for young people is normally shorter as the bones supporting young teeth tend to be more pliable than those supporting older teeth.

looking forward to following your story on the forum.

Good Luck

Danish

[wallywest]

Hey Danish
Thanks for shining some light on the some of the positive aspects of this treatment, it is imperative that I stay positive.
I Know how you feel, I wish I had them done earlier , I mean its a right of passage for teens but I guess its better now then never right?
If I make headway as fast so you did, I will be more than just happy.
I will keep you updated on my progress
thanks once again danish .

[MakePinkNotWar]

Woohoo for making the plunge. I know the people on this forum hate this but I honestly think your teeth look nice pre-braces. I support your choice to get braces though but I had to be honest.

You replied to my post that you would be getting braces on Tuesday..so how are they?

[wallywest]

Hi Guys I am Finally braced.
Let me tell you it was journey ,
The day I got braced by the time i got home one of the brackets popped, so I drove back all the way to find that every one left.
Nonetheless I got an appointment for the DAY AFTER got it fixed, got some molar buildups which I despise.
I have been compulsively obsessed by constantly looking at them in mirror in the car. So Now I have decided not to look at them until its day 20.
Here are the Pics from Brace DAY




I realized how much I have to sacrifice when it comes to food , Far greater than What I had anticipated

[*tap*]

yay.. there finally on you must be relieved i no i was when they went on. you still have your little coloured dots i like them but they fall off with brushing after a few days. so how you finding the damons they feel pretty big in your mouth for the first few days dont they, i dont actually mind the way mine look they kinda grow on you and dont worry about the eating you will be able to eat anything you want again soon, and for instance if you go out for a meal and dont want to take a tooth brush just make sure you have a nice glass of water after to secretly swirl just to get rid of any bits, but you will soon learn the nack of getting food out with your tongue of course brushing is better but just if you dont have one to hand.. i couldnt say this any where else but this site i sound so sad haha!!
anyway i hope you have smooth treatment bar the first bracket hitch lol.

sophie.

[wallywest]

hi sophie,
nice to meet another damon user, these things feel like bricks in your mouth. The first couple of days my teeth were so brittle , I was contemplating abandoning ship , get veeners and work hard to save 5000 every 5 years rather than endure this pain. thanks to some of my friends and their braces experience saved me from a bad decision.
Yes you can see the dots on my damon are fresh , * brush that dots of your braces * * imitates a rap song*
I have taken precautionary steps , as i have tooth brush in my back pack , one in my car , one in my locker , one at work and one in my jacket. I will have to make do with that till i get some tongue skills. { ideal " thats what she said" }
Thanks for the heads up , mighty nice of you
hopefully your toofers get in line sooner than you expect
Cheers
Kishore

[*tap*]

haha that was funny..!
yeah its so much worse when you wake up in the morning they feel huuuge. i no that feeling its like day one your happy there on, kinda on a high about it, then it becomes rather tideous for me it was staring at every possible mirror, i did what you have and stopped looking (for like a wk) but i've slipped and started again only because i'm amazed at how quick these things work, just this past week my front teeth have moved forward sooo much.
wow thats a whole lot of tooth brushes you have

thanks v much i think they moving pretty rapid just bummed out at the ten wk gap between adjustments. are yours the same?

sophie.

[Tommm]

Congrats on getting your braces on! Good luck on "not looking at them until day 20". I still can't stop looking at mine every second and it's been over a month now...

[wallywest]

hi tomm
Yeah so 5 days have gone so far, where I have not thoroughly examined my braces, I even try to brush and use the water pik with either Dim light or my eyes closed . I AM OBSSESED about these things. I know what you mean by staring at them every second. Everytime i stop at the lights I check them , everytime I shave, shower, use my cell phone ( via the camera) .
A watched pot never boils so i am waiting to see some semi significant movement at day 20.

ey sophie

You are right after the novelty wears off, you find your shiny new metal reflecting off every possible mirror. Yeah you gotta be strong and stay away from staring at it atleast for a week , so you can see major advances than tiny ones , which makes you feel way better. Glad to hear your front teeth are on the move , this might sound corny but that kind of stuff excites me and i take solace in the fact that my investment and my commitment is paying off.

Yeah the downside to damon is that since they are "self Ligating" the appointments are further which is a bummer because, you feel like the wires have lost their tension and its time to move onto the next but noooo you gotta wait 10 weeks till they can pencil you in . When they initally pencilled me in at 10 weeks i told them i am going to be on a "VACATION " if you know what i am saying , then she scheduled me for a visit at 7 1/2 week , 3 weeks saved is 3 weeks shaved.

cheers