Is 40 too old for a new grill?
Posted: Tue Sep 01, 2009 2:46 pm
Hello All!
I've been lurking on these boards for months now and I think it's time I introduce myself and tell my story...
I'm a 40-year-old mom and last year when I took my daughter to a brief status meeting with her ortho I got a wild hair and decided to book myself a consultation appointment. I've always had somewhat crooked teeth, but in a family of five kids, not all of us made it through the rounds of orthodontics. My friends have frequently told me my crooked teeth add to my character. I know they were saying this to be kind, but I always thought, "So, when people think of my face they think of crooked teeth...?" I decided that I'd waited long enough. I am capable of paying the orthodontia bills and I have a husband who loves me no matter what. (That's what he tells me, and now I'm testing the theory!) So, off I went for my consultation.
My orthodontist was extremely thorough and thoughtful at the appointment. After x-rays and molds and biting this way and that, we finally sat down to talk about my treatment. He asked, "So what do you want to get out of this?" My first thought was, "Silly question...don't you straighten teeth for a living?" I said (almost) just that...I want to straighten my teeth, improve my smile. He said, "What about your bite?" I answered, "Well, yes, that too." His first recommendation was jaw surgery in combination with braces. I immediately rejected that idea. It's enough that I was inching up on 40 and ready to put metal in my mouth. So we talked it through and he decided he would get me "as close to perfect" as he could without surgery.
I don't have a list of all of the technical terms associated with my "issues" so here's the plain English version:
I have an impacted canine that needs to be pulled down and a baby canine to be removed.
I have a pretty severe overbite.
My bottom jaw is much smaller than my upper jaw and when I bite it has to be on one side or the other. My teeth do not meet up on both sides at the same time. (Is this common?)
So, on January 13th I got my top grill installed. I have the "In-Ovation C" clear brackets on the top six and metal on the back. Technically, I have them on the top five. The baby does not have a bracket.
Coincidentally I also found out after getting my braces put on that I had some bone loss under my bottom front teeth resulting from an injury when I was twelve. (My sister and I were repeatedly jumping into a pool backwards. My jaw hit on the way down. No broken bones, but all of my front teeth were knocked loose. You can imagine the surprised expression of the lifeguard when I climbed out of the pool with blood dripping down my chin...) Anywho, on March 6th I had a tooth pulled and a bone graft done. The periodontist then cut my old tooth and attached it to the teeth on either side of the extraction gap. It's lovely. You should all look into this. It's a temporary solution until my braces are removed from my bottom teeth and I can have an implant put in.
On May 15th (the day before my birthday...seriously bad planning on my part) I had my impacted tooth exposed.
On June 4th I had a TPA installed and the impacted tooth's wire attached. The TPA has an "arm" attached to it that extends to the impacted tooth and puts constant, gentle pressure on the tooth to bring it down.
It's September 1st and I have yet to see that tooth expose itself. I've named it Punksatony Phil after the famous groundhog. He has not yet seen his shadow and I'm growing impatient!
Well, that's my story so far. My biggest hurdle will obviously be the impacted tooth rearing its head. My hope is that my age does not interfere with the progress. Apparently the older you get the more dense your bone and therefore the more difficult the exposing becomes.
My next adjustment is on September 15th so stay tuned!
Thanks for reading!
Karen in Cali
I've been lurking on these boards for months now and I think it's time I introduce myself and tell my story...
I'm a 40-year-old mom and last year when I took my daughter to a brief status meeting with her ortho I got a wild hair and decided to book myself a consultation appointment. I've always had somewhat crooked teeth, but in a family of five kids, not all of us made it through the rounds of orthodontics. My friends have frequently told me my crooked teeth add to my character. I know they were saying this to be kind, but I always thought, "So, when people think of my face they think of crooked teeth...?" I decided that I'd waited long enough. I am capable of paying the orthodontia bills and I have a husband who loves me no matter what. (That's what he tells me, and now I'm testing the theory!) So, off I went for my consultation.
My orthodontist was extremely thorough and thoughtful at the appointment. After x-rays and molds and biting this way and that, we finally sat down to talk about my treatment. He asked, "So what do you want to get out of this?" My first thought was, "Silly question...don't you straighten teeth for a living?" I said (almost) just that...I want to straighten my teeth, improve my smile. He said, "What about your bite?" I answered, "Well, yes, that too." His first recommendation was jaw surgery in combination with braces. I immediately rejected that idea. It's enough that I was inching up on 40 and ready to put metal in my mouth. So we talked it through and he decided he would get me "as close to perfect" as he could without surgery.
I don't have a list of all of the technical terms associated with my "issues" so here's the plain English version:
I have an impacted canine that needs to be pulled down and a baby canine to be removed.
I have a pretty severe overbite.
My bottom jaw is much smaller than my upper jaw and when I bite it has to be on one side or the other. My teeth do not meet up on both sides at the same time. (Is this common?)
So, on January 13th I got my top grill installed. I have the "In-Ovation C" clear brackets on the top six and metal on the back. Technically, I have them on the top five. The baby does not have a bracket.
Coincidentally I also found out after getting my braces put on that I had some bone loss under my bottom front teeth resulting from an injury when I was twelve. (My sister and I were repeatedly jumping into a pool backwards. My jaw hit on the way down. No broken bones, but all of my front teeth were knocked loose. You can imagine the surprised expression of the lifeguard when I climbed out of the pool with blood dripping down my chin...) Anywho, on March 6th I had a tooth pulled and a bone graft done. The periodontist then cut my old tooth and attached it to the teeth on either side of the extraction gap. It's lovely. You should all look into this. It's a temporary solution until my braces are removed from my bottom teeth and I can have an implant put in.
On May 15th (the day before my birthday...seriously bad planning on my part) I had my impacted tooth exposed.
On June 4th I had a TPA installed and the impacted tooth's wire attached. The TPA has an "arm" attached to it that extends to the impacted tooth and puts constant, gentle pressure on the tooth to bring it down.
It's September 1st and I have yet to see that tooth expose itself. I've named it Punksatony Phil after the famous groundhog. He has not yet seen his shadow and I'm growing impatient!
Well, that's my story so far. My biggest hurdle will obviously be the impacted tooth rearing its head. My hope is that my age does not interfere with the progress. Apparently the older you get the more dense your bone and therefore the more difficult the exposing becomes.
My next adjustment is on September 15th so stay tuned!
Thanks for reading!
Karen in Cali
