Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi! I am newly braced as of 3 weeks ago. The experience has been embarrassing, painful, and uncomfortable, but finding the Archwired forum and reading through all of the other stories has been so helpful and inspiring. Every time that I start to feel down about my braces, I turn to the forum for some help. Since I don't know anyone with braces (all of my friends have perfectly straight, white, beautiful teeth - hate them ), the forum has really given me the support that I have been in need of.

So, thank you everyone!

I thought that it would be nice to post my story too so that I can become a part of this community and also to document the entire process. It seems as though I am already forgetting some details, and really want to remember this journey and the progress that my teeth are making.

Ok, so here is a little more about me:

I just turned 33 two weeks ago, have a professional job, and a boyfriend of 8 years. I never thought that I would be in braces in my 30's, but here I am!

A bit of history:

My parents never took me to the dentist growing up, much less an orthodontist. Luckily for me, I have strong teeth and never had any cavities or other dental problems as a result. But, my bottom teeth have become crowded and I have impacted canines with peg laterals which gives me a gapped smile that I've always been embarrassed of. I have been told that I should get braces for years, but have always been too embarrassed to. Adult braces, no way! But, I finally decided to take the plunge. I am sick of being embarrassed of my smile and constantly hiding my teeth, smiling with my mouth closed in all of my photos, and being jealous of everyone else's perfectly gorgeous smiles. As much as I still don't want to have adult braces, I am ready to finally fix my teeth! My smile is the one thing that I really want to change about myself, I can't wait for the day when I will be able to smile proudly and with confidence!

Once that I decided to get braces, I went to 4 different orthodontists because I wanted to make sure that I chose the right one. The 4th orthodontist was the one, I could tell right away. The staff is all incredibly sweet and supportive, the office is comfortable, clean, and has a modern and hip vibe which I really love, and the orthodontist is really knowledgeable. Out of all of the orthodontists that I interviewed, he was the only one who covered some of the non-cosmetic reasons why braces would be beneficial for me. The fact that there were medical reasons to fix my teeth was the final straw for me.

I had to get my wisdom teeth and impacted canines removed first (the orthodontist said that because of my age and the way that they were impacted, that the success rate would not be too great if I tried to move the canines down). This was a year ago, and I kept on procrastinating on making an appointment to get the braces on. I finally did it 3 weeks ago, and as much as I don't enjoy them, I am glad that they are finally on so that I can't procrastinate any longer.

I got ceramic uppers and lowers, I am pretty sure that the uppers are Damon clear because they don't have bands. I have clear bands on the bottom, but think that I am going to go with the Smoke colored next time after reading other threads on this site. My bands are already stained so badly! At first, I thought that I would try to steer clear of coffee and foods that would stain them, but was so miserable that I decided not to punish myself any more. I love the idea of getting some fun colors like other people here on the forum, but just don't feel brave enough yet.

The first week was terrible. My cheeks were really swollen from being stretched when the braces were put on (I have a small mouth), my jaw was really tight, I had a horrible lisp, I felt depressed, didn't want to leave the house, regretted my decision to get braces, and I couldn't eat anything unless it was pureed because of the bite turbos glued to the back of my two front teeth. The only thing that I wanted to do was sit on the couch and read other stories on the Archwired forum!

The second week was a little better. The swelling in my cheeks went away, but then my jaw and teeth started to hurt really badly. And, the brackets were drilling holes into my cheeks. I constantly wore gobs of dental wax, and think that I ended up eating quite a bit of it too.

The third week has been better. The soreness has really diminished, and I have been weaning myself away from the dental wax. I am still piling it on at night, but otherwise have been wax-free during the day. My turbo bites have both broken off, and I should probably get them put back on, but it has been so much nicer without them! I can finally eat!!! It is still hard for me to chew because my bite isn't closing all of the way and my teeth hurt, but it is so much nicer and more comfortable without the bite turbos. And my lisp is gone too, woo hoo! I should probably call my orthodontist about the bite turbos, but really don't want to hear that they need to go back on…

I am still really embarrassed of my braces and try not to smile. My friends and co-workers have all been supportive for the most part. Just one snarky comment so far from a co-worker of "So, you got adult braces huh?". Grrrr……. My supportive boyfriend said that she is probably jealous since she doesn't have very nice teeth either.

My sentence is most likely 12 months, 16 months at the very most. Afterwards, I will have to get veneers over my peg laterals and some work on my gums because of recession. My jaw pops and clicks when I open it, talk, or eat, and the braces are supposed to fix this problem as well as make my teeth look nice and pretty. I'll post some photos as soon as I figure out how… I haven't noticed too much movement yet, but it's only been 3 weeks - I'm just so impatient!

Wow, that was a lot to cover!

Congratulations on finally making the decision to get braced! I completely know how you feel about being embarrassed. I've had mine for over a month now and still try not to smile or show them in front of most people. I'm slowly getting over it, I know that people can tell I have them, but I think I'm waiting until things are a bit straighter and they will look more like teeth jewelry haha. Good thing for supportive boyfriends!! Mine's been great too, so that makes it much easier. And at least your sentence is only 12-16 months! Most people are in them for around 2 years, so you've got it good! Anyway, congrats again on taking the plunge and you'll be sooooo happy you did it when you start seeing changes. I'm already seeing improvements and I know it's only going to get better!

Hi stepher7,
Thanks for the support! It looks like you're a newbie too. I wish that I wasn't so embarrassed, but every time that I look in the mirror I look okay until I smile. And then, I just look like such a dork. My co-workers and friends tell me that they don't notice my braces, but I think that they're just trying to be nice. When I look in the mirror, they're so obvious! I guess that it's pointless trying to hide them, but I'm just not ready to show them off yet.

My boyfriend has been great. He wasn't too excited when I first told him that I was considering braces, but he is fine with it now and he is looking forward to me being more confident about my smile. He had braces for over 4 years when he was younger, and even had to wear headgear, so he completely understands what it's like. I'm really glad that I don't have to be in braces for 2 years, not sure if I would have been brave enough to get them if my sentence was that long. I'm really hoping to only have them for 1 year. It's awesome that you're already seeing improvements! I've heard that it gets easier once that you start noticing changes.

I had a freaky dream last night that one of my teeth fell out and was dangling from it's bracket - scary!

Going shopping today, hoping that some new clothes will make me feel a little less dorky!

Retail therapy helps everything! lol I luckily haven't had any scary teeth dreams yet, dreading that if it does happen

It's so funny to read what you write about how you're feeling because I feel the same way! My b/f also had braces for around 4 years when he was younger, so yes they can definitely sympathize with us. Although it's a completely different ballgame when you're an adult, they can still relate somewhat. I'm sure you'll get over the embarrassment, I'm slowly starting to. People see them anyway, right? I'd say make sure you take progress pictures because it really helps boost your confidence when you can track the movement your teeth are making and will help you remember why you're doing this on those days when you just want to rip the stupid things off your teeth!!

Congratulations on finally taking the plunge. It can be embarassing, yes, but you WILL get used to it. Alot of people will actually respect an adult making the decision to correct their teeth, as many would actually love to do the same but do not have the courage (or money). Also remember that because you can feel them in your mouth you imagine they are EXTREMELY noticeable and you are always worrying what other people think. But you know what? Often other people are so wrapped up with their own insecurities and concerns, they honesty don't notice as much as you think they do. I've had braces for just over a couple of months now and I was so very embarassed. I even went back to the orthodontist in tears because I just hated them so much (I had yet to discover the wax, so I was in alot of pain). I felt a little stupid for crying, when I was 25 and there were other children in the room who were just fine. But I realised that the beginning stages of braces is always the worst. The following day, a co-worker said to me "Oh when did you get braces? I never even noticed." and I started to feel a little better Good luck

One month in and I am finally seeing some changes! !

Thank you for all of the support! It is so nice to know that there are others going through the same emotions, and reading through all of the other stories has been so encouraging. I keep looking at the before and after pics on this forum, and can't wait for my smile to look like that!

I'm still embarrassed to show my teeth, but am realizing that people are going to see the braces no matter what. And, it seems as though most people are supportive and either share their own brace story or tell me that they want to get them too.

Ok, I've decided to post some photos... posting images of my teeth in braces on a public forum - yikes!

Just gotta figure out how to post them...

Ok, here it goes!

As you'll see my bottom teeth are crowded, and I have peg laterals on the top that will get veneers after my braces are taken off. My canine teeth were impacted and were going to be too difficult to move down, so my orthodontist chose to have them extracted. The teeth behind my peg laterals are really slanted forwards, the orthodontist is going to straighten them out and then move them forward so that they'll take the place of my canine teeth.

Alright, and here are the progress photos at 1 month in. As you'll see, my bottom bands are SO stained - yuck! Unfortunately, my orthodontist is completely booked and I can't get them changed until my next appointment in 4 more weeks. I guess that they can't get too much more yellow... I've been really good about brushing, but have not deprived myself from coffee, tea, salsa, and other things that stain. Definitely not getting clear bands again! They're not noticeable when I talk or smile, so no one else other than myself (and you all) knows just how gross they are.

My bottom teeth have straightened out a little, but I'm not seeing any movement in my top teeth yet. Hopefully soon!

And a couple more pics...

Sorry again about the disgusting yellow bands.

I can definitely see that your bottoms are straightening out! My bottoms have a loooooong way to go, so I'm jealous of how yours look! You're lucky that you have clear all the way too. I have Damon brackets, so no elastics which is nice, but it means only the top front 6 are clear and everything else is metal. It's not too bad, they don't show much when I talk or smile, unless I smile really big, but I don't usually do that so they're ok. Keep the updates and pics coming, it's fun to follow other people's progress!

If you want to try a new lig color that is still discreet, yet stains a lot less than the clear, see if your orthodontist carries the color called "Obscure". I've been using it for the past few months, and I find that it doesn't "grab" onto staining foods nearly as much as the clear ones do. Obscure is more tooth-colored, and blends in nicely, even with the not-so-whitest of teeth (like mine!)

-Cathy

I'm sorry people make you feel embarrassed about your braces! I've been very lucky; people have been very enthusiastic and have shared their own braces stories when they see mine. A few people have said they've always wanted to get them and are now considering it seriously when they see that I've done it. There's no hiding my braces at all because I'm a performing musician, so when I stand on a stage and sing, that silver glint is right there!

Hang in there! We'll both be glad when we have pretty smiles to show the world!

Hi! I am so glad that my bottoms are straightening out, it feels good to see progress! I haven't seen much change since last week, but looking at the changes throughout the past 5 weeks makes me feel more optimistic. I felt depressed for the first couple weeks after getting my braces on, which was odd because I'm normally a pretty upbeat and positive person. I guess that I'm just realizing that the braces don't change how my friends or co-workers feel about me - they've all been really supportive. And, who really cares what strangers think?

Thank you for the "Obscure" suggestion! I have another 3 weeks left until I can get new bands, but will definitely see if my orthodontist has this color. My yellow-stained ones are so disgusting.

Wow, wearing braces on stage? That's brave! I'm not sure that I would have the confidence to do that.

I haven't noticed any changes in my top teeth. Does anyone know if that movement usually happen after the thicker wires are put on? Just curious, it would feel so nice to see some movement in my uppers!