braces at the age of 38

[ccarn]

HI this is my first post and very excited to get some advice. (probably need more motivation...lol) I finally decided to get braces done. I am 38 years old and must admit I am extremely scared. Not sure if its more the pain that i am afraid of or the fact that i have to face my family and friends. I am a sales executive, and the thought of facing my clients makes me want to change my mind. My orthodontist said I would need a maxillary palette expander (this freaked me out completely) and a full set of braces. I have chosen the ceramic for the top because apparently it less visible. If there is anyone that had a similiar experience recently please help me to understand what I can expect. Is having an expander painful. And having braces at my age...what can I expect. My othrob is putting both expander and top and bottom braces at once...

[netgringo]

Hello!

I don't have any experience with an expander, although many here will have and will hopefully comment. But I can comment a bit about my experience with people's reactions.

I'm 49 and just got braces a month ago, metal all around. I've decided to just own it and not try to hide them or anything, so I smile big and laugh and let everyone know. Those who know me well want to know the whole story and are kind of fascinated. Acquaintances at first do a double take, but after about thirty seconds they are over it. Those who didn't know me don't even react when they see I have braces. No one at all has reacted negatively.

How your experience is similar. Take care!

[pmonique3]

Hi,

I have never heard of expander and haven't experienced. I have had my braces almost 6 weeks now. I am 36 years old and I really don't let it bother me. I feel when I have done my time that my smile will be worth the metal, aches, and pain. The first few days can be difficult but after a while you forget that their in your mouth. I have heard so many different stories from work and reading this message board which has become a big help to me. I know for me I read so many horror stories and honestly the closer I got to my day of having them put on I was nervous, scared and even more so wasn't sure if the pain would be unbearable. I can truly say I made it worse than it was. I go for my 1st wire exchange Thursday. Good luck

[Nozzelnut]

Welcome!

From what I've read and watched, expanders are more of a pressure than a pain. Most say there's some getting used to talking with them in. There's a couple folks here that have had them and can give more of a first hand experience.

If you do a search for expander I'm sure you'll come up with a couple threads about what some folks went through with them.

I haven't got my second round of braces on yet; I have to take care of my TMJ issues first. I'll be 40 at the end of next month and have chosen ceramics on top for the same reasons you have; less noticeable than regular metal.

Good luck!

[Tobilei]

I also don't have expander experience, however I got my clear braces (upper and lower) at 34 and found that 90% of people didn't even notice I had them unless I referenced them. Some people were surprised even after talking to me for months to find out I had them on. Others noticed but no one said anything except people who were interested or wanting to get their own teeth done and none of the comments were ever negative. I think it's perfectly acceptable now days for adults to be fixing their teeth. My ortho told me that 10 years ago about 10% of his patients were adults, now that number is over 60%.