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At my first adjustment, one of my brackets fell off. The tech took the archwire off and I brushed my teeth. As I brushed, I noticed the NAKED TOOTH! It was the coolest thing to see my most crooked top tooth almost straight! It had rotated enough in just 10 weeks that I didn't even recognize it! It was so incredible seeing one naked tooth that I can hardly wait to see the rest of them naked. Too bad it's going to be another 17 1/2 months!!
Anyone else get a glimpse of a naked tooth? Hope it gave you just as much inspiration as it did me to keep going even when some days aren't very fun being braced! For those newly braced or getting braced soon, all that pain or discomfort is soooooo worth it!!
Yep I've seen some naked teeth, my bottom brackets were relocated so for a time I could see all the teeth...my first impression? They looked BIG! Huge!
Top Braces June 2004
Bottom Braces November 2004
Debanded January 2007
I saw all of mine semi-naked in June when I needed to have my archwires taken out for a regular dentist's appointment. The ortho's appointment and the dentist's appointment were an hour or so apart. That time in between I spent looking at my smile in the mirror - from far enough to not see the ceramic brackets - and snapping pictures. That gave a realistic glimpse enough to what I've got to look forward to! And some assurance that this is so going to be worth every discomfort that it takes! Every ortho should give their patients a Naked Day every once in a while to keep them motivated!
Case: Impacted canines, crowding & crossbite.
Treatment: SARPE 2004/10/6, RPE 2004/9/28 - 2005/1/31, w-arch until 2005/11/22, impacted canines extracted 2005/5/18.
Braces on: top 2005/6/2, bottom 2005/8/30.
Braces off: 2008/6/9.
Retainers, phase one: expanding Hawley retainer 24/7, bonded retainers on top & bottom.
Retainers, phase two: Hawley on top, bonded both top & bottom, positioner for night time use.
I get to see all of mine in about an hour! I'M SO EXCITED!!! This is better than Christmas morning! I'm nervous that I won't like them though and I really hope they look big because I've always thought I have little teeth.
One adjustment my ortho changed ELEVEN brackets. I got to see quite a bit that time, however, I was a little disappointed. I think my teeth are really straight now, but without the brackets they don't look 'vertical'. They are straight in the arch, but not up and down. Some slant to the right and some to the left. I guess that is why we still have 'work to do'.
They really felt slimey though. I brushed and brushed them and couldn't get rid of that slimey feeling.
Wired on Sep 16, 2005, left canine exposed on Oct 5, 2005, at 52 years old.
Chris wrote:Post the naked photos, Mackenzie!
(Naked photos...my goodness, Lyn...what KIND of forum are you running?)
And Congratulations!
Thanks! I'll post pics sometime soon because I have to get a new crown. I have bonding built up on a tooth right now and somehow it discolored and looks really gross. Also my gums have scabs because there was glue all the way up there so they couldn't help but hit them a few times with the sander off thing. I really hope I get a good crown cuse right now I'd rather have braces than people seeing a icky brown tooth right in front.