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im in a bit of a dilema. ive had my ceramic braces on for almost 4 months now and i always get pearl ligs on the top.
now here is the dilema...in june in going abroad for two weeks and the day after in come back i have a family wedding to go to. now, im going to try and time my adjustment just before my holiday so the my ligs are nice and fresh for on holiday. but by the time ive had two weeks of good cypriot food and coupious amount of ocean, my ligs are going to be looking that minging greeny yellow colour. i dont want to turn up to this wedding with yellow looking teeth.
so.. i was wondering if anyone has ever asked their ortho for extra ligs to change them at home yourself? I have read Lynn's article on changing ligs yourself and how its not recomended but what if it was just for one day, and then i put the old ones back in??
i dont want to opt for coloured ligs as ill be on holiday they wont go with all my holiday colours (daft i know but im a coordination freak!)
For me I had a wedding to go to that was two weeks before my normal appt I called my ortho and went in there for a quick lig change and then still kept my normal appt.
you might want to call the office and see if that is something they can offer to you..
hope it works out and have a good time on vacation
I'd honestly rethink the colors. I had the same problems with discoloration and the pearl, or even the dark grey (though that takes more abuse), but when I switched to light blue it made a huge difference! The blue does stain and change color slight, but it stays blue (not yellow)and regardless of the blue shade the blue makes my teeth look whiter, which I love. I do wear a bit more blue now though, but I'm ok with that.
Your only other option is to see if the dentist will change out your ligs right before the wedding. You might experiment with the paint on tooth whitener, and paint it on the ligs - see if that helps? My ortho suggested I do that on my ICE brackets when the sealant started to discolor. A few applications and the brackets were perfectly white again. Just be careful not to get it on the teeth and cause spots. Again... the paint on whitener only so you can apply it carefully.
I've seen several people on the board with wire ties on ceramic and they are hardly noticeable and do not stain at all. Some orthos do not do wire ties for aesthetic reasons only though. If that's the case plead and see if your ortho will do wire ties just for this 2 week period.
Can you book another appointment for the day you come back? I went in a while ago even though I wasn't due an adjustment and they changed them- it only took a minute. They gave me a set of ligatures to take home as well to do myself if I could and, after the first few flew off the tweezers, I mastered it an now have lovely shiny ligs again! I know a lot of people say they aren't allowed change their own for various reasons but I'm sure if there was any risks with mine they would have told me. Just ask- maybe you'll be one of the lucky ones!
thanks for replying. the only prob i have with getting an appointment is that ill get back from holiday on the Saturday late afternoon and the wedding is on the Sunday!! i dont think my ortho is open at weekends and i doubt id make out out of the airport etc in time....
i think ill just ask/plead with my ortho at my next adjustment and see what he says. i wouldnt change the bottoms, just the top 6 at the front so he may be ok with that.
failing that i might ask fo blue ligs at my next appointment so see how i get on with them, the holiday/wedding isnt until June so i have a couple of appointments to experiment!!
ill let you know how i get on!
PS, i also just noticed that i wrote co*ktails in my first post and it got replace with the word ocean!!??
I get them all the time as that's my ortho's preference for adult patients with ceramics due to the staining issue with ligs. I have had a couple of rubber ligs at one point due to positioning and whilst I felt left out when I first joined this forum on the ligs front, after that experience I am so relieved I never have to worry about staining with my wire ties. They are metal coloured like my archwire not white though. I have never asked on the wire tie colour but did ask on archwire but my ortho said her preferred manufacturer for quality reasons did not do white archwire, she wishes they did but unless they do, I have to stick with the metal colour.
went to the ortho and asked him about changing my own ligs,just this once, well he was fine with that! he gave me some ligs away and drew me a wee diagram on how to change them! ive yet to attempt it but ill do it nearer the time of my next appointment.
Instead of changing them yourself, which will mess with your archwire and can prolong your treatment time, just get ligs in periwinkle, which is invisible and does not stain. See my story to see what I mean.
*melissa* wrote:Instead of changing them yourself, which will mess with your archwire and can prolong your treatment time, just get ligs in periwinkle, which is invisible and does not stain. See my story to see what I mean.
Hi Melissa - those periwinkle ligs don't show at all, is it my computer? I thought periwinkle was like a lavendar color no?
I wonder if all lig companies make periwinkle ligs and they all look the same?
wire ties ! for this situation,...thats the way to go. got them myself right now. and no, they are not very noticable. hardly at all.
SuperDave
braced 1981-1983 all metal
braced again 8-30-2007
ceramic on top, metal on bottom
started rubber bands single triangle pattern 1-08
started double trinangle pattern 3-08 (yes 4 of them 2 each side) !!!!
power chains on top 6-12-08
still double triangle. geez!
top ceramics changed to metal april 01, 2009
may 14, 2009,....finally no rubber bands
(well for now anyway)
i forgot to ask about wire ties to be honest! ill ask at my next adjustment as it sounds alot easier!
*melissa* ive read your story and looked at your periwinkle ligs, they look good but show me them in 4 weeks time and if they are not stained at all then i might ask about getting that colour!
and no, they are not very noticable. hardly at all.