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I'm 46 and my kids are all finished with college and 2 of the 3 are married. I decided this past summer, after #3 graduated, that I would do something for myself---something I always wanted to do. That was to get braces. When I took my kids to the ortho throughout the years, I told them they were so lucky to get braces and their teeth would always be so beautiful.
I've had my braces for almost 3 months now. There has been some discomfort, but I stay focused on the prize at the end of my treatment (2 years)---a beautiful smile and a comfortable bite. I have crowding on the lower front teeth and a crossbite.
I decided to choose ceramic on the top teeth and traditional metal brackets on the bottom. Many people haven't even noticed that I have braces until they see me a second or third time.
This is for any adult trying to decide if they should get braces or not. I say "just do it!" My only regret is that I didn't do it sooner!
I was considering braces at 26, but it seemed NO ONE that old had braces and I was horrified at the thought. Glad I found this site at 41 - it was the one thing that made the decision easier....
This is the perfect gift for you! I was worried about getting braces at
36 1/2 yrs old until my consult with my daughter's ortho. Well he calmed my worries by telling me that about 40% of his patients are people in their mid 30's and his oldest patient was in her 70's! As long as you have your own teeth it's never too late! That's how I think about it now I turn 39 in December. I just got debraced yesterday. I remember my brother telling me " Well you'll be almost 40 yrs old when you get them off!
And I thought ...Well I could celebrate it my 40th with a great smile!
Also, you're a good mamma for taking (and being encouraging at the same time) all your kids to get braces... I wish my mom would have cared about me having a good smile so I wouldn't have to be going through this at 24. Oh well. At least now I know that when I have kids someday, I will make sure they have braces during their younger years, so they can have beautiful teeth throughout their teens (and adult life) and not suffer through embarrassment of bad teeth like I had to.
Thanks for all the support out there! I guess we're all in this together. I love to hear the stories, the age range of patients, problems, solutions, etc.
Do many of you find that the orthos tend to overestimate timeframes of how long a patient will be in braces? That's my hope and that I will get the braces off sooner rather than later.
From all the stories I've read here it seems that the time has been over estimated. I think ortho's know that some treatments may take 18 months but say up to 24 months. My daughter had an estimate of 18-24 months and she was finished at 12 months! I swear my ortho actually gave me a low estimate of 30 months! I thought I was at least 36-40 months from the cases I had seen like mine. But I was finished at 27 months.
Hi! I am 49 (!) and I have braces on for a second time as an adult. We couldn't afford them when I was kid so when I was 24 I got them, back in the 80's when almost no adults had them. I just wanted a nice smile. Which I got. Ober the years I then had some periodontal issues and my teeth shifted. Ugh. So a after a couple of years of thinking about it, I went to my kids ortho and asked about getting them fixed. I had insurance and as it turms out they projected 9 months or so. Hmm. After finishing up paying for one of my kids I decided to do it. I get them off in a couple of weeks. I have ceramic on the top and metal on the bottom.
I can't wait!
We have good teeth in my family. My mom and dad, 72 and 74 both have all of their teeth. I figured genetics are on my side and I would like to have nice teeth again for the next 20 years.
That is great hhangel! A 9 month treatment is not bad at all! So I imagine your issues were not severe like you mentioned just some shifting. You will have your beautiful back in a few weeks! How will you celebrate? I've been smiling nonstop since Monday morning! lol
EmptyNester wrote:Do many of you find that the orthos tend to overestimate timeframes of how long a patient will be in braces?
Yes, they do tend to over estimate. I think it really is difficult to predict how long a patient's treatment will be. I think they would rather tell a patient 24 months instead of saying 12 months, then if it turns out the patient can get them off before the 24 month estimate, its kind of a suprise
I always see people on this message board get their braces off before the estimated time. There was one girl, Diana...she got hers off in only 11 months...or it could of been 9. I can't quite remember..but it was quick!
They quoted me 3 years, now it's down to about 1 and half yrs..
I'm 46 and my kids are all finished with college and 2 of the 3 are married. I decided this past summer, after #3 graduated, that I would do something for myself---something I always wanted to do. That was to get braces. When I took my kids to the ortho throughout the years, I told them they were so lucky to get braces and their teeth would always be so beautiful. 
so I wouldn't have to be going through this at 24. Oh well. At least now I know that when I have kids someday, I will make sure they have braces during their younger years, so they can have beautiful teeth throughout their teens (and adult life) and not suffer through embarrassment of bad teeth like I had to.
