Deville's Journey...First adjustment!

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#1 Post by **deville** » Wed Oct 22, 2008 4:35 pm

Hi guys

First of all I just want to say I'm so glad I found this forum! There's nothing like being able to share with people in exactly the same predicament as you, so I'm glad I stumbled across this place

Some background:
My teeth have been slightly wonky teeth my whole life and they never really bothered me - right into my early 20's I was still pretty happy with them... But sadly my wisdom teeth started coming through about 8 years ago and because I didn't get them out, my teeth turned into the tangled mess they are today (I'm now 31).

I've suffered from a terrible fear of dentists since I was around 11, the result of a school dental nurse who gave me fillings and pulled teeth without anesthetic

Earlier this year I realised that if I didn't do something about my teeth now, I'd end up losing them down the line, as while I'm quite obsessive about dental hygiene (so that I don't need to go the dentist so much!) my upper and lower canines are turned in so much now I find them really hard to brush properly. Also in the last couple of years my front teeth have started to cross, making it harder for me to hide the problem.

So the journey essentially started in February when I decided that I had to get over my phobia and do something about these darned teeth! First, I found a new dentist who specialises in anxious patients like myself and explained to her what my end goal was. I had my amalgam fillings removed and replaced with composite (go me!), and then *gulp* finally had my wisdom teeth out! Naturally I happened to have a pretty bad set of wisdoms, with two of them right on nerves and one touching my sinus - but I got through it (go me again!!).

Just so you know, three times in the last 5 years I've made the decision to get braces. The first two times, I never even picked up a phone to make an appointment because I was so scared. But, three weeks ago I finally had my first appointment at the ortho where he gave me a general idea of what to expect. Two days ago I had my records done and next week I go back again to get my treatment plan! There's just one catch (and I knew this would happen) - it's looking pretty likely that I'll need to have all four second bicuspids out...

I've worked through a lot of my dentist issues, so I guess this will be a good test of how far I've come

So that's my story so far! Next week I'll check back in with the treatment plan, and photos of the current sorry state of my mouth... In the meantime I'm going to keep reading through all your inspiring stories, safe in the knowledge that by Christmas (hopefully) I'll have joined the Brace Race!

UPDATE: I finally got a non fuzzy photo of my current smile:

#2 Post by bb » Wed Oct 22, 2008 4:58 pm

Good for you making the call and going. The sooner you start, the sooner you finish, right!

Who needs bicuspids anyhow, they're totally over-rated!!

#3 Post by **deville** » Fri Oct 24, 2008 1:51 pm

Thanks so much for your encouraging comments! I'm counting down 'til Tuesday (only 3.5 days to go!) when I get my treatment plan, so I can finally get an idea of how long I have to wait.

The tension is killing me! I'm so excited and just want to get started

#4 Post by **deville** » Tue Oct 28, 2008 4:48 pm

Well, I got my treatment plan back yesterday! Long story short, there's nothing major that needs to be corrected other than the crowding.

At this stage the ortho is sticking with 2 years (but I live in hope!) and is trying to talk me into a full metal mouth. I'm weighing up the possibilities still, but I think I'd rather have them on a little longer and be slightly less visible. $200NZD difference in price isn't enough to sway me one way or the other, and I think I'll be giving in to my vanity on this one.

No date set yet, as I do need to have all four 2nd premolars removed, but I have a 'fitness' check at the dentist next week anyway so I'll be arranging for the extractions then. Once I've got that appointment set, I can give the ortho a call and set my b-day for 2 weeks later.

So now I just have to hope I can get in for the extractions in the next 3-4 weeks, and I'll have braces before Christmas!

Anyone have advice on whether I should have extractions done all at once or two at a time? From a time perspective, I'd love to do it all in one go, but then I'm not sure how I'll cope with an entirely numb mouth... I know my dentist will have her own ideas, but feel free to share your thoughts

#5 Post by **deville** » Tue Nov 04, 2008 10:15 pm

Only 1.5 days until I have my check up at the dentist and find out my extraction date so I can book my Brace day...

I'm still terribly nervous about the extractions, but the closer it gets the more excited I am

I keep looking in the mirror and saying silly things to my teeth, like "haha! So long suckers!" and "Yeah, just you wait, I'll sort you lot out"! I've even found myself doing this while stuck in traffic

Thank goodness the appointment is on Friday morning, so as soon as I come out, I can call up my ortho and book the bracing

#6 Post by bb » Wed Nov 05, 2008 9:08 am

You might as well get them all extracted at the same time. You'll be surprised at how fast your mouth heals.
That's fabulous that you'll have them before Christmas!!
Let us know how it goes.

#7 Post by **deville** » Thu Nov 06, 2008 7:01 pm

Well, at 9pm last night the phone rings, and it's my dentist calling to tell me she got the letter from my ortho that day, and wondered whether I wanted to come in half an hour early the next day and get the extractions done instead of just the dental fitness exam.

Heck yes I did, so I sit here having just had my 4 second premolars removed, desperately kicking myself for not going to buy some soft food last night as everything in the house has a corner or chewiness of some kind (thanks heavens for having the most wonderful parents on earth who are bringing some food around for me).

The extractions themselves were nothing compared to the injections, but I experienced more than one set of palpitations as my dentist did her work, especially on the first one, where I had no idea at all what to expect. Again, thank goodness for my dad, who offered to drive me there and back just in case I had a panic attack. I didn't but I'm still glad he was there because I was numb from my nose down.

All in all the experience just felt a lot of tugging back and forward. Initially this freaked me out as I was thinking... My Buddha! If this is just her loosening them, what the heck will the pulling out be like!!! In fact, I felt nothing when they came out at all so after that first one, I felt a lot better. When she moved onto the second one, I convinced myself she had the wrong tooth as I could feel a lot of pressure on my canine, but of course it was fine. The whole extraction experience took about 5 minutes, and the check up was the normal 30 mins. The total cost of the check up (including xrays) and extractions was $805.

I called the ortho as soon as I was able to speak coherently, and I've got my dates! I go in on Friday 21st Nov to get my spacers, and then I go back on the 28th to be banded!

#8 Post by bb » Thu Nov 06, 2008 8:31 pm

How exciting!!
I'm glad it didn't hurt. I was too terrified to get them pulled while awake!
I hope the next 2 weeks aren't to painfully slow for you.
There's no turning back now, huh!

#9 Post by **suzeeq22** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 6:54 am

Congrats Deville!! I too have just had some extractions and braces just put on Tuesday 11/4! (two upper wisdom teeth on 10/17...my two upper canines on 10/31)

So far so good! On my uppers I only have braces on the front four teeth for now. Full metal Damons on the botton. When they pulled the two upper canines I needed gum grafts. So I have to wait until January to have the rest of the uppers done. They put on the brackets but no wires.

You will do fine! Good luck and looking forward to your progress. I still have to get around to writing my story and posting some pix. Maybe this weekend. I was having prob with my computer and I just got a new printer/scanner but haven't set it up yet.

Good luck!

#10 Post by **deville** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 2:51 pm

Thanks everyone! BB - you're right! I was sitting there last night feeling these gaps in my mouth and thinking - 'this time there's no way out of it!'.

I have to say, considering they were the four smallest teeth in my mouth - the gaps feel HUGE! I'm very lucky they were the rear premolars so that they're not extremely visible, however I never realised how much I used this area of my mouth.

This morning when I tried to eat some soft bread, I couldn't seem to do anything without biting down there. so I just gave up to avoid irritating the gums. A couple of neurofen sorted out the minimal pain nicely, and really the bit that hurts at the moment is the injection site in the roof of my mouth, which was also the part that hurt the most during the extraction.

One of the teeth that was removed was one of the most crooked, and tilted inwards. It felt great this morning when I was brushing my teeth, and didn't have to spend an extra 2 minutes brushing and flossing around that tooth to make sure it was properly clean. A great indicator of things to come! Actually of everything that's been the strangest... Getting used to not having that tooth constantly pressing into my tongue takes the cake:)

#11 Post by **my3sons** » Fri Nov 07, 2008 3:43 pm

Hi Deville,
Just catching up on your story...our reasons for braces and treatment plans are eerily similar! I have to have all 4 bicuspids removed as well, and have several cavities as a result of the overcrowding. I'm still waiting for my final consult and (*gulp*) bill! I'm just hoping that it doesn't cost so much that I'll have to put off treatment for a year.
Reading about your apprehension regarding your extractions really hit home. I had my top wisdom teeth removed several years ago, and it went really well. I'm confident about doing my upper bicuspids, but I'm worried about the bottoms, since my jaw moves! I'm also worried about getting food in those holes. On the plus side, I'll probably lose that last 15# of baby weight!

Anyway, good luck to you. It's nice to know that what we're going through seems pretty routine.
Tara

#12 Post by **deville** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 12:46 am

Time to post some photos of my pre-brace smile so that I can look back in a couple of months time and scrutinise all the changes

Post extractions are still a bit gross looking so these are pre extractions!

Top arch:

Bottom arch (note the flare also on my front tooth at the top of the image there):

Current smile when I'm not trying to hide my teeth:

My very well practiced 'for the camera' smile that I currently use to disguise the snaggles:

#13 Post by **cat meow** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 5:13 am

Hey Deville,
Congrats on getting through the extractions, it sounds like you did really well! I like how you've been practicing your smile, I think I will be doing that too when I get my teeth out

#14 Post by **dangerdude** » Wed Nov 12, 2008 1:03 pm

Your story is much like mine. Iâ€™ve always had "wonky" uppers. Didnâ€™t brush that well when I was a little kid. Last time I went to see a dentist was in my early teens. Iâ€™m almost 30 now. He kind of belittled me and distilled a fear that still last to this day. He said I could be wearing dentures when Iâ€™m in my 20â€™s if I didnâ€™t brush and floss better. Fast forward to now, I still have them all

But Iâ€™m still scared about the denture part.

My wisdom tooth just came in last year, theyâ€™ve really messed up my bottoms. Bottoms were surprisingly straight and now theyâ€™ve crossed and I have a small gap

All within the past year. I have been putting off setting an appointment with a dentist for a week now. I have a business card to a dentist a coworker goes to that Iâ€™ve been staring at all morning. Maybe today will be the day I call. After going to the dentist, Iâ€™ll set up an appointment for an othorto.

Iâ€™m not really scared of pain. Iâ€™m just scared of bad news.

My teeth never really bothered me in my teens or early 20â€™s. I just learnt to live with the way it looks. For the past few years, Iâ€™ve been more concern about the looks but not enough to seriously look at braces. In October, I went on a date, first time in ages. I nearly chickened out, but that got me looking into braces. Now I plan on having it done as soon as possible after Jan 1, 2009. Thatâ€™s when I could use the FSA pre-tax money Iâ€™m having set aside from each pay period.

Good to hear you finally got the ball rolling. Iâ€™ll be getting there soon

#15 Post by **deville** » Thu Nov 20, 2008 10:39 pm

Well, the spacers are finally in, which took all of 2 minutes! There were a few seconds there where I felt like my teeth were about to pop out of their sockets, but other than that it was completely uneventful

I got a nice surprise also when my ortho told me he doesn't think my top teeth will take too long at all to straighten up (touch wood!) so next week he'll just be putting the bottom braces on, as the bottom arch really needs a lot more work. While I'm a little disappointed, I'm pleased I'll get the chance to get used to them bit by bit, and that the really visible part won't be on for the whole two years! I surprised them myself by saying straight up that I want baby pink ligs on the bottom - apparently most adults at his practice go for the completely clear or silver... They thought I was joking until I pointed out that I've studiously taught myself to never show my bottom teeth, so no one but me will ever see them - so really it will be something like my own private joke

Of course, once I walked out of the office I had to give them a test run. I was walking around the supermarket afterwards chomping down on them, trying to figure out what hurt and what didn't and more than once I got some funny looks after giving out a little yelp as I found one of the things that hurt

But after a couple of hours (sans any form of painkiller) I don't even know they're there and I have to keep checking to make sure they haven't accidentally popped out! I'm keeping my neurofen handy just in case, but I really hope I don't need to use them.

So - here are some pictures of the culprits, complete with giant holes from the extractions:

Looking at these pictures I'm surprised that more work needs to be done on the lowers - but as my teeth have already shifted a little on top since the extractions, I do think that they'll probably move pretty quickly (where the lowers haven't budged).