Upper Linguals & Lower Ceramics - Day one

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#1 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Wed Nov 24, 2010 12:19 pm

Hi Guys,

So at the age of 25 I fully took the plunge and have had my braces put on, I've always needed them and know that 2 years of "pain" is going to be worth it in the long run.

So last night as you can imagine I spent scouring this forum for any advice/information. With all the complaints about speech I had worked myself up to be extremely worried about this aspect as I have the biggest interview of my life coming up in 16 days which will require public speaking and hours of interviews.

So i've had them on for 5 hours now and can safely say my speech has been impacted.....So MINIMALLY even I am struggling to notice, I think the biggest issue is the fact I sound totally different to myself and even if I think i'm struggling with a word and/or lisping, on recording my speech and playing it back it's not noticeable. I know many people mention the "inner ear" hearing differently and I think this is actually the case.

So please don't be worried about speech, if my speech improves by a further 10% over the next few weeks i'll be speaking better than I ever have. I understand people have difficulties with these, but I've just been singing and speaking as much as possible and seem to relatively ok.

The next point pain, wow these things are sharp. My tongue is in "inquisitive" mode with the metal in my mouth and the constant rubbing is taking it toll. Painkillers seem to take the pain away but I still feel it getting caught which is a slight issue. Hopefully I'll get a grip of the wax soon to help me out when needed.

The ceramics on the bottom, which I thought would be the most uncomfortable have actually been fine. I'm 5 hours in and i'm starting to forget they are there.

Now providing the night doesn't bring some sort of mass turnaround, I think this will the best decision of my life, why did I wait so long?

Thanks for all the positive stories on here so far which helped me make this decision,

Day 1/730

#2 Post by **ShySmile** » Wed Nov 24, 2010 5:07 pm

Hello! Good for you for taking the plunge. Im 26 also with upper linguals lower ceramics. Spech has been ok, not too bad.
Thankfully my ceramics have not cut at my lips at all, no problems there!

Im only still a bit of a newbie (3 weeks) but i can reccommend for your big interview, drink lots of water and have a lip balm applied before hand!

Goodluck!

#3 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 4:48 am

Hi Shysmile,

I found that when I woke up this morning I spoke nearly perfectly, sort of 99% and that gradually I've slipped back to the 90% ish I was yesterday. It's just the odd word every now and then sounds "weird". I think I've dealt with the fact my voice will sound different to myself but I found that by recording myself it isn't noticeable to others.

Has yours improved over the 3 weeks? or has it remained similar to when you had them bonded?

Does the lip balm help? my lips don't seem to be sore at all and my tongue seems absolutely fine, I have a bracket which hurts but I just splodge a bit of wax on it and away I go.

Eating remains my biggest issue as my teeth hurt, due to them moving I guess, so applying any pressure with them hurts.

Goodluck to you also, did you get an estimate for how long it will take? have you noticed any movement so far?

#4 Post by **lu lu** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 5:46 am

RobinsonCruesoe - I've had my uppers on just over a week now.

I too recorded myself & sounded fine on it but when I asked my dad he said I had a slight lisp (which I couldn't hear on the recording, I guess the playback quality isn't 100% crisp so probs wouldn't pick it up if it's only slightly there) this was hours after having them fitted too.

I sound so much better compared to when my ortho put them on. I was spluttering all over the place & didn't want to talk. Had to go to my dentist straight after to hand over a letter. There was a room full of patients waiting to be seen & I was trying my hardest to talk normally to the receptionist. It was awful lol.

My speech isn't perfect but then again it could be FAR worse. People say they can't tell & people seem to understand me I don't have to repeat myself much. I know I don't sound like how I used to. (don't think I will either).

I'm like you. Sometimes I sound ok & then other's my speech slips & I sound weird. Not lispy just weird if that makes sense. Like i've got a mouth full of something or that I have a brace. I struggle mid convo sometimes too.

I find when I talk out loud to myself i'm fine but when I talk at work etc. i can sound weird. I guess it's because i'm concious of it. Short sentences I sound fine & you wouldn't even know.

I found drinking water really does help too. Keep hydrated. I didn't really believe it but everyone says it & I seem to sound much better when I've drank. I'm always sipping it at my desk at work.

I think since the weekend my speech has improved even further.

I was still trying to get used to speaking with it & sounding normal all weekend & it finally clicked on sunday night & ever since i'm pretty much at that level still & it just slips sometimes & I struggle to get it back. So i'm hoping that the more I get used to it over the next few weeks the less often the slips will happen. Here's hoping anyway lol

#5 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 6:44 am

LuLu

Seems there are 3 of us in a similar situation then, makes it slightly better I guess.

So basically I can expect further progression with it, but not to get 100% until they are debonded, wow that day can't come soon enough.

I've found myself having to repeat myself a bit today, but luckily I'm not back at work so hopefully it will sound better by Monday. I agree it's not lispy just sounds like I have a brace.

Here's hoping to me being much better in 15 days time, suppose I could try to put it off for another week to give me a bit more breathing space. Did you have to have any extractions? I have my 3 extractions on Wednesday, just hoping this doesn't set me back.

#6 Post by **lu lu** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 9:14 am

Yup there's the 3 of us!! Which is nice.

Well I don't know that you won't get back to 100% you might. I find it hard to believe I will but then I do sound pretty good today & think maybe I will. You watch i'll struggle to sound 'normal' 2moz which is what happened before. I'd have a good day & then loose it & struggle to sound right again.

Sounds like you've got the same problem as me then. Mine's not a lisp.
Sometimes my s's might sound a bit lispy mid convo but otherwise pretty ok. I was struggling before with them but not now I dont think.

I'm having such a good day speech wise today that i'm starting to feel good about my lingual brace & that I might actually sound like me again!! WAIT just been speaking whilst typing this to a colleague & feel it's going again, but think my mouth is dry & my tongue isn't moving around my brackets that easily.

Don't put off going back to work if that's what you're on about. I didn't want to go back to work the day after I had them fitted. I did though. I found if I stuck a bit of wax over the front brackets I sounded better. So I just got by like that for a day & a 1/2 & then on the Friday afternoon I decided to go without the wax because I wanted to get used to it & try sound normal by Monday. It was hard work without the wax at first & I could feel myself struggling but by the time I came back into work on the Monday there was an improvment. I wasn't there yet but nowhere as bad.

I actually thought for the first time last night that my lingual was comfortable. I've read people say they've forgotten it was there & I never thought i'd be like that but again yup I can start to agree with it. My tongues not sore anymore & I know where to rest it now & I can rub the brackets with my tongue without it hurting too much

I've got to have extractions in just over 3 weeks time. Got to have my 2 first pre molars out. I've had my bottom first pre molars out too & I won't be having the wire fitted until 23rd Dec on my lingual.

Have you got your wire fitted yet?

x

#7 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 10:07 am

Hi Lulu,

Your progress is giving me hope, although I don't sound too bad and it's been exactly 26 hours. I've still yet to have any pain with my Tongue but I keep swilling with salt water which might be helping.

I've got my wire on, today my top "social six" teeth are very sore but I actually think there has been a slight bit of movement already, only minor though.

I've identified a word, "understand", and no matter how much I try to pronounce it correctly it comes out "strangely". I've not tried the wax on the front brackets yet, if that improves my speech I can see me using a whole bar before my assessment day lol.

From the brief time I had without the wire I would say it actually helps with comfort, so that might help you out.

I'm not looking forward to my extractions, only 728 days to go

X

#8 Post by **lu lu** » Thu Nov 25, 2010 11:37 am

I can't wait to get my wire on so I can actually start my journey properly.
Not looking forward to more extractions though. Think my upper extractions will be noticeable. My lower 1's aren't though.

If you're not having much trouble with speech in this short time - I think you're going to be fine. You do improve. Glad I've gave you hope. I'm surprised myself.

Good luck & keep me updated

X

#9 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Sat Nov 27, 2010 12:54 am

Hi LuLu,

One of my uppers will be noticeable too but my Ortho is using a 'pontic', which is basically a fake tooth.

Onto my speech, I travelled home yesterday and didn't tell my Mum about the brace, she didn't notice until I told her 3 hours later, now she says she can tell slightly, so that has given ms confidence.

It's definitely improving at times yesterday I sounded like me, others I slipped so gradually I seem to be getting there. By next weekend I think I'll be fine.

Had my first issue though, a wire has popped out the bracket, I wasn't aware that drinking a hot drink could do that. So back I go on Monday to get it fixed.

Hopefully your continuing to improve and your about there now

X

#10 Post by **lu lu** » Sun Nov 28, 2010 4:59 pm

Yeah I might ask for them fake teeth although I hear there more trouble than there worth as they fall out a lot. I'm not seeing my ortho until 10 days after having my teeth out so going to have to make do up until then.

Sounds good about your speech!

I take back what I posted before that I didn't think I'd ever sound like me again wearing this lingual. I sound like the old me!!!!!!! Speech is back to normal. I don't sound like I'm wearing a brace & not lisping either!!!!! LOVE IT!!!

Btw didn't realise a hot drink could do that

X

#11 Post by **ShySmile** » Sun Nov 28, 2010 6:30 pm

Hey! Happy to hear that it all improving for you. Having a bit of a crappy negative day (as you can read on my brace story)

Get my lingual wire on tommorrow. Hope it doesnt change my speech again, as I am doing really well. But if it does i am sure it will only be for a short time.
To be honest I have found ajusting to these god awful ceramics the hardest. I had a little psycho attack on the weekend and decided that i want to rip them off and go with full linguals. hmmm need to think that one through a little more i think. Ortho will hit the roof im sure!

#12 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Mon Nov 29, 2010 2:15 am

Hi both,

So happy that both of you have normal sounding speech, mine appears to be in a bit of a neither here nor there state at the moment. I've had periods where I sound brilliant, and moments where I sound quite bad. But the bad isn't the incoherant mess it could be at times in the early days.

People at work haven't noticed, but my girlfriend can notice but I guess that's because she's more in tune with my voice.

Shysmile - What is the problem wih your ceramics? mine have given me zero issues so far, I made sure I swilled with salt water constantly for the first two days so any damage would heal quickly?

I hope the issues resolves itself quickly for you.

LuLu - I too have heard about them being more trouble than they are worth, it if falls out I guess i'll just leave it. I wasn't aware that hot drinks could do it either but it made a weird sound but i'm not 100% sure the wire has come out.

I've spoke to my ortho and he will check it out for me on Wed, when I have my extractions.

So happy for you that your speech is back to normal LuLu, how many days in are you?

I have a further 12 days until my interview so i'm hoping i'm back by then.

#13 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Mon Nov 29, 2010 2:28 am

LuLu
Have you been practising speech, or just speaking your normal amounts?

I've been singing and reading aloud as much as possible, just trying to make sure i'm not missing anything. If i can get back to normal by 12 days I will be delighted.

#14 Post by **lu lu** » Mon Nov 29, 2010 3:27 am

I'm on day 12 today. So I think you'll be fine.

I noticed that at 7 days I was fine but i'd only just got the hang of it so wasn't sure if it'd go again but ALL weekend i've been fine & even after a couple of glasses of wine too (last time I had a couple of glasses my speech was awful haha & I couldn't speak properly & my tongue was shredded from the back hook).

I haven't been talking excessively because it's not been that busy at work really.

I found reading out loud really helped me. I'd read all these posts out loud & by the fourth day after reading loads it suddenly clicked & when I woke up the next morning it had still stuck. It slipped slightly & i'd struggle a little bit but then 3 days later bobs your uncle!!

I have a small mouth so thought i'd struggle to sound like my old self but everything so far is ok & I can pronounce my s's fine.

I found I produced alot of saliva at the beginning & this rattled around my brackets making an airy sound that could be mistaken as a lisp but the excess saliva died down. I think you produce extra because its something foreign in your mouth.

Get drinking water too. Once you mouth is dry or your dehydrated it makes a BIG difference. You'll find you'll produce extra saliva then too & your tongue doesn't move round the brackets so easily affecting speech.

x

#15 Post by **RobinsonCruesoe** » Mon Nov 29, 2010 3:54 am

Lulu,

12 days would be awesome, i've definitely noticed it getting slightly better, people at work havent noticed so I can't be too far off.

I too have a very small mouth, in the words of numerous dentists and my Ortho "The smallest mouth I've ever seen", which I think leads to the overcrowding.

I agree with the extra saliva, I definitely notice that, protein shakes seem to increase this feeling but as my eating/chewing isn't great they are getting me by.

As far as the reading outlod goes would you say you were reading for hours or just the odd hour daily?

Really pleased you back to 100%, if I get there as quickly as you I think i'm going to actually "like" having my linguals on. Definitely seeing movement already, again it's only minor but it's nice to see.

x