Greetings Metal Mouth Members

[BrAcEr357]

Greetings All,

I am a 25 year old male going for braces for the second time on April 11th 2012. To cut the story short I had braces when I was 13 - 15 years old and my impacted wisdom teeth came in when I was 16 years old and messed everything up and I did not wear my retainers past 6 months after they were removed (bad idea). I want to correct my bite, gaps that have occurred between my molars (annoying after every meal), irregular tooth wear, etc. I will probably need some bonding, veneers or contouring as my front teeth have never been to my standards even after my first set of braces. I will cross that bridge when I am finished and see the results. I never smile in pictures as I dislike my teeth and smile, I feel like all of my friends have perfect smiles. I am visiting my childhood orthodontist and it has brought back many memories and the creak of the stairs going to the office and the office looking the same as it did roughly ten years ago. My treatment will be full metal upper and lowers and last roughly 2-3 years (could not give an exact time frame).

I am concerned what others will think of my treatment. I have been dropping hints and work and most are accepting it or had considered it themselves, while others think it is for "kids", there teeth have shifted also and you should accept it as they have, or braces are unprofessional. But I feel it is a personal decision and those that dislike it are either jealous, too attached to what is the "accepted norm", or find it a waste of money. I will get over it and so will they, it is a change.

I hope that this post inspires others like others have inspired me. It was not easy visiting the same orthodontist as it is like putting salt in a old wound. I hope that in 2-3 years I will be able to reflect on this post and see it as a good decision despite all of the social impact, cost, time and slight discomfort (I do not recall it being very painful).

[TMJJill]

It isn't always easy making the leap. Congrats on becoming a metal mouth member... again.

I totally agree that the braces are a very personal decision. My teeth were actually fairly straight, but my bite was off and I developed TMJD. Most people who know me just don't understand why I'm doing this. It really doesn't bother me at all. I know at the end of this my health problems will be much better as a result. They just can't relate with what I've been going through. This board is great for that. You have some wonderful people to share your stories with and to learn from.

Ironically, I've had braces over 6 months and still get people who are just now realizing I have them on. We are much more aware of our braces than many other people are.

Good luck on bracing day.

[kennyandrew85]

You have to remember, we ALL judge each other within seconds of meeting someone, based on their appearance.
Of course, personality is important but you can't show people that until you've got past the initial stage.

We're all taught at school that beauty is on the inside but the real world is not like that.
Better looking people earn more money on average, have more friends and have a better quality of life!
Not to mention the health benefits of having a nice set of teeth.

Don't put it off, I have a similar treatment time to you and almost 1 year ago (in a few weeks) I nearly put it off but this year has flown by. I'm also a 26 year old man and although some people think it's weird, what harm will a few looks do when I have a lifetime of great teeth.

If you have an option I would consider ceramic upper brackets, it does make a big difference to how noticeable they are. I have metal lowers and I'm pretty sure they are visible from space.
My work colleagues take the piss out of me sometimes but that is to be expected when you work with other men, as I also laugh at them for other reasons.

[stealth76]

Hello.

sorry to ask, but if you re concerned on what others thinks (which i undersand very well), why don t you get some ceramics on top ? It s much less obvious.

I m 37 (going to 38) and i have braces for 10 months already. I was afraid of people reaction but didn t got a lot and no bad ones. Even less at work (and i m manager).

[kellyb]

i agree with stealth if ceramics is an option for you, it's worth considering. i was also abit self conscious about getting braces hence why i opted for ceramics top and bottom. none of my work colleagues noticed i had on braces until i told them.

[BrAcEr357]

wow, I cannot believe all of the replies!!! Amazing!!!

I did ask my orthodontist about ceramic uppers on atleast the "upper social four" and was told in my case ceramics are not recommended due to my crooked upper front teeth as in his experience (nearly 30 years) in cases like mine they tend to provide too much friction for optimal results. I do not know whether to believe him or not, but experience does mean something and supposedly 1 in 4 of his patients are adults...

I am probably more self conscious about braces than I should be. I am a engineer after all and spend alot of time at my desk, I do interact with variety of engineers, medical professionals and customers from time to time when a problem needs to be resolved. I am also going to transition over the next few months into a management role. I have been working in the same dept for over two years (everyone knows me very well) so I am not too concerned about my immediate co-workers, but I am concerned I will seen as a "brace wearing kid" to many in upper management. But many say I look a bit younger than I really am, I often ask and get age guesses of 18-22 years old. My true concern is people outside the organization such as customers (usually medical professionals, not too worried), engineers I need to meet, international travel (does happen often).

I actually do have TMJ but it is easily manageable if I exercise my jaw every now and then. When the joint does pop it is when I open my mouth very wide and apply a bit of force like biting into a overly large well done hamburger. It started right after my four impacted wisdom teeth were removed. My Orthodontist is aware of it and states my lower jaw is pushed too far back as the teeth were pushed forward from my wisdom teeth hence the crowding in the front. To me it is a minor as it is not painful and rarely occurs, I can go months at a time without encountering it. Correcting it would be nice though.

[Sita]

I like to point and laugh at people who say anyone over the age of 16 is too old for braces. And then I point out if you still have teeth you can still get braces. I guess I'm mean that way but it really annoys me the way some people can't seem to help but criticize or question others choices. In my case it's only been one family member who has been annoying about my braces. Everyone else is either supportive or indifferent about it.

Congrats on getting your braces soon and welcome to the board.

[stealth76]

Orthos in general prefers work on metal braces, easier for them...but not for you. And 30 years of experience means also that he is used to metal braces. May be he is alos a bit "old school".
My ortho said me before braces that she can obtain sames results in same time, whatever it is ceramics or metal. just lingual need more time.

Did you saw only one ortho ? I saw 2 to be sure...

[BrAcEr357]

I only saw one Orthodontist, I did consider getting a second opinion but many orthodontists can be a bit of a bit of a drive from where I work, so it would not be a inconvenient to stop by for a lunch time adjustment. It was hard enough to fit in appointments with my work load to get through my consultations, records, etc. I also did not want to deal with the torture of another set of molds, x-rays, paying for records, etc. I am also familiar with this orthodontist as he treated me when I was younger, he is not much for small talk, but what really counts is that we are on the same page "If you are going to do it again do it right so it does not happen a third time!!! As long as you wear your retainers!!!". We defined doing it right as using what would result in the best outcome possible and not to rush removal until both of us are satisfied. That was probably fuel for the fire when it came to metal. I feel that this connection is important and I will probably comment on things throughout my treatment especially near the end. I never paid that much attention when I was a kid, I guess I was too busy with school & friends, saw braces something that just happens as everyone around me had them and I did not value my appearance as much as I do now. Live and learn, lets just hope for the best on take two...

I agree that he probably is old-school and does prefer to work in metal as it is what he is most comfortable with over the years. Oh well, sometimes I am old school myself.

[stealth76]

I like to point and laugh at people who say anyone over the age of 16 is too old for braces. And then I point out if you still have teeth you can still get braces. I guess I'm mean that way but it really annoys me the way some people can't seem to help but criticize or question others choices. In my case it's only been one family member who has been annoying about my braces. Everyone else is either supportive or indifferent about it.

Congrats on getting your braces soon and welcome to the board.

The woman that was before me at ortho appointment last week was more than 60 and was her first appointment after getting lingual braces.

Same : got no bad comments on them. But they re ceramics.

[Sita]

The woman that was before me at ortho appointment last week was more than 60 and was her first appointment after getting lingual braces.

Same : got no bad comments on them. But they re ceramics.

I do wish I could see someone older than me at the orthodontists. Every single patient I have seen there is a teenager which just makes me feel old. The staff assure me that approximately 20-25% of their patients are adults so I'm hopeful one day I will see a patient not in a school uniform. I wouldn't mind except for the fact that in my day (in my day... yup, I'm old) we were taught it's rude to stare but I guess no one taught these kids that. I'd stare back but there's always too many of them. It's like they're ganging up on me with their eyes.

[BrAcEr357]

Thanks to all of the replies I am no longer concerned about the "metal brackets", that is a very good thing. I am now having dreams like other members do in regards to the final results and the work I may have done after depending on the results (bonding, veneers, contouring). I often find myself up early in the morning thinking of these things, I think my mind is focusing too much on possible outcomes and the imperfections of my teeth as I see them now.

Sita wrote:
> I do wish I could see someone older than me at the orthodontists. Every single patient
> I have seen there is a teenager which just makes me feel old. The staff assure me
> that approximately 20-25% of their patients are adults so I'm hopeful one day I
> will see a patient not in a school uniform. I wouldn't mind except for the fact
> that in my day (in my day... yup, I'm old) we were taught it's rude to stare but
> I guess no one taught these kids that. I'd stare back but there's always too many
> of them. It's like they're ganging up on me with their eyes.

In my visits to the orthodontist so far it has been the parents that stare at me in the waiting room. When I get stared at I feel like they are thinking "You are too old to have braces, why are you here and how are you possibly able to find the money..." Like Sita my orthodontist reports similar adult to kid ratio, 1 in 4 of his patients are adults. I think that they are friends and family of the orthodontist on record for lifetime treatment. Also are they counting 18 year old teenagers as adults. One has to wonder where these statistics come from.

[stealth76]

In the office i go, they re 2 orthos (husband and wife). The man works only with childs and tenns. The woman works only with adults, and waiting rooms are separated.

I m not getting stares from teens or the parents...

[kellyb]

as i am also a newbie to this braces game, i have only been in my ortho surgery 4 times so far including consultation, initial fitting, first and second adjustments. the only kids i have seen in the surgery so far are those accompanying their parent who was the one undergoing treament. i know my ortho specialises in adult orthodontics, however there are other orthodontists in the same practice (none of them i have ever seen). As all my appointments have been on a saturday, I am assuming these other ortho's and younger patients are in the surgery monday - friday hence the reason i have never seen them.

[Nancita]

I think that at our age everyone has these thoughts, but for me I rather be known as that lady with braces then that lady with horrible teeth. I've only had them a week and I don't think people would have noticed if it weren't for my horrible lisp and speech! I couldn't talk very well the first few days due to my bite plate so everyone noticed.