Ortho says no Damon Lower Clears. Help?

[zdenka]

I think all points have been addressed in previous replies. I also have clear uppers and metal lowers. I'm 34 yo female, working with public every day. To be honest, if I was to do it all over I would go with all metals. Even though I wanted all clears to start off with. The clear uppers are larger brackets and make my upper lip a little puffy looking ( lol save tons on botox injections ) and I find they make my teeth look a little yellow.

[TMJJill]

One question on your uppers. How many clears will you be going with? Many only have the "social 6". I have my front 10 with the Damon clears. Only my molars on the upper have the metal brackets. You might be more comfortable with that based on your questions.

[quentin]

zdenka: Wow that's really interesting to know! My ortho advised me to go with all-metal for the best result, but I just feel too "metal mouth" and awkward -- probably more psychological than anything else!

TMJJill: Great point that you raised. I'll have all clear on the upper teeth, I believe. At least that's what I recall from the 'model teeth' they showed me, or maybe the back upper molars might have metal brackets.

I'm getting braced on Feb 11, eeeeeeeek!

[ZeeZee]

I currently have Damon clear on top - my social 10! (wide smile here) and metal Damon on the bottom.

I'm in Fashion PR and nearly 30 - If I'm not mistaken, possibly the worst possible industry to be in with adult braces!

Anyway, I was like you when I was having my first consultations and onto the fitting - I was slightly taken aback when it was explained to me that the bottom would have to be metal as the ceramic brackets are not strong enough and could crack if the upper teeth hit them.

Honestly - I don't think that the ceramic 'clear' are all that. They aren't invisible. You still have braces on, which can be seen. The ONLY positive thing about the tooth coloured over the metal is that if you are at an event and there's a full body/group photograph being taken - you'd never know you were braced. If there is a close up of your face, you can still tell. Infact, I think in close up photos they look worse - it almost looks like you have 'growths' on your teeth as everything is the same colour, it almost distorts your smile when a photograph is taken from the side (as the tooth coloured brackets stick out and you may not realise it's a 'brace').

After being annoyed that I would have to have metal on the bottom, I actually feel that I would have preferred metal on top too. There is no denying that you are wearing braces, at the end of the day.

[quentin]

ZeeZee: Thanks for your frank insights. I find it really interesting (and thought-provoking!) to hear that both you and Zdenka would have gone with all-metal if you could start over!

I have two friends who currently have regular ceramic braces as adults (versus me getting Damon self-ligating), and they both really like the subtlety of ceramics, and both expressed concern about me having to have metal braces on the bottom.

I do like that the ceramic uppers at least aren't obvious from far away / wide shots though :)

[Tobilei]

I agree that there's no denying you have braces, however I've had 2 people tell me that they had no idea I even had braces when I've mentioned getting an adjustment done. I couldn't believe it. One of them I was about half a metre away from (if that) and laughing and joking with her. Yes they stick out a bit and can make your teeth look a little funny, but I think you have to be in certain lighting situations for them to be really noticable. Especially to people who don't have braces, they seem to notice far less than people who do.

[MrsCharisma]

I got braced last Thursday. Only two people at work have noticed. Three knew beforehand. I have 8 ceramic on top and will be getting metal lowers in a few months. Really, there are very few people who will freak out over the fact that you're in braces. Just try to be confident about it.

[quentin]

Nope, not "denying" that I have braces, and I'm completely fine if people notice. I just like that the ceramic braces are less "in your face" and don't stand out so much in pictures.

[mollyluise]

It's interesting to read some others say they'd do all metal if they could go back- I was just thinking that the other day! I have ceramic uppers (In Ovation C) and traditional metal on the bottom, and while I appreciate that the ceramic are trickier to see from a distance, they do feel kind of big. Now that I'm a month and a half in, the thought of all metal doesn't sound so bad.

I wouldn't go back and change, and if I had to make the decision again, I'd probably still go ceramic on top (I think)... but I'd definitely give more thought to all metal, while before I wouldn't have even considered them.

[quentin]

Wow.... I have thus far "decided" that I will be getting the Damon Clear uppers + metal lowers that my ortho offers. I guess the trickiest part is that you never know what you really prefer until you already have the braces on and then can make the comparison, by which time, it is too late

It's interesting to read some others say they'd do all metal if they could go back- I was just thinking that the other day! I have ceramic uppers (In Ovation C) and traditional metal on the bottom, and while I appreciate that the ceramic are trickier to see from a distance, they do feel kind of big. Now that I'm a month and a half in, the thought of all metal doesn't sound so bad.

I wouldn't go back and change, and if I had to make the decision again, I'd probably still go ceramic on top (I think)... but I'd definitely give more thought to all metal, while before I wouldn't have even considered them.

[CoryDaniels]

Just because a product is available doesn't mean they are used widely. They have to be tested and some orthos don't want to offer products they don't know much about. Another thing I was told was the reason behind no clear bottoms was because more of a chance of your top teeth touching the bottom brackets and with them being ceramic, they would chip your teeth alot easier.
I have damon clear on top and metal damons on the bottom, and I love them...Can't ever see the bottoms, but they are alot smaller than normal brackets, so they don't look bad anyways.

[safetysquirrel]

Hey!

I'm due to get my damon braces on March 18th - damon clears on the top and metal on the bottom. I believe it will be the "social six" setup though where I actually have some metal on my top as well.

When I asked my ortho about doing the clear on the bottom he let me know that yes, they were available, but that he doesn't use them. He said he didn't use them because they only came in "one size fits all" and he didn't have much success using them since he doesn't have patients with one size fits all teeth.

[quentin]

Hi! Thanks for the reply and update from your ortho's perspective.

Being 3 weeks in now, I think the Damon metals (lower for me) are actually smaller and more comfortable. The bigger ceramic brackets make my upper lip look puffy and they cause more irritation.

That said, I'm pretty pleased that they don't show in pictures and aren't TOO obvious. So... Damon Clears win out on aesthetics, Damon Metal for comfort!

Good luck!