Can I do it?

[EbonyQ]

Thanks guys!


We call it figure 8 (because it goes like an 8 between the teeth) and I know that when they have settled down they don´t hurt any more (and wont get changed at each adjustment).

But I read somewhere on this forum about one who had much pain with these and that was enough to trigger my anxiety. To get them to hold your teeth together you have to tie them very hard and that´t the feeling I don´t like.


3 hours and 15 min left....

[jem]

I'm not sure they do need to be tied particularly hard-they are there to maintain the existing position of your teeth, not to move them. I had no pain whatsoever. You WILL be fine.

Jem

[jem]

And that was my 500th post especially for you!

[EbonyQ]

I´m back!
Today I did something that I had promised myself to never do in front of Eric, I started to cry. Those stupid tears arrived in his waiting room and when he came to get me I could not control the tears at all...

I have this regular chair I tend to sit in his clinic and when it´s necessary we have our talk there before starting the adjustment. First, of course, he gave me some room to calm down and then we had the "talk", the one I need when I have these anxiety attacks.
Why the anxiety was this bad this time, what he can do to help, what I´m afraid of and so on.

We agreed to go back to the old way, that he would call the same day I have my appointment. It would help me not to focus too much on a specific date or time (I use too much energy counting weeks, days, hours and min till my next appointment).

Eric thought it was so fun to see the motivation and the guts I have had in his last appointments. He also empathized that for some this phobia will takes years to overcome, not just over night. There is normal to have ups and downs with the phobia. One thing I had to remember was that he would never change his mind, change his mind that he would not want to help me any more or just decide that we need to go faster. Never. He would keep his promise to help me as long as I wished.

After this “talk” I managed to calm down and was ready to get started. Eric suggested that he would put the steel wire on my teeth but that I was the one who would do the “tightening” of them. He would hold my cheek while I did the twisting with the tool, which was an idea I liked very much. I gave me 100% control over how tight I wanted them.

Before we did anything he wanted to take a look on my teeth and bite. After a few “open, bite, open, bite” he decided to be kind to me today and not do what we had talked about. The elastic (which he thought was so awesome that I could mange to wear) had done a great job. So I was just supposed to wear them till my next appointment when he would call me in three – four weeks. He would on my next app. give me a lighter wire on my lowers so the elastic can work even better.
So no power chain or steel ligature!!! No adjustment pain tomorrow!

Last week I attended a lingual course and won a price for being the fastest to put ligature on lingual braces. The price was a specific tool orthodontists use with lingual braces. I gave Eric this tool today as a thanks for what he does. Apparently it was a tool Eric did not have in his clinic so he was very happy for it.

So this was todays appointment and I´m still alive!

[jem]

Eb, Sorry you've had such a bad day and I'm glad to hear you have survived.

take care

Jem

[TMJJill]

Hi Eb,

Thanks for your update. You survived the day. You should never feel embarassed or upset about how you are feeling. I'm sure Eric understands you will have ups and downs. It sounds like he was great in helping you through it.

You do know that you should write a book or paper about your experiences when you finish your treatment. You have great material with all of your blogging here. Your experiences can help other patients and dental professionals understand what it can be like for a phobia patient. I'm sure Eric and your phobia dentist would give you feedback on your writings when you are ready. Just something to consider.

Now, what are you doing to treat yourself for making it through the day?

[TMJJill]

Have you noticed our tickers are alike? I figure you chose yours because you like rabbits.

I picked mine as a tortoise and the hare analagy. My uppers moved quickly and 'raced' to the finish.
My lowers have been extremely slow though on my left side. I'm hoping that they will cross the finish line at some point though.

[EbonyQ]

Eric is the best. He is the one in the million ortho, and I was very lucky that I got him. How many other orthos would have put that much time and energy into one pt? A crazy anxiety pt like me!

When the anxiety is bad I always ask for a debonding and Eric knows that it´s my anxiety speaking. If I ask for it at an appointment he always say “yeah, sure. Next time we will take impressions for your retainer and then you have your debonding after that”, smiling and going along with it. My anxiety gets better because I think a debonding is going to happen.
And when I arrive at my next appointment he does not mention debonding at all. Goes on like nothing about debonding has been mentioned. Happily explain how well my teeth is moving and what the next step in the treatment is.
And I don´t mentioned it either because it´s not what I truly want, I just say it when the anxeity is bad.

This weekend I mentioned in my e-mail that we should just put a date for debonding before the summer and just close a few gaps in my front teeth. My anxiety was so bad that I just wanted them off. Eric did not mention debonding at all yesterday (I don´t think it´s in his vocabulary at my appointments ) and I therefor did not mention it either.

If he had started to discuss it the chance that I would go for a debonding would be bigger but by just pretending that he does not remember it makes me just continuing my treatment.

I´m sure Eric is smiling secretly every time I leave an appointment I have requested a debonding and that the word debonding did not show up at all in that appointment. That he had manage to keep my mind busy with other things.
This has happened four times now, four debonding requested but none so far has been done. I´m glad that he knows that it´s my anxiety speaking.


But I know that if I truly want a debonding I will always get it.

[EbonyQ]

Jem: Thanks! I really appreciate your postings! You are also one those who have always supported me though this.

Tmjjill:
I got three favorite animals: Wolves, rabbits and horses. That´s why I have all of them on my profile . But I love your choice of ticket! Very smart!

Never thought about writing a book. Don´t know if there would be many who would like to read that kind of a book. Would love to and it might help some people but I don´t think any publisher would agree to publish such a book?

I got the flu right after Eric´s appointment so I went stright to bed and had to be home from both school and work today. So there was not treat after Eric´s appointment .

Here is my two babies:
Zora (red) and Lucy (brown).

[TMJJill]

Ebony,

Sorry to hear you aren't feeling well. I had the flu a few months ago. It can be rough.

Maybe you could try to do the book as an e-book. It would be a great resource for people who need something to relate to--both patients and dentists. E-books come in all lengths too.

Thanks for sharing the picture of your babies. They look so cute. I had a rabbit for many years. He was great. I'm sure they help you with your stress. If they are anything like mine was, they love to be petted and stroked. Mine would sit in my arms for hours if I wanted.

Unfortunately, I'm pet free now. I actually had some pretty serious allergies to most animals that I was tested for. Cats, dogs, rabbits, birds/feathers, horses, etc... I'm almost 6 years into allergy shots now though so I'm hopeful I can re-introduce one into my household in the not too distant future.

Take care.

Jill

[TMJJill]

Hi Ebony,

How are you holding up this week?

[Tobilei]

Aww I'm so sorry you had a bad day. I can relate. I have them too (I think I mentioned before, I suffer from anxiety in general so braces have been a somewhat interesting experience). I can completely empathize with the need to know that they're coming off. I tell my ortho nearly every time I go in that I want him to take them off and he assures me that if it's what I really want he'd do it but then I wouldn't get the great smile at the end that will make all the awfulness feel worth it.

Hope you're feeling a bit better at the moment!

And I love your bunnies!!! Too adorable!!!

[Mylovedtheeth]

Are you alive? How are you going?

[EbonyQ]

Hi guys!

Sorry for my long absent, I don´t think I have been this long from this forum before.

I just got two new miniature horses from Spain and have been doing all the crazy paperwork that needs to be done. I´m also trying to find a new place to live, so there has been a busy time!


Things are not going that well with my braces . Wrote to Eric a week ago that I think we are done, we just need to close those gaps in my front teeth.
I´m supposed to wear elastics to pull my canine back and this creates a gap in front of them which is a very good thing if Eric wants to reduce my over jet, he was pleased about them.

Since I just want to be done and close gaps in my front teeth, those that people can see, I have stopped wearing my elastics and have not been wearing them for days (I mentioned it in my e-mail to Eric, so he knows).
Don´t want the spaces to get bigger because it will take them longer to close, which is the only thing I want to have done before removing them. I don´t care about the over jet or gaps further back.

My canines are going back to their original place, the work I have done with elastic is slowly fading away and the gaps are getting smaller. My motivation is slowly fading away together with the gaps.

It´s so strange to not wear elastics, I liked them and sometimes whats to put them on again but I know that it will only move my canines back again.

We´ll see if this is the done deal debonding or if Eric someone can managed to trick me around this one.

[starfish88]

Sorry you are having such a tough time with the elastics, hope you and Eric can close the gaps soon so you can focus on debanding. Exciting to hear about your mini horses though, at least that gives you a positive to focus on.