Back to where we were

I have the old wire back on, the stubborn canine has moved a bit so hopefully we're homeward bound. The dentist is confident that in four weeks, the lower arch can get the final steel wire on, and then in February the whole lot can come off.

Thank god!

I'm sick of looking like the cookie monster when I try to eat.

1 step forward, 2 steps back

Feeling frustrated - I've been set back a few weeks.

That stubborn tooth has got a new brace in a sharper angle to try to encourage it to move. But, the wire I was wearing wouldn't fit so I've had to go back to the wire I finished wearing about nine weeks ago.

But, instead of the naughty tooth moving, all the teeth around it are. So, I've ended up losing the perfect alignment of my bottom four front teeth as two of them have moved off into a straight line.

Difficult to explain, but basically I'm going backwards in my treatment. And it was all going so well.

Ho hum, they definitely won't be off in time for Christmas as we thought - my new goalpost is for them to be off in Feb, exactly one year after getting them on.

Meanwhile, the experience of having a brace removed was... enlightening. These ones are made of porcelain so the crrrrackkk sound it made when my orthodontist broke it off sounded like a tooth being shattered. It wasn't particularly fun, and I'm sort of dreading the experience of getting all of them removed, but the end will be worth it.

I read somewhere that when Tom Cruise had braces on, he had them all removed each time he was doing a movie, and then reattached when he wasn't. I'm impressed!

Almost nine months now

I've been a bit rubbish at this blog thing, but just to say they have moved so quickly that I'm a little shocked and in awe of modern orthodontics! My top arch is completely straight and can have the wire off. In fact, they've been straight for about 8 weeks now whilst I wait for the bottom row to sort itself out, and then I'll have all the braces removed at the same time.

Frustratingly, there is only one tooth that is holding the whole thing up - it is stubborn beyond belief and will not turn in like it should. One tooth, that's all I'm waiting on.

I have what is hopefully my penultimate appointment tonight - my dentist is going to try moving the position of the bracket on the offending tooth to see if changing the angle will help. It better had. I'm sick of these things! I've had stacks of IDS (inter dontal shaving, I think) which is some strange little machine that takes away miniscule amounts of the enamal to provide space. It didn't hurt but made my ears feel funny.

I'm used to the braces now, but at the same time very much looking forward to not being conscious about my teeth for the first time in almost 20 years! Oh, and I really want a glass of red wine.

The molars have shifted

A strange thing happened when I got home last night - my back teeth no longer align properly so I'm back to talking a little strange. It's really hard to get my top front teeth to touch my bottom ones because the molars are getting in the way.

I think this is happening because of the way In-ovation C (or any frictionless brace) works. To make room in the mouth (which therefore avoids any extractions) the arch of the teeth becomes wider. Obviously, to make the arch wider the wire needs to pull the back teeth outwards. This is what creates the wider smile that the marketers refer to - i.e. you'll see more of my (back) teeth when I smile.

What seems to have happened is that the top and bottom arches are moving at different paces, so they don't align properly and they're not creating a normal bite. I'm sure that eventually the other arch will catch up, but in the meantime it feels really odd when I talk.

And yet again, I can't believe how quickly it happens - the "clicks" of the moving teeth have started again (when I push my tongue against my teeth, some of them make a little click as they move) but the overall head pain from yesterday has now gone, which is good.

New wire

Yesterday I had my first replacement wire put in, and oh the pain! I know it will pass in a day or two, but in the meantime it's back to macaroni (which I can swallow whole) and chocolate cake (which requires no chewing!)

The painkillers aren't doing much good either.

On the other hand, I'm so happy to see how much movement there has been in only seven weeks. I'll load up new photos soon, but the top ones are re-aligning really smoothly which surprises me because I've hardly felt a thing.

Meanwhile, the bottom two front teeth are moving at an incredible pace (I've felt them too), leaving the two teeth that aren't linked up yet way behind. I now look like I have snake fangs lingering in my mouth! It's a little embarrassing.

I've had two spring coils put in to push some of the teeth apart to make room for the two fangs I now have. Photos will come shortly to make this easier to understand!

They're moving!

It's been about six weeks now and I'm quite amazed at how much the bottom two front teeth have moved forward, but they're leaving the other two behind because they're still not linked up with the wire. That was meant to be sorted the other day, but my dentist had to postpone. The new wire is happening next week now and I'm very excited that I'm seeing the results.

Talking is pretty much completely normal now, I'm getting used to the cement, although I'd prefer not to have it of course. The mammoth cleaning is becoming an easy part of my daily routine and I've not had to use the dental wax - probably because these are ceramic and don't irritate the gums as much as metal.

When the new wires are on I'll get some photos done to show the movement.

Week three - getting used to them now

Coming up to three weeks, I can pretty much talk normally (when I don't think about it) and the senstivity has calmed down. I'm even getting used to eating with the cement, but look forward to being able to chew normally.

Because cake is easy to eat, I have discovered a fabulous cake recipe from Green and Blacks chocolate recipe book. What a shame, I'm having to make chocolate cake... I guess that means no weight loss from having braces then. ha!

One week in - still no pain

It's officially been one week (and about 20 hours) since I had my braces in. I'm bored of them already. I can be quite an impatient person - I like things done quickly, which is why I went for these friction-less braces - but trying to imagine over a year of these things is depressing.

Other than the fact I can't talk properly and look like I've either had collagen in my lips or I've been punched in the mouth, the thing I really hate is the cement on my top molars and therefore my inability to chew. I hate it. One week of nothing crispy - argh!

I also found at the beginning my stomach was wondering what was going on. Without the chewing, it was getting no warning, and I quickly would feel full and a bit unwell. I have to admit, I'm cutting down on eating because it's just not a pleasure at the moment. I have however discovered how great cake is with braces, so I'm planning on plenty of baking (and eating).

Meanwhile, still very little pain, if any. One of my teeth has become extremely sensitive (under the gum line) so I'm pasting it with sensitive toothpaste and will see how it goes before my next appointment, but I only notice it when I'm brushing.

Some of my teeth are a little wobbly, which I guess is a good thing!

Next appointment isn't until mid-March. Two of my brackets aren't currently attached to the wire because of how far back they are (the glue needed to dry to its strongest), so looking forward to getting those joining in the action.

Days One and Two

After years and years of uhmming and ahhing about my wonky teeth, I have finally got braces. I never thought at aged 30 I would be wearing braces, but I'm very excited at the prospect of having straight teeth after all these years.

Two reasons this came about: 1) I'm sick of seeing my wonky teeth and feeling that as I get older, they're getting worse (or I'm noticing them more than I did when I was a care-free teenager!) 2) One of my top front teeth is taking all the brunt of my biting and talking, and I have noticed how much more sensitive it has become. It's time for the other teeth to take their share of the burden.

So, on Feb 3 I finally had the braces put in . They're In-Ovation C, which is a frictionless brace (like the Damon System) but clear / ceramic. Which is nice. At my age I am not interested in prancing around with a mouth full of metal train tracks or bright coloured ones, which have bizarrely become so popular! Because they are frictionless the time it takes for me to have straight teeth should be quicker (1 year to 18 months) and I probably won't need any extractions (I might need the enamal shaving down a tiny bit though - we'll see how it goes). They're also meant to be less painful, which after two days certainly seems to be the case. I can obviously feel they're there, but so far nothing is really hurting.

So the main pros at the moment: they're clear, after 48 hours they're still not hurting, they'll hopefully be quicker than traditional braces and I should have fewer dental appointments.

The cons: one of my upper teeth was catching a lower brace so they've put cement on some of the back teeth (see photo) to prevent any damage when my teeth come together, but it means I can't chew anything! And I can't bite anything for the next year. So, lunch has been macaroni which I can swallow whole, and breakfast has been porridge. I'll be stocking up on soup and mashed potato too. The other problem is the extended cleaning that is required - tee pees are a pain when I use them on the wonky teeth, they keep bending and I can't get them through. I'll persevere. Oh, and talking is difficult too - I can't get my S's and T's right!

So, I started this blog to let people know what these braces are like and what experiences I have. So far my only advice is to make sure you know when they're going to put the braces on (I didn't!) and eat all your favourite foods the day before! I will add photos so it's easy to see how my teeth are moving.