Siobhan from Ireland

I am 30 years of age and have crowding and a slight overbite, my teeth are not crooked but they do stick out primarily because I have sucked my thumb my entire life. When I turned 30 I started to wonder if I would suck my thumb forever and if so, would I be in a old peoples home with my thumb in my mouth. I don't know how I did it, but after sucking my thumb since the day I was born I was able to stop.

The next step, was to talk to my dentist about getting my teeth straightened. This was very difficult as I have always found it very stressful to talk about my crooked teeth. My dentist was very positive and referred me to an Orthodontist.

Going to the orthodontist was also very stressful as she was examining the extent of my thumb sucking and what damage I had done to myself over the years. However she was friendly and kind, before treatment could commence I had to get a tooth out to make room for the improvements.

So, it was back to my dentist and this time around I felt more positive as I was now doing something to improve myself. I got the tooth out – it wasn't that bad then I had a few days to let the gap heal up and it was back to the orthodontist to get wired up.

The first few days were very difficult, I was self conscious as I am national account manager and look after our companies biggest clients. I was afraid of negative reactions from clients / co-workers or friends.

My boyfriend, who has been totally supportive, had booked us on a holiday with about 20 of our friends shortly after the braces went on. So all my friends saw me at the airport with the braces on and after the initial 5 minutes when everyone saw them, I felt OK about it. The support from my friends was fantastic and I was relived to have that out of the way.

Back at work once all my colleagues has seen them it was fine. My clients are great, no one has moved their account because I wear braces.

Fpur weeks into the process and my teeth have moved. This is the most exciting part as I know I am finally doing something about it. I regret not doing this years ago, but I am doing it now and I am happy about that. Every day I wake up and think, another day in the right direction.

I have also managed to lose about 5lbs in the past 4 weeks – mostly because it now takes me longer to eat and I prefer smaller bites and soft food. This has also been a fantastic plus, as I feel better about myself since losing the weight.