Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

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TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#1 Post by TaylorAnn »

I've finally taken the plunge and I have an appointment next Tuesday to start my journey to having a beautiful smile. I am so excited, I can't stop thinking about it. Getting braces will be one of the biggest things I ever do in my life, and I know it will be life changing for me.

A little bit about me. My name is Taylor and I have just turned 23 years old. I have needed braces since I was about 9 years old, maybe earlier. I grew up in a single parent family, and it was something that my Mum could never have afforded for me. We used to go to a free public dentist, and I remember the dentist telling us when I was 9 that I needed braces and that I could be put on a waiting list for free orthodontic treatment. The waiting list was about 4 years long. I still don't know why Mum never went through with it. Growing up I was teased a few times about my teeth, especially by my little brother who used to call me bucky beaver. A girl I was 'friends' with in Year 7 told me I had goofy teeth. And I remember a little girl once asking me why my teeth were funny looking. I still cringe when I think about all of these things, even though they happened so long ago.

I think about my teeth everyday. I never smile with my mouth open. I cover my mouth when I laugh. I try to not open my mouth much when I talk. I'm even self conscious when I am eating a sandwich or apple in front of someone incase they see the teeth marks. I am so very envious of people with straight teeth. My teeth are the only thing I would change about myself. It's so important to me to be able to smile and laugh without worrying about people seeing my teeth.

Today, I finally received the money that will allow me to kickstart my dream. My Nan got an inheritance from her mother and she has given all of her children and grandchildren a few thousand dollars. She gave me $2000. Of course it won't pay for my whole treatment. I am estimating that my braces will cost between $5000-$8000. But it's enough to get me started, then I can pay the rest off weekly over a few years.

When I called today to book an appointment, the receptionist was so lovely. I think that is a good sign. She told me that I would have to pay $180 on Tuesday which covers my x-rays etc. So I am guessing they will all happen on that day. I hope so because I just want to start already. She sent me out an information package today, which includes a form that I have to fill out and bring in to my appointment. She said it's a bit of a questionnaire so the Dr knows what parts of my smile I am unhappy with (everything haha) and what I hope my smile to look like at the end of my treatment. I think it's nice that they care about what I don't like and what I hope for.

Right now, I am mainly anxious about the cost and the fact that I don't know exactly what it will be. I am so worried that I will receive the quote and it will be a lot more than I think it will be. I am hoping that it will be no more than $7000. That way I can use my $2000 from Nan as the deposit and pay $50 a week for 2 years until it is paid off. It would be awesome if it was less than that though! I will just have to wait and see.

I am also worried that I will have to have teeth extracted first, which will mean I can't get the braces on sooner. I just have to be patient. I do have a pretty bad cavity that will need to be fixed first I am thinking.

I also have a gap where my bottom right molar had to be removed due to decay. I don't know how this will affect the whole process. I'm sure it will be okay.

To be honest, I'm not really too worried about the look of them or the discomfort at the moment. It's the cost that has me stressing quite badly.

I just want them on so badly and to know that I have truly started the process to having a beautiful smile. Anyway, at least I have made a massive step - letting go of my fear and actually making the appointment!


I will upload pictures when I know how :)

MissBraces
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 6:48 am

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#2 Post by MissBraces »

Welcome Taylor :D

I hope everything goes okay at your first appointment, its a big step but it wont be one you regret and you will soon be on the road to having beautiful teeth!! I know the cost is a bit daunting but its worth every penny when you see your teeth moving!

I am 25 and like you I am very self conscious about my teeth so I know how you feel and I know how much this means to you! I dream of being one of them people who can flash a big pearly white grin!!

Look forward to reading about your progress!

TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#3 Post by TaylorAnn »

Hi MissBraces, thank you so much for the reply. It's so good to find a big group of people on here who know how much this will mean to me. Just to be able smile and laugh without thinking - I can't even imagine how good that will feel. I know I will never take my smile for granted once my teeth are fixed!

I feel like a little kid counting down to Christmas waiting for my appointment haha! I can't stop thinking about it. Also, I haven't been looking after my teeth the past few months because I felt I would never be able to get braces so I kind of stopped caring about them. I would still brush everyday, but I was lazy with it and most of the time wouldn't brush before bed. Since knowing that braces are finally in my reach, I have been crazy about looking after my teeth. I bought an electric toothbrush the other day and I've been making sure to brush every little bit of plaque off my teeth, also flossing every day. I have pretty much stopped drinking fizzy drink altogether and started to cut back on lollies. Giving it all up is worth it to come out at the end of this with the smile I have always dreamed of!

TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#4 Post by TaylorAnn »

It's very nerve wracking for me to post these photos. I never open my mouth for anyone. Not family, boyfriend, friends - no one. I try to not look at my teeth myself. I have a cavity that needs filling but I am too nervous to go to the dentist. I have a gap on my bottom jaw where I had to get a tooth extracted last year. I let the decay to the point where I was in agony before I finally went to the dentist. Worst pain I have ever been through in my life, but it took so much for me to let go of my fear of opening my mouth and letting someone see something I am so ashamed of.

The only reason I feel able to post these photos is because I know they are finally going to be fixed and I won't have to look like this my entire life now. So here goes

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae19 ... 476883.jpg - I don't think they look too bad straight on. Obviously they are crowded, but they aren't crooked and all over the place. I feel like my front two teeth are massive though, and I wonder if they will still look so big once everything is straightened out?

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae19 ... 673088.jpg - Bottom jaw. Not too bad, but they definitely need some work. You can see my big gap where I had my tooth extracted. My wisdom teeth are also coming through, thankfully straight according to the dentist who extracted my tooth.

Now these next to photos make me feel sick. I feel like my teeth don't even look like a human beings teeth in them. I think they look like ape teeth!

http://s971.photobucket.com/user/BeachB ... sort=1&o=2 - Top view. Ugh, it makes me cringe. This is why I can't laugh, imagine throwing my head back laughing and everyone seeing this view :shock: you can also see my cavity, which I'm guessing will need fixing before I can get braces on it, because it's becoming quite sensitive.

http://i971.photobucket.com/albums/ae19 ... 178148.jpg - side view. This is the view that I dread everyone seeing when I talk, smile, eat or laugh. My front two teeth stick out so bad. The knock into things and it hurts pretty bad sometimes. I remember I once went to kiss my nephews head and he moved suddenly and my teeth smashed into his poor little forehead. He started crying and had tooth marks and I had to try and hide so none of my family would see :shock:

TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#5 Post by TaylorAnn »


MissBraces
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 6:48 am

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#6 Post by MissBraces »

Firstly, well done on posting your pics!! I still haven't managed to pluck up enough courage to do it :oops:

I think we have a lot of similarities with our teeth! my two front teeth stick out (I have a overjet and overbite) I have a narrow upper jaw which was almost a V shape instead of a nice curve. I have crowding on my lower jaw although these teeth didn't bother me half as much as my top did.

I know what you mean about neglecting your teeth. I stopped going to the dentist for about 5 years, I just hated my teeth so much that I thought my dentist would be disgusted with me! Then I thought enough was enough and like you made the big appointment to do something about it.. and I only wish I had done it sooner. I still have a very long way to go but my top arch is already moving into a curve and my two front teeth are slowly being pulled in.

I bet you cant wait for your appointment, hopefully things go quick from there and you can soon get your braces! :tingrin:

TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#7 Post by TaylorAnn »

Thanks, it's nerve wracking to post them but I want to be able to look back on all of this and see my progress. Plus, it's kind of cool to see when people have similar teeth, it makes you feel not so alone?

Did you have to have teeth extracted up top to make more room MissBraces? I'm worried that the ortho will tell me I need extractions. I'm not worried about the pain or anything like that, I just really want to walk in there next week and be told a date to be braced that is not too far away haha. I am so impatient. I have just wanted this for so long that I want my braces on already. I'm sure the novelty will wear off once I have them on and they're annoying the crap out of me haha!

MissBraces
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 6:48 am

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#8 Post by MissBraces »

Yes, I agree its great to look back to see how much your teeth have changed!

I haven't had to have any teeth extracted, my top teeth are quite gappy so there is space for them to move. I thought it would just be a case of pulling my top teeth back to meet inline with my bottoms - turns out its not that simple! I will be having lower jaw surgery in about a year to move my bottom jaw forward to meet my top once they have all been aligned. (although this is something Im still not sure I want! :? )

I hope yours is simple! I had to wait agesssss (almost 4 months) for a brace date!

Dougsey
Posts: 84
Joined: Mon May 05, 2014 1:33 pm
Location: New Hampshire

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#9 Post by Dougsey »

Welcome Taylor! Congrats on making your first appointment, you are on your way!

Thanks for sharing your pics... we are all in the same boat here. Be happy you are getting things fixed at 23 and not waiting until you're over 50 like me lol!

Doug
Click HERE for my journal

twentyseven
Posts: 55
Joined: Sat Aug 23, 2014 12:49 am

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#10 Post by twentyseven »

Hello Taylor, Welcome to the board!
I must say your teeth have a lovely color and shape. Of course there's some work to be done but I think there's lots of potential in your smile. And your bottom jaw is almost fine :) I think you're going to be amazed at your results. Good luck at your first appointment :) I had mine a month ago and I still need to fix one of my teeth which needs a second root canal, so I don't think I'm going to get braces before November or so... I hope you'll get yours sooner :)

MissBraces
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 6:48 am

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#11 Post by MissBraces »

Good luck with your appointment today Taylor :jump:

TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#12 Post by TaylorAnn »

Hi everyone, thanks so much for all your replies and thank you MissBraces for thinking about me today! I'm not sure what time zone you are all in, but it's not 9pm here and I had my appointment this morning. It went fantastic! I have been so excited and had butterflies all day because it is finally happening!

I want to write all about it because I really want to have a record of everything for down the track, so bear with me haha!

So I went in this morning and had a pretty good vibe straight away. I was super nervous, palms sweating etc, but the assistants and reception girls all made me feel so welcome. They were so understanding when I told them how nervous I was and when I had to get the photos and xrays one of the girls, Hayley, talked me through everything so I knew what was happening, because some of the machines were seriously intimidating, especially the xray machine. Everything was really high tech. The orthodontist I am seeing is the best of the best in my area which makes me feel at ease. There were no molds of my mouth or anything. I was expecting that they would take molds, but the xray/3d imaging machine was all that was needed.

So that all happened, then the Dr came in and had a look at mouth. He did a lot of measuring. I remember him saying that I have an 8mm overbite, projective(?) central incisors, a deep bite, something about my bite being a bit lopsided (more pressure when I bite on one side). There is no crossbite, or anything wrong with the temporomandibular joint, which I am thankful for. He said lots of other things to the assistant, but it was like he was speaking a different language most of the time, so many words I didn't know haha. I wish that I could have gotten a copy of everything that he said, it would have been interesting to look it all up.

After all that was done, we sat down and discussed my teeth and jaw. I need to have my first premolar removed on each side of my upper jaw. I am happy with that as I have a cavity in one of those teeth anyway, so at least when I get those pulled out I wont have any cavities or fillings in any of my teeth at all. He wants to leave my wisdom teeth in place as he thinks they could become useable teeth in the future. If it turns out that there is no room for them, he will refer me to an oral surgeon so I can get them taken out. I am happy about this, at the moment I can keep them and not have to go through 6 teeth being extracted all up. But if they are going to cause problems, the Dr will recognize that and I can get them taken out so they don't ruin my teeth after the braces have come off.

With the gap from my molar extraction, he said there will always be a gap there, but he will try to make it smaller. Because the extraction happened over a year ago, the bone under the gum has narrowed, so there isn't really a lot of room there for my third molar to move forward. He said he will still be able to move it forward a little though. Then my wisdom tooth can come forward and be used.

He was very happy with my oral hygiene. He actually said it's remarkable how clean and healthy my teeth and gums are considering the crowding. That made me feel pretty good haha!

Apparently I grind my teeth at night as well, which I had no idea about. That's why I have wear on my central incisors, top and bottom. It's actually really uncomfortable for me to push my bottom jaw forward to meet my two front teeth, so I'm really surprised that I have been doing this during the night without realizing it.

When that was all done, I went back out to the reception area to wait for my quote. I was so so so nervous about how much it was going to be. After seeing my teeth on the xrays and in such graphic detail in the photos, I thought that it was definitely going to be more than I expected. But when I got the quote, all up it will cost me $6600! Which is less than I thought it was going to be. I was and am so happy! I think that's a really reasonable price. I'm choosing to get ceramic uppers and metal lowers, which costs $200 more, meaning it will cost me $6800. My treatment time is estimated to be between 18-24months. All I kept saying to the girl at reception is how happy I am haha. Plus I thought it was going to cost so much more for ceramics, but it's only an extra $200, I would be crazy not to get them :)

They were happy for me to leave and think it over, but I wanted to get it sorted right then and there, so they booked me in for next Tuesday to have my premolars extracted, then on the 1st October I'm all booked in to have my braces put on :) I am so excited and can't believe how quick and smooth this process has been. It's really actually happening! In 3 weeks + 1 day I will have my braces on :)

I am getting the Empower self-ligating ceramic braces. I haven't really looked into self-ligating braces yet because I thought they would be heaps more expensive, but all I really know is that they don't use elastic ligatures so that's pretty cool that I won't have to worry about staining them with curries or anything like that!

Ahhh I am just so excited and so happy that it's all finally happening! :crazy: :lol:

MissBraces
Posts: 19
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 6:48 am

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#13 Post by MissBraces »

Hi Taylor, Im in the UK and its currently 1 in the afternoon :)

Im so glad your appointment went well! And congrats on getting a brace date!! :jump:

Its great that they made you feel so at ease and understand that of course your going to be feeling nervous! Finding a dentist that you like and trust is so important I think!

Your lucky you got out of having moulds... im sure they are trying to chock you to death with those things! I know what you mean about talking in a different language, i still don't know what half those fancy names /terms means!

Do you know how deep your deep bite is? I also have a deep bite.

I haven't read much about the self-ligating braces, but they always intrigue me so looking forward to seeing some pictures once you have them on! The extra money for the clear seems so worth it! I wish I could of had them :cry: they are so much more discreet than the normal metal ones.

It will all go so quick now and you will be braced before you know it! :banana:

TheProfessor
Posts: 441
Joined: Thu Jun 19, 2014 9:03 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#14 Post by TheProfessor »

Hi Taylor,
Congratulations and welcome to the club! I wish I would have had your attitude at 21, instead, I waited until I was almost 40 to get my smile fixed. Good luck with your journey--you will be amazed at how fast your teeth will move into place! :heart:
Braces installed on March 25, 2014: Damon clears on top and metal on bottom.
I had braces for 25 months!

Image
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TaylorAnn
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Sep 04, 2014 10:57 pm

Re: Starting my journey to a beautiful smile at 23 :)

#15 Post by TaylorAnn »

Hi everyone! Once again, thank you for your replies :) sorry I haven't been on in awhile, I have just been trying to keep my mind off the whole process coz I am so excited and it just seems to drag haha.

MissBraces, it definitely helps that they made me feel at ease. I was a little worried about not getting along with them as I had to pay $180 just for the consultation, so it would have been a waste of money if I didn't decide to stay with this orthodontist. I think it's important to get along with them coz I am going to have to see them every few months for around 3 years!

I kinda felt ripped off that I didn't get the molds haha! It would have been cool to see my teeth as a mold in 3d. I'm not sure how deep my bite. I actually ended up getting a letter in the mail a few days after my consultation that listed everything wrong with my teeth and jaw -

*Impacted wisdom teeth
*Upper front teeth are too far forward of the lower teeth
*Upper and lower front teeth overlap excessively and may cause increased wear of front teeth
*Lower front teeth are left of centre with the jaw relaxed
*Back teeth do not fit together properly which may lead to excessive wear
*Excessive wear of teeth present
*The width of the upper jaw appears narrow compared to other facial structures
*The width of the lower jaw appears narrow compared to other facial structures
*Upper teeth have sever crowding
*Lower teeth have moderate crowding
*The facial pattern is normal
*Jaw imbalance due to protrusive upper jaw

I think that list is just a dumbed down version so that I understand what's going on in there. I'm sure there are more technical terms and measurements for everything.

I am so happy that I am getting the clear self-ligating braces the more I look into it. Apparently they are less bulky as well, which will be good as I am a little worried about how my lips will fit over my teeth when the braces are on.

TheProfessor - at least you are getting it done! It's never too late :) I really hope my teeth move fast, but I am a little worried that they won't now that I have had my extractions and I'll explain that now:

So yesterday I had my extractions. Once again I am going to go into detail so that I remember everything :)

I was really nervous in the morning. I have had a molar extracted about a year ago but I was in that much pain from it that they could have ripped it out with no anesthesia and I would have done. This time I was getting two teeth pulled out that weren't causing me much pain or bothering me so it felt different.
When I got in the chair the dentist had a quick check over my teeth. Straight away he said that I needed 2 fillings in the teeth directly next to one of the teeth that was being removed. He sounded worried to begin with and I was freaking out. But after checking the rest of my teeth he said they appeared okay and he was just worried that he was going to find heaps more because of the cavities on the teeth found directly next to each other. He recommended that I come back in a few days time to get a cleaning and to put the 2 fillings in.

He then put some numbing cream on my gums and put the anesthesia in. It wasn't too bad, the numbing cream worked really well so I hardly felt anything. I did hear my gum making this weird popping sound as the needle broke the surface which felt strange.

I then had xrays and he got to work. He started on the tooth that had the cavity. Well... My molar extraction was super easy and quick and I was expecting the premolars to be even quicker. Not so haha. It took about 20 minutes to get that tooth out. All I could hear was the dentist going on about how stubborn this tooth was and that he couldn't believe a premolar was being this difficult. He had to be careful as well because it had such a large cavity that the tooth was weakened and if any parts broke off and he couldn't get them, he might have to do surgery :shock: . I could hear my tooth fracturing. My neck was straining really bad from the force. Finally he got it out, but the tip of the root had broken off in my jaw. This was the worst, because it felt like he was digging right up in my jaw to get this root tip. All I could think of was having to get surgery and how much it would cost haha. He eventually got it out, and it was the tiniest little shard... I thought it would be heaps bigger. The dentist exclaimed that the tooth had a curved root and that was why it had been so hard to get out and why the tip had broken off. I will upload a picture of it, the curved part is so weird looking.

Because that tooth had taken so long to get out, the anesthetic had worn off a little on the palate side of my other tooth. He had to give me 2 more shots to numb it. He said that this tooth should come out a lot easier and quick. Hahaha. Famous last words. It took him so long and he had to use so much force that he actually needed to have breaks to stretch his hands! For about 5 minutes of the whole process, the tooth wasn't actually loosening at all. When he was having one of his breaks I had to ask him if it was actually a possibility that the tooth would be impossible to remove lol. I was imagining having to be put under and had surgery to open my jaw up to get it out haha. It did come out eventually though. All up I was in there for well over an hour. I also accidently spat all over the chair and floor when I was rinsing my mouth because I lost control of mouth from the anesthetic haha!

He gave me a quote for the fillings etc at the end. I had to pay $405 yesterday for the extractions and on Friday I am up again for another $600 approximately :cry: I need 2 fillings, calculus removal and a topical fluoride application. It could even be more if he finds more teeth that need fillings. That means I have already spent $1000 and I haven't even got my braces on yet... That $1000 is pretty much my whole braces deposit. Luckily my Nan has offered to give me some more money, otherwise the fillings and cleaning wouldn't be possible for me. I'm glad I can get it done because there is no point getting braces if my teeth are just going to be rotting underneath the brackets from cavities and tartar build up.

I am now on my second day after having the extractions and I'm feeling really good. I felt awful all day yesterday. I think it's because I was expecting to go in there and have it be a quick and easy process like the molar extraction, but it was so different and sort of traumatic. Also I had a fair bit of pain afterwards which I never had with the molar. I think it's because they had to use so much force to get my teeth out and the fact that they had to go mining in my jaw for the tooth fragment that broke off lol. The side that had the fragment was definitely more sore than the other side. My gums also seem sort of cut up as well.

I feel so much better today. The cuts on my gums have already seemed to heal, and I already have the white tissue forming in the sockets which means they are starting to heal.

Today marks two weeks exactly until I get my braces on! I can't believe it's so close... After waiting for so many years it's literally only 2 weeks away, it feels amazing! :)

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