Metal Mouth Message Board

Every ortho will have their own price. To replace my clear retainers, it would cost me $250 per arch!

Yeah, I wouldn't worry about it. Elastics corrected my midline almost instantly. When he said to look out for unusual movement, your ortho probably meant for you to call him if the elastics started to over-correct things (ie. move teeth past where they are supposed to be). If you are worried though,...

I was given a treatment time estimate of 18 to 24 months. My braces came off after 25.5 months. So a little longer but pretty close to the estimate. The pain sucks but it will get better. Even though it hurts, try to chew because it will make the pain abate more quickly. Getting your braces on and t...

YAY! Congratulations!

And from someone who just went through it recently, let me tell you. This is going to be the. longest. week. of. your. life.

I have a bonded lower retainer. My ortho told me to wear my Essix upper and lower retainers every night for a year. Then after a year, I can go to three nights a week. So I don't wear a retainer during the day and thus far, I haven't noticed any tightness when I put my retainers on at night. Yay tee...

Well. As someone who suffered through an apartment fire, I can tell you that when you see a fireman rush into your home as all of your possessions go up in flames and then comes out with your cat cradled in his arms, he becomes really, really, really, really attractive on top of any inherent attract...

My original treatment plan called for me to come away with Essix retainers. Due to sever crowding on my lower arch, my ortho was afraid that my teeth might shift even with proper retainer wear and, towards the end of treatment, recommended that I consider a bonded retainer on the lower arch in addit...

Does your lower Essix go over all your teeth? Mine only goes to the second to last molars; the very last ones are left bare. If your retainer covers those teeth, maybe you could ask your ortho for a new lower retainer that leaves those bare?

Last week, I just had my mouth lasered!! My right canine was taking a long time to come down so they used a laser to "burn" the gum away so they could pull it with a chain.... It kills!! I'm popping painkillers like skittles!! I even drink water and it burns the area arrrrg lol Anyways, I...

Mike: These are the sort of things I have to do to get attention from my parents now that my brother and his wife have given them a grandchild. ;) Margie: Is fainting always such a confusing experience? I have only fainted one time prior to this and it was really confusing then as well. It's like 'H...

My dentist made me whitening trays that I will pick up in a week. Although, I must say, I was surprised how white my teeth actually were once the braces were off. They looked so yellowed by the end; I guess that was the glue. I am still going to whiten but I don't need to lighten up my teeth even ha...

Thanks! I really am thrilled with the results and look forward to getting my permanent bridge to complete my journey. So, today is the one week anniversary of getting my braces off and I celebrated with ... an emergency dentist appointment. When I got my braces off, I had my upper left lateral incis...

Actually, I'd stay away from spaghetti if you can't chew. I remember I ordered some at a restaurant after the adjustment when I got build-ups and my teeth were also sour from the thicker wire. I thought 'Pasta! That will be nice and easy!' I swirled it up on my fork, put it in my mouth ...and becaus...

Thanks! I FEEL great! I'm always a little amazed when I look back at the pictures of my teeth prior to braces. I always told myself that the first thing I would do if I won the lottery would be to fix my teeth. Now that I have fixed them, just having straight teeth feels like winning the lottery! I ...

I just want to say: I am chewing gum right now.

AND IT IS FABULOUS!