I had a pretty good visit today. There was a 6-year-old little girl (going on about 12, from the way she was talking) who was getting braces and headgear, and she was just adorable. Asked a million-and-one questions, and very patiently watched her toothbrushing video while wearing her headgear (with a pink strap).
I got a new wire on the bottom (.016/.022), and kept the same wire on top (also .016/.022). As far as progress goes, he said, “Looking good!” That’s about it.
Oh wait… there is a little something else…
Taa Daa!!! I GOT MY RADIANCE BRACKETS!!!
Some of you may have seen my thread in Metal Mouth lamenting my decision to change to ceramics, or not. I made up my mind that this is something I REALLY wanted to do, and could not get it out of my head.
When I walked in, ortho’s wife was at the front desk and asked if I’d taken any pics of my “last day with metal top brackets”. She was very nice and sympathetic, and said that it didn’t bother them a bit to change them, as long as I was happy. She gave me the bad news of the additional cost: $700!! Aack! But… I had a plan… I asked if I could get a bit of a break on that if I paid off my balance in full today. She said, “Oh, of course!” They normally give you a 10% discount if you pay in full within the first month, but she waived that “first month” policy for me. So, instead of paying $700, I got them for about $215 (even less than the cost of the brackets alone).
Doc came over with two ceramics models: One Clarity SL and one Clarity all clear (w/ligs). He explained the differences between the two, and then mentioned that he had another one… all clear… and I said, “Radiance? That’s the one I’d like.” He didn’t flinch at all, but explained that the archwire usually gets better torque when it’s metal on metal (as with the Clarity SL metal slot), instead of metal on ceramic, where it can sometimes break. I asked if he could still give them to me, and I’d take that chance. He said, “No problem at all. Just be really careful with them. I know you’re careful with your teeth, anyway.”
So, we proceeded. He did what I thought was just opening up the bracket doors and removing the wire. Then he had to attend to the little girl, and after a couple of minutes, I ran my tongue over my upper teeth and noticed the brackets were GONE! I didn’t even feel him take them off! The sanding down of the bonding, though… yes, I did feel that. I had a couple teeth that were super-sensitive, so my butt flew out of the chair a bit with those. As I was rinsing the gritty stuff from my teeth, I looked in the mirror and was so surprised at how much better my teeth looked already. Why do they look bigger? I know they haven’t grown any. I also noticed that there was NO difference in coloring between the tooth area under the bracket vs. around the bracket from my using Colgate Baking Soda w/Peroxide toothpaste.
The brackets were put on with no problem (the whole top row, except for the very last one in the back that doesn’t show), and he put my old archwire back in (the same one he just took out – the .016/.022). He also put a powerchain back on over my gap, only this time instead of hooking it onto just the “hook”, it’s around the whole bracket now. He asked how they felt, and honestly, I said, “Doesn’t feel any different from my other adjustments,” and he said, “Good. That’s how we want it.” As I got up to leave, he kind of laughed and said, “Make sure you brush, brush, brush to get those colors off.” I told him, “Thanks for telling me THIS TIME. I had no idea what they were the last time.” These colors aren’t just little dots – they’re more like stripes. (I’m having a doozie of a time getting off all the colors, so please ignore them in the pic.) Before I left, I thanked him again for changing them for me, and for his patience with my indecisiveness. He just smiled and said, “I just want you to be happy.” Sounded like a henpecked husband – LOL!
I LOVE THESE BRACES!!! They are so purty, and are a good incentive to keep my teeth as white as possible. They are a bit higher than my other ones, and I have hooks on the canines and first two molars, but I honestly don’t “feel” them like I did (and still do) my metals. (Yeah... as I type this, I do feel a little bit of rubbing on the inside of my upper lip, so better get that wax ready!)
OH… lig colors. She started putting them on and I asked her “What color are you using?” She said, “Clear. I figured since you wanted clear brackets, you wanted clear ligs.” I told her “Yes… for now.” Doc told her (kiddingly) “You don’t want to use the new one we got in – the bright orange one?” He was in an exceptionally good mood today. I think it had to do with the precocious child he had there. (NO... not ME!! LOL!) She was just adorable and asked him even more questions than I usually do!
Thank you all for your support!! Now I'll be able to go to my concer tomorrow night (Color Me Badd / All-4-One / Shai) and take pics to my heart's content and not be self-conscious.
-Cathy
I'm glad the whole thing worked out for ya.
