UK Fastbraces - Male aged 31 - now fitted - gulp!!!

[peterataylor]

Hi everyone,

Today, I am sat at my desk at work, with my head well and truly hidden behind my computer screen. I am trying to hide my face from everyone and anyone. Because 3 days ago, I had big shiny metal braces fitted to my top and bottom teeth. And today, after a weekend spent hiding out in my darkened living room, I am now having to face the world.

About me: I'm a 31 years old male living in Buckinghamshire, England. And for the last 2 years or so, I have been toying with the idea of getting my teeth straightened. About 18 months ago, my usual dentist referred me to an orthodontist in Marlow for a consultation. I came away from the consultation feeling very positive - particularly about the idea of getting Invisalign braces. However, after a couple of hours spent battling it out with a calculator, the end result was that I just couldn't justify the cost. Particularly as my wife and I were soon to be married. Blowing the wedding budget on my own vanity would not have gone down well!

Since then, our finances have settled down somewhat. And with that, my desire to take action against my overcrowded gob has increased. Like most people using this forum, I have spent a lot of time researching the various options available. And believing that I could stand any amount of pain and embarrassment, I finally opted for the highly recommended (by my dentist) Fastbraces.

My new orthodontist in High Wycombe is supposedly the first accredited Fastbraces orthodontist in the area. And I am one of the "lucky" first few to be subject to this new method of treatment. Essentially, Fastbraces works in the same way as regular fixed braces, with the big difference being that the alignment of the teeth and the position of the root can be adjusted at the same time, rather than one after the other. Thus, allowing for a quicker treatment time. Sounds good, huh! What's more, the price seems quite reasonable by comparison. And the expected result should far exceed that of many other types of braces (specifically the non-fixed ones).

So......I got them fitted!

However, in the cold light of day, having been "very brave" whilst sitting perfectly still for 90 minutes to have the braces installed, I am now looking in the mirror every 30 seconds, gurning back at myself in the most unattractive way, wondering what the hell I have done!!!

Perhaps I am not as thick skinned as I originally thought. And paranoia is certainly kicking in. I swear the dog has been looking at me funnily all weekend!

I keep telling myself that the end result will be worth it! However, I am craving reassurance. And so far, this forum doesn't really seem to help much. Actually, that's unfair. This forum is helping loads. But more in a general kinda way (i.e. braces are good, it'll all be worth it in the end, you can do it), rather than a specific "Fastbraces have rocked my world" kinda way.

My problem is that there doesn't appear to be all that many folk out there who have documented their experiences with Fastbraces. I primarily put this down to the fact that Fastbraces are still very new (especially to the UK). Despite this, it would be great to hear from anyone who is going through the same treatment. Or, if at all possible, has finished their treatment already.

I'm happy to get fully involved with this forum and upload my before, during and after pics. And hopefully, given time, I will be able to reassure others who have opted for Fastbraces themselves!

In the meantime, it'd be great to hear from fellow Fastbraces wearers.

Thanks for your time. Peter.

[rhibee83]

Hi everyone,

Today, I am sat at my desk at work, with my head well and truly hidden behind my computer screen. I am trying to hide my face from everyone and anyone. Because 3 days ago, I had big shiny metal braces fitted to my top and bottom teeth. And today, after a weekend spent hiding out in my darkened living room, I am now having to face the world.

About me: I'm a 31 years old male living in Buckinghamshire, England. And for the last 2 years or so, I have been toying with the idea of getting my teeth straightened. About 18 months ago, my usual dentist referred me to an orthodontist in Marlow for a consultation. I came away from the consultation feeling very positive - particularly about the idea of getting Invisalign braces. However, after a couple of hours spent battling it out with a calculator, the end result was that I just couldn't justify the cost. Particularly as my wife and I were soon to be married. Blowing the wedding budget on my own vanity would not have gone down well!

Since then, our finances have settled down somewhat. And with that, my desire to take action against my overcrowded gob has increased. Like most people using this forum, I have spent a lot of time researching the various options available. And believing that I could stand any amount of pain and embarrassment, I finally opted for the highly recommended (by my dentist) Fastbraces.

My new orthodontist in High Wycombe is supposedly the first accredited Fastbraces orthodontist in the area. And I am one of the "lucky" first few to be subject to this new method of treatment. Essentially, Fastbraces works in the same way as regular fixed braces, with the big difference being that the alignment of the teeth and the position of the root can be adjusted at the same time, rather than one after the other. Thus, allowing for a quicker treatment time. Sounds good, huh! What's more, the price seems quite reasonable by comparison. And the expected result should far exceed that of many other types of braces (specifically the non-fixed ones).

So......I got them fitted!

However, in the cold light of day, having been "very brave" whilst sitting perfectly still for 90 minutes to have the braces installed, I am now looking in the mirror every 30 seconds, gurning back at myself in the most unattractive way, wondering what the hell I have done!!!

Perhaps I am not as thick skinned as I originally thought. And paranoia is certainly kicking in. I swear the dog has been looking at me funnily all weekend!

I keep telling myself that the end result will be worth it! However, I am craving reassurance. And so far, this forum doesn't really seem to help much. Actually, that's unfair. This forum is helping loads. But more in a general kinda way (i.e. braces are good, it'll all be worth it in the end, you can do it), rather than a specific "Fastbraces have rocked my world" kinda way.

My problem is that there doesn't appear to be all that many folk out there who have documented their experiences with Fastbraces. I primarily put this down to the fact that Fastbraces are still very new (especially to the UK). Despite this, it would be great to hear from anyone who is going through the same treatment. Or, if at all possible, has finished their treatment already.

I'm happy to get fully involved with this forum and upload my before, during and after pics. And hopefully, given time, I will be able to reassure others who have opted for Fastbraces themselves!

In the meantime, it'd be great to hear from fellow Fastbraces wearers.

Thanks for your time. Peter.

Hi Peter, welcome to the board and the start of your journey!

I know EXACTLY how you are feeling. I have had my metal mouth for 3 days now and today was the first day at work for people to see them. I felt like everyone was staring at me and I was really apprehensive about talking to people. However, I did, and when people talked to me I could see their eyes burning into my mouth wondering what the heck? I would prefer that people say something like "oh you have braces?" or anything about them, but it is when people just stare at your mouth when you are talking back to them and they dont say anything but stare, it is really uncomfortable and kinda annoying! haha!

I have never heard of Fastbraces, maybe they are like the 6 month smile braces i have read about? but they sound, well, like they won't be needed for long! how long have they said that you need them for? I am interested to see your pics

I have traditional metal braces too as the orthodontist suggested they would do the best job for my teeth. I have silver ligs on them at the moment so you cannot notice them. I might try some colour down the track! how are you finding your braces so far? mine are ok and my teeth are not as tender as they were on the weekend. however, one of the brackets has started to rub my lip which is not nice and I have applied a big blob of wax to it! I have the brackets on my lower teeth and 6 spacers, i get the lower ones archwired on wednesday. Top ones are all done though. There are pics in my thread if you want to click the link below.

I hope all is going well and looking forward to following your journey!

[peppy]

Welcome Peter! I enjoyed reading your post... nice to see a bit of that British witticism around here! I'm sure your dog wasn't bothered by your braces

I can't say I have ever heard of FastBraces but I have Six Month Smiles and they were pretty unheard of a couple of years ago. Although they are more well known now, they don't have much presence on these forums. So I can sympathise... somewhat.

You'll probably find people will come out of the woodwork as they become more widely available.

I look forward to following your progress!

[peterataylor]

Hi Rhibee and Peppy,

Thank you both for your encouraging messages. So it seems as though I may be somewhat of a national Fastbraces guinea pig here in the UK! It’s funny, because at work I quite like being at the forefront of technology. However, when it comes to my dentistry, I would probably have preferred to follow one of the more tried and tested methods of straightening teeth. It just goes to show what a sucker I am for a decent sales pitch! lol.

In all seriousness though, if these braces fulfil all the promises that were made to me by my orthodontist (just 362 days to go!) then I’ll happily cry from the hills in support for them (and him). Until then, I am going to keep a very close eye on any movement and pray it is in line with the desired arches - and not with the odd tooth here and there falling down my plug hole!

So, with only 10 mins to go until the end of my first “at work with braces” day, I can report that I have had to endure face-to-face conversations with 4 people. Only one of whom made me feel any better about my new metallic smile. The other 3 clearly noticed, but chose not to remark. I think I agree with you Rhibee – it’s worse when they don’t say anything. And worse still when they lose their train of thought because their mind has wandered off (probably to some happy place where they are thankful not to be the ones wearing hideous braces).

Hopefully tomorrow I’ll be able to lay low again. But then on Wednesday I’m presenting at a conference in Central London. No getting out of that one! Probably a case of throwing myself in the deep end and hoping for decent buoyancy!

Here’s another micro insight in to my world: between the ages of 16 and 18, I wore very similar looking fixed metal braces on my teeth! I hated life back then! Although interestingly, the “college years” (as I refer to them) were my most academically successful. Probably because I preferred to shy away from embarrassing social interactions, and instead, buried my head in textbooks. For the brief months that followed my orthodontic treatment, I was really chuffed with the end result. Everyone would say that it had been worth the torture (they must have been suffering from sympathy ulcers) and that I indeed had great teeth! An enigma that will plague my nightmares until the day I die: Why-oh-why didn't my orthodontist place greater emphasis on the importance of wearing my retainer!?!?! [cue: cold sweat]. I’m half tempted to track him down and send him the bill!

Hopefully hear from more of you soon. And Rhibee and Peppy – thanks again. I too look forward to following your journey! Best of luck!

Peter

[Tobilei]

I'm in Australia and had to google what fastbraces are so I'm probably not a lot of help. I can understand your worry, however whenever I see another adult in braces I don't think they look horrendous, I just think good on them for looking after their teeth. I wish I could tell you something other than it will all be worth it in the end but you're right, sometimes at the very beginning it just doesn't feel that way.

Best of luck with achieving the results you want! I hope you really do get them more quickly than traditional braces

[peterataylor]

Thanks Tobilei. Funnily enough, I had somewhat of a break through today. After a really nice conversation with a colleague (where I just let my braces out on show) I'm now feeling loads better about them. I'm quickly learning that overcoming the mind games that I've been playing with myself is more than half the battle!

I'll be sure to keep you posted on progress!

Peter

[jem]

"Funnily enough, I had somewhat of a break through today. After a really nice conversation with a colleague (where I just let my braces out on show) I'm now feeling loads better about them. I'm quickly learning that overcoming the mind games that I've been playing with myself is more than half the battle!"

Well done Peter! I was also pretty self-conscious at first. You don't see many male adults with braces in the UK,so sometimes people will do a double take. But you eventually realise that no-one is bothered about the braces but you and you become less concerned yourself and just get on with your life.

Good luck with your treatment!

Jem

[rhibee83]

I understand the mind games!

I have seen a few staff members at work who I haven't seen in around the office the past few days and when they are talking to me all I am thinking of is "omg what do they think of my braces? - are they looking at me funny?" haha then i actually forget to listen to what they are saying OR i forgot about what I am talking about haha!

I am glad you are getting on from the mind games now and embracing the brace! I am getting better each day and one girl at work just said she was jealous cos she wants braces! that always makes me feel better hehe

good work

[Tobilei]

Glad you're feeling better!! I think in general that it's people who are jealous who have negative things to say (not that I've ever had anyone say anything awful, have had a couple of people empathize that they had braces when they were younger and remember how much it hurts etc but nothing awful).

[peterataylor]

So, after a month of being in Fastbraces, during which time I've encountered a fair (but not unbearable) amount of sensitivity and the occasional mouth ulcer (including a couple of particularly horrible ones on the gums below my lips), I can happily say that I am now over the trauma and embarrassment of being an adult male with braces! In fact, my wife said to me last night that she doesn't even notice them any more. And my speech has returned to normal. So I'm quite happy now. And being able to track tooth movement with my iPhone is great. I take a photo every couple of days, then switch back and forth to the photo I took on day one. I get quite obsessive looking for the tiny amounts of movement. It is there though! What d'ya think?

I'm getting the ol' metal work tightened on Monday! Wish me luck!

[Kipepeo]

Nice improvement.

Off topic: You know, when I read your posts, or Jem's, or others from the UK, I have to read it with a British accent. Same goes for you Australians, although an Australian accent is harder for me to speak, I can read any accent in my head. I know, I'm weird.

[Tobilei]

Definitely improvement there That's great! And glad they haven't been too traumatic for you

Lol Kipepeo, I'm the opposite. I read EVERYTHING in an Aussie accent and then when I actually hear how someone speaks am always surprised that they don't sound at all Australian!

[rhibee83]

definately see improvement and your bottom row are pretty much straight! so excited for you!
great stuff!

[rhibee83]

Nice improvement.

Off topic: You know, when I read your posts, or Jem's, or others from the UK, I have to read it with a British accent. Same goes for you Australians, although an Australian accent is harder for me to speak, I can read any accent in my head. I know, I'm weird.

LOL i don't read it in an accent either, just aussie, i do have to laugh at the difference between MUM and MOM though hehehe

[Kipepeo]

I'm also interested in the UK 'brace', vs American 'braces'. We get more???