Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi everyone,

I thought it was time to start my story. Some of you will have seen (long) posts from me already. I would just like to say that without the support and advice I received from members of this site, this would not be happening. So THANK YOU ALL For anybody who does not know my pre-story, I am 22, have avoided the dentist since I was a child because of uncontrollable dental fear and only returned to the dentist last year when things got so bad that I needed a root canal. Up to that point, I felt ashamed of my teeth every single day. I did not look after them. I did not think there could EVER be a solution - I really thought they were that bad. I completely neglected them apart from brushing.

I know I am still young, but I have learned that it is never too late. I went to 4 consultations after a lot of help and encouragement from members here. I was recommended for jaw surgery by one orthodontist to close an open bite I did not know I had (..and still cannot notice). This was just too much for me and I was so worried for a week after that I constantly felt sick and lost my appetite (SO not like me)! This was just too much to handle with my dental fear and I eventually chose not to go through with surgery and chose the fourth orthodontist I visited. I weighed up all the pros and cons (with help from everybody here of course), and feel I have made the right decision as open bites are often corrected without surgery, and the open bite was not even a concern to me when I first visited the orthodontist.

I have gone through the process of xrays and impressions, have had my teeth professionally cleaned and I can now say that I am FINALLY getting braced next week! Monday 13th October. I will get ceramics on top at this appointment, and will have metal placed on the bottom at a later date. My main issue is severe crowding (which is so bad that I was fully convinced it could never be fixed - what a horrible thought to be living with in silence through all my teenage years). It took me a while to believe my orthodontist when she confidently told me that my teeth in fact COULD be straightened. I will once again emphasise the fact that I have not seen ANY pictures on this website of teeth that look worse than mine. However, I was surprised to hear that crowding is actually one of the easiest things to fix even though having crooked, overlapping, pushed back teeth, and even teeth which have emerged through the gums have destroyed any chance of a normal smile for me up to now. Especially when these teeth are your top teeth. I also have a crossbite and slight open bite, with crowding on the bottom too. I will have two upper premolars extracted after having my braces fitted.

I CANNOT BELIEVE THIS IS HAPPENING. I don't even know what to ask you all, but I am starting to feel nervous so felt the need to share this My healthy diet is non-existent at the moment. I ate pizza last night, and I am eating nachos right now as I know that this will not last for long I will miss eating normally but I am so excited (yet nervous) to begin!

Four things I would like people to take from my story so far:
* NEVER feel it is too late or your teeth are too bad to be fixed. You have the right to be confident and happy, and having a smile you are not ashamed of is such a big part of that.
* Do not feel ashamed if you have neglected your teeth for a long time. You cannot control what has happened. What you can do is take action when you feel ready. Your time really will come. I never thought I would actually decide to go through with this, with it fully being my decision. That made things SO much easier and once my dentist (after my teeth having experienced so many years of neglect) had seen my teeth and had not reacted negatively, the feeling of shame lessened and gave me a tiny bit of confidence to start CONSIDERING orthodontic treatment (which took another year). This fear lessened once I began to trust this dentist, and once again when I finally went for consultations and NOT EVEN ONE orthodontist told me that my teeth couldn't be fully fixed. For the first time EVER, I was not nervous going in for impressions and xrays, and did not even feel embarrassed to open my mouth for my orthodontist. What a long way I have come, I feel like I have achieved the impossible. Regarding neglect, I did not floss for years and usually only brushed once a day once I lost hope of ever having a normal smile. However, the hygienest told me that my teeth were kept very clean and to keep doing whatever I was doing! So it may not always be as bad as you think. Needless to say I was pleasantly surprised and it was another much needed confidence boost I will now begin to properly look after my teeth and appreciate what I still have and realise it can only get better from here!
* Do not let fears influence your decisions. Realise that they are fears and try to think if you would react differently if you did not have these feelings. That really forced me to take EVERYTHING into consideration when making a decision, and to really weigh up the pros and cons. Otherwise I would have been left with regret, and what a waste it would be to have feelings of regret after your journey. It is so important to know your exact reasons for each decision you make, and to know why you did not choose the alternative (if alternative options were given). That way if you start to feel regret, you can remember that your decision was justified before you even began.
* Do not let other people influence your decisions. Realise what you are doing is for yourself, and not for anybody else. Thinking of telling people you are getting braces should just be an afterthought and should not influence whether you go through with this or not.

If my story helps even one person to see things in a more positive light I will be happy. There is no rush. We each have our own path and the right time is different for each of us so I wish everyone luck in whatever stage they are at. Don't worry if you are not a member and are reading this post hoping you will make a decision soon (I was one of those people for a long time). It is all about accepting where you are at now, not rushing yourself, realising that you do want to make progress but also realising that it may not the right time for you just yet. As everyone says here, it really is a PROCESS.

I hope to keep you all updated throughout my journey (with shorter posts I hope!!). Thanks to anybody who managed to read all of that!

Hi Buttercup! My story is sooo similar to yours. My teeth suffered years of neglect, because I just thought that nothing could be fixed and that I had to wear dentures before I'm 30 or 40.
I really feel encouraged after your post because I was quite nervous about getting braces. Your post made me more confident about my decision and I feel much better now.
Good luck on Monday - make sure to post a message how it all went - but I'm sure everything's gonna be alright:)

Thank you twentyseven, I really hope so! I'm glad my story has helped - it's a shame I can't take my own advice so well Feeling very nervous at the moment, this just got very real! I will be sure to update my story on Monday anyway It's nice to hear you have a similar story and I can definitely relate to the hopelessness you felt for years! The hardest part is making the decision to go through with it so well done on getting to that stage It was just about two months ago when I made the decision myself. Do you have a brace date yet?

I can imagine you feel very nervous. But it will be worth it!
Thanks for asking, I don't have a brace date yet, unfortunately. I made the decision back in July (oh, actually in April but I struggled for 3 months to tell my boyfriend and make the appointment ), -the whole process takes so long On 27th Oct I'm getting my molds and then the treatment plan.
I can't wait for your post on Monday:)

They're finally on Well the brackets are, I had to make an appointment with my dentist to have my extractions next week and go back to my ortho the following week for the wire to be put in. So the brackets are on for now to let my lips and gums adjust, instead of having everything done at once which makes sense!

I was so nervous before I went in, but I think that's a natural part of the process. It was like everything built up to that moment. If I went through with it, everything would change from that moment on and there was no going back. If I didn't go through with it everything would stay the same. It's nearly like I thought life before and with braces would be two separate lives. I'm only on day 1 but everything is very much the same! I'm as busy as always, I've already interacted with lots of people. Everyone definitely noticed them - some chose to mention it and some didn't. The only thing I found uncomfortable were the people who clearly noticed and chose not to say anything. It made some conversations slightly awkward (for me anyway). Other than those random encounters I could not have more support from my family and friends who are all so happy I finally decided to do this!

As for the procedure, it was very relaxed and I am a very nervous person when it comes to sitting in a dentists chair! The assistant did most of the work and my ortho positioned the brackets. What I was most curious about was the feeling when my lips first touched the brackets. It feels exactly how you would expect it to feel! I initially found that my lips had to work a bit to get around the brackets but that is definitely normal. After 20 minutes I was able to close my mouth with no real effort. I'm not sure about anyone else but when my mouth is naturally open my top lip covers all except the four brackets in the middle. When I close my mouth my top lip doesn't look any bigger, it's like my bottom lip is nearly pushed out a little to meet my top lip and cover the front four brackets. Just some detailed info for anybody wondering! ...and my mouth still closes naturally.

So I don't have much to report other than to emphasise that it is nothing to worry about, but it is completely normal to feel nervous so just expect some nerves but don't let them take over. Life will continue as normal, your life will stay exactly the same only for the fact you have some metal in your mouth! So don't look at it as a life changing moment, the build up really isn't worth what is actually is. I just feel very happy, relaxed and at ease now that I know things have really begun. I know I don't have to worry about pain or staining just yet but I am also happy I get a chance to practice brushing and flossing before the wire goes in! And I can eat curries for another week until it's time for those clear ligs!! However, I am still very conscious about what I am eating in case I break a bracket or stain around my teeth in the long-term. I am doing my best not to snack on food unnecessarily it is not worth having to brush afterwards. I ate pasta earlier and half of it somehow ended up sitting on top of my brackets. It was extremely difficult to dislodge it without going through the full brushing routine!

I will post next Wednesday after extractions if I am feeling up to it, yet another thing to be nervous about, but it is a completely different type of nervous! I hope this post has put your mind at ease twentyseven and that you get a date soon good look getting impressions on the 27th but I will hopefully hear from you again before then.

If anybody who is already braced happens to read this I have a few questions;
How long does it take before your cheeks become irritated?
I find it extremely difficult to rub my lips together when putting on lip balm. Does this get easier and if so how long?
I find when I smile widely that my lips clash with the tops of my brackets when I am closing my mouth. Does this last long or is it something your lips adjust to?

Thank you to anybody who can answer these questions and I hope you are all doing okay too

I'm glad to hear that your braces installation went well! Here's my two cents on your questions:

Your cheeks may not get irritated. Mine never did and I've only used wax on a couple of my bottom brackets 3 or 4 times since getting braced. My upper brackets and wires haven't bothered me at all.

Your lips will get used to closing over the brackets. At the beginning, my top lip would get hung up on some hooks on my canines when I would smile big. This went away after a month or so and now it rarely happens (but I'm not sure what it will be like when I have to start using those hooks for elastics...). I also had to consciously press my lips together at first, this has gotten better except for at night.

Hi Buttercup!
Glad to hear your bracing went well. I'm waiting for your post tomorrow about the extractions I'm sure it will go well