Metal Mouth Message Board

A quick update with how things are by late December. Happy holidays. Wish everyone a joyful 2017.

Got three brackets on the lower repositioned. My ortho had planned on one of them since we took an X-ray last time, but he decided to go with two more. It was a very quick process. Nothing was done to the upper this time.

2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adjustment #2
2016-07-06: adjustment #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adjustment #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adjustment #5
2016-10-26: adjustment #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adjustment #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adjustment #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)

Adjustment #9 on Feb 8, 2017. Almost a year now.

One new band on a wisdom tooth lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party - added 15 seconds to my flossing routine, I guess. I can feel the pressure; a bit sore today, but nothing different from any of the previous adjustments. Bite continues to change with every adjustment. Next month it'll be the one-year anniversary for my braces. A lot has changed and we are all happy with it. So true - the hardest thing is to get started. I guess I may still have a year or so with braces in my life, but hey, who's counting?

2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adjustment #2
2016-07-06: adjustment #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adjustment #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adjustment #5
2016-10-26: adjustment #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adjustment #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adjustment #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adjustment #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)

Today is adjustment #10, and I've just crossed the one-year mark.

New wire on top - 0.016x0.022 copper NiTi. Five days ago I had a spacer put in on my top right back tooth. (Did not need one on top left as there is already space.) So today, the last two teeth on the top arch have joined the party.

The new wire is rectangular and so will "provide more torque." Guess we are really progressing up there. Bottom is still the old 0.016 NiTi. Doc said as soon as that one stubborn tooth rotates some more, we can move on the stainless steel on the bottom. Could be next time, could be a bit further in the future. Patience is virtue.

The ortho assistant really hurt me quite a few times today and for a moment I wanted to jump out of my chair and tell her to focus and stop thinking about which route to take to get to her kid's soccer game. But hey, she apologized every time. I stayed cool. (Truth is, every time I go in and see that some other assistant will be taking care of me, I secretly celebrate.)

Can't believe it's been a year now. Happy with the progress. A few things I've learned:
(1) rice and noodles still suck - they get caught everywhere;
(2) water pik is still my best friend. I've been using the "Christmas tree" bristle much less;
(3) getting lazy and not brushing/flossing as frequently as I did in the beginning, and the result is instant. Listerine+flossing really should be done diligently;
(4) every time I see some other adult who could use the help of braces, I pat myself on the back for having finally made the decision to do it;
(5) I just love this discussion board. Period.

Happy spring, everyone. It's a special day today - the day is just as long as the night on earth. (I know everyday could be special, but still...)

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2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adjustment #2
2016-07-06: adjustment #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adjustment #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adjustment #5
2016-10-26: adjustment #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adjustment #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adjustment #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adjustment #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)
2017-03-20: adjustment #10 (two back teeth on top join the party. New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi wire on top.)

Here's a picture update from March 2016 to March 2017. I added some colored arrows to show progress in a few places.

Before, my bottom front teeth were really messed up - not being upright, rotated, slanted, crowded, one behind the next, you name it.
After a year, the two canine teeth (yellow arrows) are now really upright.
The lateral incisors (green arrows) are finally lined up with the rest - this is achieved with the help of an extraction to create some room.
The front incisors (blue arrows) still need a bit more rotation, which was not really possible before. Now that the lateral insisors are in line (and not pushing forward), perhaps these will finally work out!

On the upper, the central incisor needed some really good rotation, which has worked out nicely.
The laterals (green arrows) seem more opened up to form a wider arch.
The extraction hole is not yet closed. We've not really worked on it, and it is only within the last month or two that I've noticed that the gap became a tad smaller.
Now with all upper teeth braced, perhaps it'll finally be time to take care of that gap at some point.

Adjustment #11 was on Monday, 4/24/2017. Pretty routine stuff - tightening on some teeth. Same wires top and bottom.

The bottom continues to "unravel", to use the term from my ortho, and the rotation of one tooth is in progress at last (see blue arrow below), now that there is room for it. Pretty good after a year's work, I think. Extraction gap on top is getting smaller (see where the red "x" is below). More work ahead for sure - the bottom incisors need some good intrusion after rotation work. Probably in the next few months.
2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adj. #2
2016-07-06: adj. #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adj. #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adj. #5
2016-10-26: adj. #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adj. #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adj. #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adj. #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)
2017-03-20: adj. #10 (two back teeth on top join the party. New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi wire on top.)
2017-04-24: adj. #11

First a correction: the photo above. The top photo of the lower arch should say 2016 instead of 2017. My bad.

Admustment #12 today. I actually missed my original appointment yesterday, but was lucky enough to be squeezed in today because of someone else's cancellation. With summer break the office is getting quite busy in the mornings. This time I got new wires on top again. If I heard them correctly, it is 0.017x0.025 Copper NiTi wire. "We've come a long way till this point," announced my ortho happily.

I asked him what to expect. He said that the new wire will help close a gap I've noticed between the central and lateral incisor on the left that appeared since last adjustment. The new wire is also supposed to help with the back molars on top - these are tilted slightly to the front so I don't have a complete bite there. They've been tilted all these years and I've just noticed that. Gosh talk about self awareness (or the lack thereof)...

No new wire on the bottom still, just re-ties with wire ties. Maybe next time, the doc said. He's quite happy with what's going on.

2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adj. #2
2016-07-06: adj. #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adj. #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adj. #5
2016-10-26: adj. #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adj. #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adj. #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adj. #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)
2017-03-20: adj. #10 (two back teeth on top join the party. New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi wire on top.)
2017-04-24: adj. #11
2017-06-01: adj. #12 (New 0.017x0.025 Copper NiTi wire on top)

gobraces wrote:
I asked him what to expect. He said that the new wire will help close a gap I've noticed between the central and lateral incisor on the left that appeared since last adjustment. The new wire is also supposed to help with the back molars on top - these are tilted slightly to the front so I don't have a complete bite there. They've been tilted all these years and I've just noticed that. Gosh talk about self awareness (or the lack thereof)...

Great news with the progress! I know what you mean about self awareness. I was so focused on the upper front six I didn't notice that my premolars needed to be pulled down.

[quote="atrixa"][quote="gobraces"]

I asked him what to expect. He said that the new wire will help close a gap I've noticed between the central and lateral incisor on the left that appeared since last adjustment. The new wire is also supposed to help with the back molars on top - these are tilted slightly to the front so I don't have a complete bite there. They've been tilted all these years and I've just noticed that. Gosh talk about self awareness (or the lack thereof)...

[/quote]
Great news with the progress! I know what you mean about self awareness. I was so focused on the upper front six I didn't notice that my premolars needed to be pulled down.[/quote]

I was so focused on my crowded teeth that I didn't notice my cross bite on my left side until early this year. And it took an orthodontist for me to find out that my lower jaw is under-developed. I just thought that was what my face looked like haha

Atrixa / VioletStubbs,

Thanks so much for stopping by and leaving a comment. Isn't it true? I had always thought that braces just fix my free-spirited crooked teeth. Never thought that they could also fix so many other problems - and then realizing that I have so many of these "other problems" !!

Although my orthodontist said in the very beginning that "we are going to change your bite", it never really did sink in until I started to notice the actual change. First year the main focus was on the front eight, and I thought, wow! Now that we begin some work on the back molars, my reaction has become: WOW!

A quick update: yesterday (July 5, 2017) was adjustment #13. I got new stainless steel wire on lower. Also, a power chain was put on the top 4 (central+lateral) to help close a small gap that appeared between the central and lateral teeth on the left.

So this probably means that we have finally arrived at a stage for the lower arch where the teeth are aligned enough for the SS wire to be used. Efforts to fix crowding/rotations have produced desirable results.

I did have to have two root canals in between the last treatment and this one. I had no pain, but knew something wasn't right since I had a persistent cyst. These were teeth that my dentist put on a watch list for root canal for quite a few years now, so not the ortho work did not really start it, although it still may have had some impact. Not too big of a deal, I guess.


2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adj. #2
2016-07-06: adj. #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adj. #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adj. #5
2016-10-26: adj. #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adj. #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adj. #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adj. #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)
2017-03-20: adj. #10 (two back teeth on top join the party. New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi wire on top.)
2017-04-24: adj. #11
2017-06-01: adj. #12 (New 0.017x0.025 Copper NiTi wire on top)
2017-07-05: adj. #13 (0.016 Stainless steel on lower)

Just got back from today's adjustment. This is #14. I got new wires on top again. Same size but stiffer, I was told. Package says TMA Alexander by ORMCO. I looked it up and TMA = Titanium-Molybdenum alloy. My orthodontist explains that this is useful for ceramic brackets (I have 8 of these on the top). He says stainless steel wires tend to crack the ceramic brackets a bit more easily, so these are better for now.

I am told that I'll be getting a new wire on the bottom for my next visit. Things are definitely moving along. Quite happy. Next appointment in another 5 weeks.

2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adj. #2
2016-07-06: adj. #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adj. #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adj. #5
2016-10-26: adj. #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adj. #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adj. #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adj. #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)
2017-03-20: adj. #10 (two back teeth on top join the party. New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi wire on top.)
2017-04-24: adj. #11
2017-06-01: adj. #12 (New 0.017x0.025 Copper NiTi wire on top)
2017-07-05: adj. #13 (0.016 Stainless steel on lower)
2017-08-09: adj. #14 (New 0.017x0.025 TMA wire on top)

I enjoy following your journey. Can't wait to see the final results.

I've been lurking this post for a while now, but now I registered and I can finally comment! Looking forward to getting more updates.

Well, it's adjustment #15 today. A good year and a half have passed. Hard to believe.

I got new a new wire on the bottom: 16x22 CNT (copper NiTi). This is the same wire I got on the upper almost exactly six months ago. My orthodontist said, "we finally moved on to rectangular wire on the bottom!" Yeah!

Nothing was done on the upper today. I was told that next time we'll begin closing the extraction gap, and shortly after that will come the rubber bands. Get 'em bite aligned, will ya?

Since we are switching out bottom wire today, I asked my ortho for a quick polish. (He did one for my upper teeth last time.) Regular cleaning at the dentist's twice a year and I still have quite a bit of stain. I do waterpik, floss, mouthwash/Plax, GUM softpicks, and still it is really hard to get to places with the wire in the mouth. Thanks to the polish I feel so much better now.

Next appointment is in 5 weeks.
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2016-03-17: braces go on!
2016-04-21: adjustment #1 (0.014 NiTi wire upper and lower)
2016-05-26: adj. #2
2016-07-06: adj. #3 (0.016 NiTi on lower)
2016-08-16: adj. #4 (0.016 NiTi on upper)
2016-09-21: adj. #5
2016-10-26: adj. #6 (0.016 stainless steel on upper)
2016-11-30: adj. #7 (X-ray)
2017-01-04: adj. #8 (3 brackets repositioned on lower)
2017-02-08: adj. #9 (one new band on the wisdom tooth - lower right, added a new bracket on back tooth - lower left. So all in all two more teeth joined the party.)
2017-03-20: adj. #10 (two back teeth on top join the party. New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi wire on upper.)
2017-04-24: adj. #11
2017-06-01: adj. #12 (New 0.017x0.025 Copper NiTi wire on upper)
2017-07-05: adj. #13 (0.016 Stainless steel on lower)
2017-08-09: adj. #14 (New 0.017x0.025 TMA wire on upper)
2017-09-14: adj. #15 (New 0.016x0.022 Copper NiTi on bottom)