Confidence

[nitro]

How has having braces as an adult effected your confidence, both during and after treatment? Did/do you find people are often curious about your adult treatment? Are there questions that you definitely get tired of answering for the millionth time about your treatment/decision to finally take the plunge?

[onwardsandupwards]

Ever since I got my braces fitted (I have Damon Clears, so they're pretty invisible) I have felt *so* much more confident than I thought I would. I think just knowing I'm doing something about my teeth and that it's only going to get better from here has really given me a boost. It's great once you start noticing changes and realising your teeth already look and feel a LOT better than they did. I can't stop smiling already!

Quite honestly barely anyone has noticed I got braces - or at least if they have, they haven't mentioned it. Only one person in 2 months of having them has brought it up in conversation with me and shared stories of their friends with braces during adulthood and just showed genuine interest. If I ever happen to bring it up around friends or colleagues they say 'oh yeah, you've got braces!' having completely forgotten! It's so much less obvious to other people than we anticipate it being. It feels like the biggest most obvious thing in the world to you, especially for the first couple of weeks, but it becomes old news very quickly with everyone else!

[ItsFreyja]

I'm in the middle of treatment, and still feeling less confident with braces than before I got them, mainly because my teeth weren't that bad before but now braces call attention to them. I know it will be worth it, though, and I expect to feel heaps better about my smile when I'm done. In the beginning friends would ask about my braces just to be nice, but I don't think I've had a single stranger comment on them, and it's been a while now since anybody has said anything at all about them.

[jaime]

Count me in the camp of feeling more confident with braces. I've had lots done since I embarked on this journey and it is so nice to smile and laugh and not feel like people are staring at my terrible teeth.

I have to say that even though I have braces, I still don't really pay attention to them on other people. My boss actually got braces a few months ago and I can't even tell you the last time I paid any mind to them.

[pantlover]

Like a couple of commenters above, I actually find myself even more confident than before! Not like that was ever a really high benchmark or anything. lol I've gotten a lot of comments about my braces, almost always something along the lines of how I already had a great smile and questions on why I would get braces in light of that. Then, when I let them know I really wanted to fix my underbite, they always say that they never noticed, which is always nice to hear regardless of whether or not it's true!

Most of all, I think I got a confidence boost from them because I know it's self improvement for myself and my overall long term health, not for anyone else.

[EWUgal15]

I remember my last employer telling me that I had a really natural smile (that was January 2014). I never had the heart to tell her to stop telling me that because I hated my teeth, not just the way they looked but the way they worked. I found myself smiling because I had to for my job...hiding the fact that it was hurting my jaw and my face. I had my braces put on in November of 2014 and they have boosted my confidence more than I can say. My teeth are straight and look so much cleaner..because they are

Recently though, I've found myself trying to hide them...as preparation for surgery, my overbite was made worse. It's so bad right now that if I put my jaw into what is supposed to be it's natural position, you can't see my lower teeth at all. I've spent my whole life pushing my lower jaw forward to look "normal". I'm at a point where I don't know how to hold my jaw and I keep experimenting with where it should be. I'm definitely on a fine line between nervous about how I look because of my braces but sooooo happy with how my teeth have straightened out. I think the surgery results are going to be astounding. And hopefully not negative!

[nitro]

as preparation for surgery, my overbite was made worse

I'm sorry to hear that it's gotten worse, but hopefully knowing it's getting worse before it's going to get better is a nice silver lining.

I actually find myself even more confident than before!

That's awesome. It seems like a recurring theme around here. I had invisalign a few years ago but it didn't really address all that needed to be fixed. I was really self-conscious about the two buttons I had on those; hopefully I can get past the worrying what people will think. If all goes according to plan (fingers crossed), I'll only have brackets on four of my bottom teeth. I don't know why I'm so worried about it...

[EWUgal15]

I knew from the beginning that my overbite was going to get way worse. It was all part of the plan for surgery. I'm really excited that I'm fixing all the problems, even if I don't know how to hold my face yet.

[newbite]

My confidence is about the same although I seem to show my teeth a lot more than before. Almost no one has ever mentioned my braces (literally 2 or 3 people in over a year) although I can tell when people notice them (which isn't even that often). When my braces are mentioned it's because I bring it up or because I'm at some kind of dental appt!

My teeth look so much better than before, even with the braces/elastics/tiebacks, etc still on. This experience has been overwhelmingly positive even with a gum graft unexpectedly thrown in there (also a positive experience, ultimately!).

I think if you start off with cosmetically good looking teeth (with hidden bite problems, etc) you might have a harder time adjusting to the braces. But if you start with visibly messed up teeth then braces are quickly delightful, once the teeth start straightening out. I can't express how I felt when my front teeth finally straightened out. And when I have the bonding done to even them out I will truly feel like a new person. While painful and annoying at times, braces are miraculous.

[djspeece]

My confidence wanes when pictures are taken -- I love to smile, but at some distances it looks like my teeth are rotting or something.

[buffon85]

i feel much more confident now. and it is not just the fact that my teeth are looking better, it s the fact that i am doing something for my smile.
I had more confidence for the first day, i just couldn't help smiling all the time! i am sure that I am going to miss braces!

nobody asks about my braces, i bring it up from time to time, because I love talking about them (I am a member of a braces forum ) but I think nobody is really interested except from those that are thinking of getting braces.

[Tyrantblade]

Idk so much about confidence yet, but im sure i will get there, im still early in treatment (just hit 2 months)and so far have only noticed slight improvements and actually right now think the right side of my top teeth is more off than it used to be, but i know that its temporary and eventually things will keep getting better

I do feel happier though, knowing that im started on the journey of getting a nicer smile and things cant get too much worse from where i started (a really bad anterior open bite, my top teeth got so flaired out from the bottom teeth the last 3-4 years)

[nitro]

For all of you that have said it has increased your confidence: how long did the boost take? Was it immediate? Did it take a while to get used to them?

[Viconia]

For all of you that have said it has increased your confidence: how long did the boost take? Was it immediate? Did it take a while to get used to them?

I haven't felt an increase in confidence from having braces but I do feel pleased and kind of proud that I am doing something about my teeth. Most people know (even if they haven't had personal experience) that braces are expensive and a commitment and I try to focus on that if I feel people are looking (which they usually aren't!).

The thing I found hard was eating in public, and because I have upper lingual so do pull some funny faces due to my tongue placement

I definitely wouldn't let confidence concerns hold you back from having orthodontic treatment. If anyone ever said anything mean to you you can just jump on here and tell us about it, haha.

[BeautifulDisaster]

My crowded smile was a big factor in my low confidence. About a week into my braces, my confidence completely shot up. I've never felt more comfortable talking, smiling, and laughing. It helps that my upper braces are clear because I don't feel self-conscious about them at all.

I rarely get comments about my braces. Friends/family I don't see often might call attention to them initially, but it's never mentioned again.