California Here I Come-Present Update

Tomorrow I have a scheduled appointment with my orthodontist.  Yep, it's back to California for me (Ugh!).  It seems as though that gap in between the two front teeth are trying to make a comeback.  So to recap... last time the orthodontist removed the powerchain because it was causing my teeth to overlap eachother... she placed ligatures on the top row to "relax" the teeth back... well, I guess they relaxed too much!  Now I have a gap.  It's sucks that I have to drive all the way back to Cali, but I'd rather do it now, than let my teeth get worse.  Plus, if my teeth aren't fixed by the time my retainers come in, I won't get my braces off... right now, that sounds worse than this drive! ;-#

I'm B-a-a-a-c-k! Present Update

I am back from California...

Had the orthodontic molds taken.  My appointment was painless and quick (under an hour).  There I sat between 2 children... coincidentally, they were both getting impressions for retainers too.  Before they mold you, they ask you what flavor you would prefer.  It was funny because each assistant working on the each of us asked what flavor we would like... one after the other... in the order of kid #1, kid #2, and then me... the adult.  So if you can imagine:

Assistant to cute little girl 1:

"What flavor would you like sweetie?  We have fruit punch or cherry.
"Fruit punch!"

Other Assistant to other cute little girl 2:

"Ok honey, we have fruit punch and cherry... what'll it be?
"Mmmmm... fruit punch, please!

Other assistant to ridiculously cute 32 year old girl:

"And what flavor would you like (smiling and laughing)!  Or does it matter?!
"Do you have bubblegum flavor?
"No, sorry (still laughing).
"Uh, yeah then... I'll take the fruit punch too... (smiling)."

You had to be there... it was a pretty funny moment!

Getting the orthodontic molds taken was a breeze... for me.  The little girl to my left was having a hard time... she seemed to be complaining of pain.  Not sure what may have been causing her pain, but I know for some people, the molds are uncomfortable.  Maybe she was experiencing some tooth sensitivity?  I felt sorry for her :(

Right before my molds were taken, the assistant removed my wires... and then I did the usual floss and brush... while I was doing that, I noticed that my two front teeth were overlapping slightly.  I brought it to my orthodontist's attention... she said that the powerchain that I had up there was too much... well... Power, I guess.  So she put ligatures on instead... saying that it should relax the teeth back into place.  She then told me that if that problem is corrected in the next few weeks to a month I should be able to have my braces removed.  Now that this new problem has been revealed, I am cautiously optimistic :-#

Moldy Mouth- present update

Hello everyone!  I'm still here!  It's just been a little crazy around here lately. 

I'm almost there!  This weekend, I will go in to have orthodontic molds of my teeth taken!  I am expecting it will similar to the molds taken before I (and most of you) had braces put on, except these will be impressions for retainers.  I really hope that the orthodontist has the bubble gum flavor available (Mmmmm... won't be long before I'm able to have real bubble gum!)  As you can see, I'm overall excited by the prospect that my braces will soon be off... the only thing I dread is having to make that long boring drive to California...

The orthodontist assistant told me I should plan to be there for an hour (that's a lot longer than most of my regular visits), so I don't know if they will be doing something else... I don't remember the last time I had orthodontic molds, it taking so long.  Maybe there is something special that needs to be done since I have braces this time?  Who knows... I guess I will soon see.  Since these are impressions for retainers, after the molds are taken, they will be sent away to whatever company makes the retainers.  Hopefully, not too long later, my retainers will be ready and then my teeth will be released from jail!  :-#

What's One Month? Present Update

Ok... I'm getting a little excited!  I have yet to make my next visit to my orthodontist...  It's hard because I am only available to see her on the weekends--and remember that's not just a short drive away... she is all of the way in another state!  Not to mention that she is only available 2 weekends a month (but really only 1 this month since she is on vacation).  Based on my treatment, this was the weekend I was supposed to have my molds taken (after that, they will send for my retainer), but this is one of those weekends that my orthodontist would not be available.  So right now I am just kind of waiting.  I'm thinking of making the dreaded trip to California on a weekday.  It's funny... I don't want to have to wait until the end of the month to see her, but I've waited an extra year for this... what's one more month?! :-#

Scrapbooking Your Braces Memories

If you're into scrapbooking, your time with braces may be one of those moments you may wish to preserve.  Key points you might want to include in a scrapbook:  getting your braces on; visits to the orthodontist; getting your braces removed; before and after.

Here's some cute examples I found:

http://blogs.creativememories.com/.a/6a0120a5490d2f970b0162ff56e3a8970d-pi

http://dkcraftz.blogspot.com/2010/03/scrapbook-layout_30.html

http://www.digitalscrapbookplace.com/gallery/showphoto.php?photo=273226

Here are some links to FREE scrapbook stuff (some of them are for digital scrapbooking, but can still be printed for use in your traditional scrapbooks) :

http://www.scrapbookscrapbook.com/

http://www.birdscards.com/

http://www.mrprintables.com/scrapbook-printables.html

http://www.crafthead.info/

These scrapbook braces embellishments aren't free... if you don't want to buy them, you could always use the idea to make your own:

Jolee's Boutique Themed Ornate Stickers-Braces

K&Company Braces Sticker Medley

JOLEE TITLE STIX BRACES Papercraft, Scrapbooking

Happy scrapbooking your braces memories! :-#

Fussing with Floss- Reviews

For me, flossing with braces has been a real pain in the butt... and I'm almost certain most of my fellow bracefaces feel the same way.  In my quest to find the easiest way to floss, I've tried several products...  Here's my reviews on what I've tried:

Waterpik Waterflosser Cordless
When I first got my braces on, the Waterpik came highly recommended by my orthodontist.  With a hose that blasts plaque and food debris from between the teeth, this product seems to be a no brainer for people with braces.  But, instead of buying the traditional countertop version of the Waterpik, I decided to go with the portable, Waterpix Waterflosser Cordless model--it was cheaper, and seemed more convenient... boy, I can almost hear my mother--"You get what you pay for!" 

Review:  I did not like this product.  My main problem with it is that the reservoir that holds the water is too small (of course I think that's what they were going for... being that it is the portable version of their bestseller), so as soon as I started to spray the water, it was empty... I mean, I hadn't even cleaned between like 3 of my teeth before it was out of water!  Another problem I remember having with this product, is that the head of it swivels all around making it impossible to control where you want the water to go.  Lastly, the water reservoir is harder to keep clean because it's so small.  With the other Waterpik, you have a large tank that you could easily get into and clean if you needed to...  not this one.  If it gets dirty, you will not be able to scrub inside of it.  I had accidentally left a little water in the reservoir for a few days... it got real nasty up in there!  When I tried using it again, I could taste something foul in the water... yuck!

If you're going to go with a Waterpik, get one of their bigger models like the Waterpik Ultra Flosser.  I can't say that I've tried one (probably should have), but based on the 3 teeth I was able to get to with their smaller model, I'd say it cleans well.  The issues I had with the cordless Waterpik don't exist with their bigger model.  Plus, I've known quite a few people who own one and are very satisfied with it.



Threaders
After giving up on my little portable Waterpik, I decided to go back to flossing the old fashioned way.  In my "welcome to braces bag" the orthodontist gave me, there were a bunch of threaders.  If you haven't used threaders before, here's a video (I figured it would be easier to show you instead of trying to describe it):

Tip:  The directions that come with the threaders say to thread the floss, and once you pull it under the wire, pull it out of the threader (as shown in the video)... they basically want you to re-thread for each tooth!  I say this is a waste of time--do it that way, if you feel like threading it like 30 more times!  Instead, tie the floss in a knot around the threader ... that way you don't have to keep threading it.

Review:  If you have braces, threaders are probably the cheapest and one of the most effective ways to floss your teeth.  But there's just one thing... It's time consuming!  Threaders are the reason I am constantly looking for "a better way" to floss my teeth.  What can I say... they do the job, but require more effort than most people are willing to put up with (especially on a daily basis).  I don't care to floss regularly with them, but they are good to have around to get to those hard to reach places.


Oral B Glide Threader Floss
Floss with a stiffened end (which takes the place of needing to thread your floss).

Review:  I bought into this because I thought it was so much easier than just using floss with threaders.  Wrong!  As I explained earlier, threaders can be left attached to the floss the whole time you are flossing.  So, yes this product is effective, but it is a little on the expensive side (as far as floss goes)...  I don't need to pay extra for the pointy end it comes with when I can buy better quality floss and just thread it myself.  In the end, using Oral B Glide Threader Floss takes the same amount of time to floss teeth as the floss with threaders do.  No bueno!

Orthodontic Flossers/ Picks

I am so glad someone came up with the idea to make flossers for braces.  Right now there are several brands on the market-- Dentek Braces Clean Floss Picks, Plackers Orthopick, Platypus, just to name a few.  I've only tried two: Plackers Orthopick and Dentek Braces Clean Floss Picks. 


Plackers Orthopick
I wanted to buy some orthodontic flossers, but they are normally hard to find in stores.  Without even looking (was shopping for toothpaste), I stumbled across these wonderful flossers.

Review:  Out of everything I have tried to floss my teeth with, I liked the Plackers Orthopick the best.  This flossers arm is narrow, unlike regular flossers, so it fits easily under most archwires.  They are also well made, with strong floss that resists shredding.  So you would think my search for the best way to floss would stop here, right?  Nope...  I had one problem with this product and it was a major one...  I was only able to floss my top row of teeth :-(  This was because my orthodontist put a special twisted wire on my bottom row (I guess that's where the good old floss and threader comes in handy).  I don't think for most people with braces this will be an issue, but it might be.  If you have braces, I still think these flossers are worth a try.


Dentek Braces Clean Floss Picks
A few days later I was shopping at Target, and to my surprise, I found these flossers.  The arms on them seemed to look narrower than it's competitor, Plackers Orthopick, so I thought, what the heck.

Review:  Well, I found Dentek Braces Clean Floss Picks to be inferior to Plackers Orthopick.  The main and only reason is the floss--the floss on the Dentek Braces Clean Floss Picks is not as strong.  As far as the arm... it fits under the archwire just as well as the Plackers Orthopick did.  It also, did not fit under the wire on my bottom row. 


That's it for my review!  What works for me may not work for you, or vice versa.  My goal is to introduce more choices in floss available to you :-#

The Crossbite Story-Past:-x

I got braces mainly to correct a crossbite... I also had some other issues... I had a baby tooth (at the age of 29) that had been loose for years, and my 2 top front teeth were slightly bucked.  But I'll talk about that other stuff later.  Back to crossbites!  I was actually told by my orthodontist that crossbites are uncommon.  A crossbite can be just one tooth or a group of teeth on your top row that fall behind your bottom row of teeth... the opposite of an overbite.  Here's what mine sort of looked like:

From what I've read, crossbites are usually hereditary, but can also be caused by thumb/finger sucking (me), or enlarged tonsils, or delayed loss of a baby tooth (also me), or a tooth that grows in abnormally, or mouth breathing, or doing handstands... ok, sorry... that last one was a little joke.  

I noticed as I got older, my crossbite seemed to worsen.  My dentist referred me to an orthodontist.  I wondered how braces would be able to correct my bite problem.  I mean, all I knew was that braces push teeth in (of course I now know they can do so much more than that).  Well, in my ignorance, the orthodontist proceeded to tell me that to correct my crossbite, I would need to have SURGERY... ahhhhhhhh!!!!  At that point, I just wanted to forget the whole thing.  The orthodontist explained to me that crossbites are better corrected during childhood-- because your palatal bones (in the roof of your mouth) have not yet fused together.  When you have a crossbite, the orthodontist will usually place an expander in your mouth so your arch can easily be pushed wider... this will allow your upper row of teeth to sit the way they are supposed to.  Problem is, for us adults, it ain't always that easy--once those palatal bones have closed, it makes it harder to correct the crossbite... and that's where the SUURRRGERY (in my horror movie voice) comes in.  First, I would need to see an oral surgeon who would cut my fused palatal bone to make it 2 again (ouch!)... then, I would need to wear the expander, and eventually braces--YIKES!

Just because I am an adult with a crossbite doesn't necessarily mean surgery is my fate? 

I had to get a second opinion, and a then a third-- heck, braces aren't cheap... and the talk of surgery didn't necessarily have me jumping for joy.  Both the 2nd and 3rd orthodontist claimed that my crossbite could be fixed without surgery (because my crossbite was slight), and for a lot less money.  So I ended up going with the 3rd orthodontist's treatment plan, because she was the cheapest, and had the cleanest office, and the experience, and you guessed it... she said, "NO SURGERY."

Here I am today... I am quite happy with the decision I made.  I am still wearing my braces, but my orthodontist has successfully corrected my crossbite.  How?  Ok, here's where that baby tooth comes in... I had a baby tooth in my bottom row of teeth... after it was removed, the space it left behind was closed... which allowed for my top row of teeth to better overlap my bottom row.  I wore elastics that hooked from the backs of my uppers to the front hooks on my lowers.  Even though the elastics are a pain in the butt, they have been instrumental in correcting my bite. 

So that's my story... Ciao Crossbite!

:-#

 

Braces Bling?

I was surfing the web today and I accidentally stumbled across something really quite funny to me...

This colorful jewelry isn't for your mouth... they're called Braced-lets--they are actual bracelets made from orthodontic materials!  I don't know if I would wear this interesting piece of jewelry, but I think it's kind of cleaver and cute.  Kids might enjoy them :-#

Tinseltown's Tinsel Teeth

Seeing pictures of celebs with braces is not something you come across often.  That's why I was really surprised to see these pictures.  I guess what amazes me about it, is that with all the resources these celebs have... I would've thought they would choose something more discreet to fix their teeth, but they decided to do it the old fashioned way.  It's like seeing a billionaire shopping at the 99cent store (not that there's anything wrong with the 99cent store, or braces for that matter).  I actually love the 99cent store... and I prefer braces over veneers, or some of the other methods that are popular in Hollywood for fixing a smile.  I know that for a lot celebs braces are not an option--between their busy schedules, and the fact that they are in a profession that stresses the importance of image... but for me, seeing these celebs with braces shows their real side... with flaws, and not just perfect out of the box people-- and the fact that they have chosen braces, says they're not afraid to show that.  :-#

    

 Tom Cruise

 Gwen Stefani

Danny Glover

Alyssa Milano

Nicholas Cage

Dwight Howard

Cindy Crawford

Faye Dunaway

Sean Paul

Fare Thee Well Gap! Present Update

It's a miracle...  That gap my orthodontist created just a few weeks ago has disappeared!  Ok... so maybe it's not so much of a miracle... more so the work of the Mighty Morphin Powerchain!   :-#

Oh No... Not Elastics!

As you may have read previously, my orthodontist put me back into elastics.  I hate to use the word hate, but... I just really don't like them very much. 

When I first began my orthodontic treatment, I was wearing elastics all the time.  They are so annoying-they pop me in my lips when I open my mouth too wide; I always have to remember to put them back on; eating with them in sucks; they hurt like hell for a good week after my braces have been adjusted; they just look plain crazy...

Hmmmm... now that I think of it... I guess I really shouldn't express too much dislike for those stretchy, rubber misfits... I mean without them, correcting my crossbite would've been difficult... so I guess they're not all that terrible.  When you think about it... better to deal with the elastics temporarily, than to wear the braces, well... longer.  :-#

Home Stretch-- Present Update

The Bad News:

I just got back from California, and man my teeth are killing me!  First, my orthodontist removed my powerchain from my top row, and the elastic ligatures from my bottom row... then, she took the wires out.  It seems as though the 2 top front teeth were'nt coming together as they should, so my orthodontist used a rounded-looking file to shave between (which didn't hurt at all) them so they would fit against eachother nicely. So for now, I look like a hillbilly!  And, I am back to wearing elastics... Ugh!!

The Good News:

Bite wise my teeth are looking great and they are all nice and straight.  So, not the next visit, but the one after that, my braces will be coming off!  But that still means at least 4 months with braces-- my orthodontist says:  the next visit they will be taking molds of my teeth (like the ones you get before your braces are put on) so that a custom retainer can be made for me... the visit after that the braces will be removed, and I will receive my retainer.  Yay! :-#

My Brief Braces History

It's almost 4 long years since I've had these darn braces.  I know I shouldn't complain--I know there are people out there who have a much longer treatment plan than I do, but my braces were only supposed to be on for 2 1/2years.  Here's how it all started...

I guess I've always been a little fanatical about my teeth... even though people always complimented me on my smile, and my dentist always told me they were really healthy, I thought they were too buck... I always longed for braces.  As a child, my parents never saw the need for me to have braces, although, the dentist did suggest them to help correct a slight crossbite, (which I will talk about in more detail later) and the 2 top bucked teeth.  So as an adult (in my late twenties) I decided to go for it.  Well, over halfway through treatment, and my braces being close to paid off, I suddenly had to move out of state (from California to Arizona)... so instead of switching orthodontists, I opted to continue treatment with the one I had been seeing in Cali... which has meant a whole lot of driving for me!  Doing it this way has slowed down the process... a lot. 

Though I am close to the end of my treatment, I wanted to start this blog because I love writing, and I have a lot of information to share on all things braces-- my documented journey (past and present), braces care, reviews on things I've tried, and just plain old fun stuff!

So welcome, and happy reading!  :-#