POSTED UNDER Six Month Smiles REVIEWS
34 Year Old Going for Six Months Smile Braces - Oakley, CA
ORIGINAL POST
I'm a 34 year old woman who has always wanted...
auranissaAugust 10, 2015
$3,500
I'm a 34 year old woman who has always wanted braces, but was not fortunate enough to get them as a child. I have crowded front teeth but no bite problems, which is why I am a good candidate for Six Month Smile . My canines grew in over the top of my teeth therefore protruding out which was cause for long term insecurities. The first step in getting my braces was to remove the canines. This was done last week, and in 3 weeks my braces go on. I will also need to have my wisdom teeth removed to make room for the lower crowding to space out. The photos are attached with my before smile and close ups of my teeth, and then my smile after the extractions. Please excuse the bruising where the teeth used to be.
I will post an update when my braces go on in approximately 3 weeks :)
I will post an update when my braces go on in approximately 3 weeks :)
Replies (9)
September 2, 2015
I wish you the best of luck. I had them and my Dentist ruined my teeth after saying I was the perfect candidate. I just needed my lower teeth straightened due to over crowding. She did IP work (sanding) to help move them along always telling my that it would not change my teeth, but after nine months and more IP work I went to an Orthodontist. He told me that she did excessive sanding and my wires were the wrong size and my lower front brackets were on wrong. He also could not guarantee that my lower teeth would fit together it has now been 2 years since I started and my lower teeth do not fit together because she changed the shape of my teeth, so more dental work for me.
September 19, 2015
I wish you a lot of luck...your treatment will take a lot more than 6 months. Removing your canines was not a good choice.
September 19, 2015
Well thank you for offering negativity without resolution. Why bother to comment if your just going to be discouraging? If you had offered alternative advise You wouldn't come off so arrogant and cold. I hope you don't treat your patients that way. In case you were not aware, my canines never were of use to me since they grew in over my front teeth...and never were used in my digestive process due to their location. So I'm not sure why removing them is an issues. As for my treatment time, Iv met several people who have completed and are currently undergoing the same treatment as me. Some with more straightening than I need and bite issues. They are very happy with their treatment results and the duration of treatment. As for me, my treatment is only two weeks in and I'm already seeing significant movement. I still may need to have my wisdom teeth pulled but that will be determined later. As for my dentist, he recommended exactly what 2 orthos recommended regarding extractions. I had a total of 3 consultations prior to choosing the treatment I chose and I'm very confident in my choice and my dentist given his previous work and experience and my due diligence. But hey, thanks for trying to make me feel like an idiot.
September 19, 2015
Your treatment is more complex than you might think...and a lot more complex than a general dentist can handle, in my opinion. Your treatment is already committed to proceed on a certain path, since the teeth have already been removed. Why did they not remove the 1st bicuspids rather than the canines? Your resolution options are now limited. You may run into some difficulty closing the upper spaces requiring one or more lower teeth to be considered for removal. Removing the lower wisdom teeth will not help your lower crowding because those teeth are so far back, they will not create space for lower front crowding.
September 25, 2015
I hope it works out for you but if you have any hesitation that something is not right please go see an Orthodontist and get a second opinion. Most offer a free consultation. Don't wait until it is to late.
September 25, 2015
Thank you for your concern & suggestion. I actually had 3 consultations prior to making my decision to proceed. I don't have any concerns or doubts regarding my treatment or the dentist I chose. So far I'm seeing great progress :)
September 19, 2018
UPDATED FROM auranissa
5 months post
4 months in and very pleased!
auranissaJanuary 3, 2016
So I have not been updating my progress like I thought I would. But I am very happy with my progress so far. But I want to back tack a little to fill you in on my experience. After having my canines removed my mouth healed up pretty quickly. Once I have my braces put on I felt very awkward. I could no longer produce a natural feeling smile, as I hd to sort of work my lips around my brackets to force a smile. Fortunately no one really noticed and although I felt like I looked funny (smiling, straight faced, talking etc.) not one really thought there was any significant difference in my appearance. The way I eat and the way I talk is a little more noticeable., but not really odd to anyone. Through the process of my teeth moving, the way you form words also changes, so it can be difficult to say certain words at times.
As for the pain or discomfort, I have had the expected discomfort after adjustments, and my Dentist is really good about concealing the wires in a way that I don't need to use much wax, but as your teeth move the wires adjust so I do need to use wax every so often. My discomfort is nothing major. I dont even take any pain meds for it. I actually appreciate when my teeth become sore or tender because i know they are moving.
As far as the treatment goes, my top teeth a almost perfectly in place at this point. Initially the top right fron tooth that was previously behind the canine, moved forward very quickly. I believe it was brought forward in line with my other teeth within the first 2 months. In December I had power chains placed on the top and bottom teeth. The the gap on the top left side closed up within a month of the power chain going on. Now the top teeth are just being lined up as they were not perfectly centered, and a couple were not level with the rest.
The bottom teeth were not moving into place very well and in fact a bracket had come off twice and delayed the treatment by about 2 weeks. Once a new bracket was put on and stayed on, the teeth began moving again, however my dentist was hoping the lower teeth would move enough that I would not have to have any teeth removed on the bottom, but it was rather clear that there was not enough room, so I had to have one tooth on the bottom removed in the second week of December. I already had power chains on before the extraction, but one the extraction was healed up a week later he opted to place a stronger power chain on. This was rather painful...but only for about 48 hours. its been about two weeks since then and Im happy to see the teeth that were overlapping on the bottom row, are finally moving in line with the rest of the teeth. My gap is slowly closing while added space is made between the rest of the bottom teeth. My Next adjustment is on Jan 8th. My Dentist advised me that I will be getting rubber bands that move my lower teeth/jaw back, as I have developed a slight underbite as a result of my teeth moving.
As for the pain or discomfort, I have had the expected discomfort after adjustments, and my Dentist is really good about concealing the wires in a way that I don't need to use much wax, but as your teeth move the wires adjust so I do need to use wax every so often. My discomfort is nothing major. I dont even take any pain meds for it. I actually appreciate when my teeth become sore or tender because i know they are moving.
As far as the treatment goes, my top teeth a almost perfectly in place at this point. Initially the top right fron tooth that was previously behind the canine, moved forward very quickly. I believe it was brought forward in line with my other teeth within the first 2 months. In December I had power chains placed on the top and bottom teeth. The the gap on the top left side closed up within a month of the power chain going on. Now the top teeth are just being lined up as they were not perfectly centered, and a couple were not level with the rest.
The bottom teeth were not moving into place very well and in fact a bracket had come off twice and delayed the treatment by about 2 weeks. Once a new bracket was put on and stayed on, the teeth began moving again, however my dentist was hoping the lower teeth would move enough that I would not have to have any teeth removed on the bottom, but it was rather clear that there was not enough room, so I had to have one tooth on the bottom removed in the second week of December. I already had power chains on before the extraction, but one the extraction was healed up a week later he opted to place a stronger power chain on. This was rather painful...but only for about 48 hours. its been about two weeks since then and Im happy to see the teeth that were overlapping on the bottom row, are finally moving in line with the rest of the teeth. My gap is slowly closing while added space is made between the rest of the bottom teeth. My Next adjustment is on Jan 8th. My Dentist advised me that I will be getting rubber bands that move my lower teeth/jaw back, as I have developed a slight underbite as a result of my teeth moving.
Congratulations on taking this exciting step for yourself. Please do update with your photos when the braces go on.
I should be getting my braces on at the end of this month and I'll be posting an update once I do :)