13 April 2013

Hello there!

Wasn't able to post any update for the month of March; was on vacation. :)

Anyway, I visited my ortho last Saturday, 6th of April. Arch wires remained unchanged and I again opted for gray ligs. This is how my braces look like now:

Photo taken: 06 Apr 2013

As you can see on the above photo, my lower incisors are "wrapped" with thin wires instead of ligs to push the teeth back, I suppose. And on my right (left on the photo), two elastics have now taken most of the space to close gaps between the upper & lower teeth. And no, I'm still not happy with how my upper incisors look. But since my ortho is not done with me yet, I guess I'll need to have a little faith with what he can do. *fingers crossed*

02 Feb 2013

Hi there!

I've had my braces for five months now and the improvements/differences from the previous month are hard to notice than the first two months that I had them on.

I've decided on wearing Metallic Blue ligatures for this month:

Photo taken: 02 Feb 2013

Photo taken: 05 Jan 2013

Upper arch wire stayed. Lower arch wire was changed into a thicker one (the same kind with the upper arch wire) and was bent/modified to pull my lower canines forward. I noticed that (in my case) the arch wires are changed every two months but the lower teeth tend to respond later than the upper set. The upper incisors now have the 8 lig formed if you noticed, or just doubled, not sure; I really don't know what that does but I guess it has something to do with the pressure on the arch wire. All my incisors and canines hurt even on the slightest touch of my lips. Ugh. Luckily, I don't seem to be having any sores/ulcers anymore  and I hope I won't ever again! I so can't wait for the treatment to finish as I noticed that my canines are already staining--I'd put the blame on tea and coffee, but better just deal with it afterwards. So, my next project for my teeth after braces would be whitening; it's a must!

As I mentioned in my previous post, I'm supposed to upload the video my Ortho gave me on how to properly clean/brush your teeth if you have braces. I couldn't find the CD, but I did find it on YouTube so watch this:

05 Jan 2013

Happy New Year! 

Just had my ligatures changed. The lower arch wire remained; the upper, however, was changed. I told my Ortho that I think the bracket on my upper right incisor (left incisor on the photo below) was glued incorrectly as it is slightly tilted thus misaligned the tooth. What I thought was that he was going to remove the bracket of that tooth and put on a new one in the correct position this time, yet he just improvised the new arch wire. Thus, the dents on the upper arch wire. 

I felt sort of lazy to use my (decent) camera so I used my mobile phone's camera instead. Quality's not too bad, ei?

Photo taken: 05 Jan 2013

I don't know if I'm supposed to be disappointed that he didn't correct the bracket's position by replacing it (the bracket) or if I should be thankful that he just improvised the arch wire which didn't cost me any extra money than the usual.

Again, I opted for the Gray ligatures as they seem more unnoticeable and just similar to the color of the arch wires. Here's last month's photo for comparison:

Photo taken: 01 Dec 2012

I don't see any noticeable changes, though, except that the upper arch wire is thicker than last month's. And I don't like the idea of it having dents; it doesn't look decent. So I just let my mind repeat the idea that the outcome is more important in this case. 

Luckily, I didn't have any mouth sores/ulcers for the past five weeks! Thank goodness! I hope I won't have them again... they're too annoying.

I'm starting to feel the pressure/pain on that incisor with the improvisation on the arch wire. I just hope this works and won't mess things up. *fingers crossed*

I think this new arch wire installed on my upper teeth is the kind of arch wire that can be manipulated by the Ortho. To explain a bit further: the first set of arch wires that I had were the thin, flexible ones (photo on my very first post) which will return to its original arch shape 'straightness' which explains why fixing the crookedness was so quick. Then the second arch wire was a bit thicker and less flexible. And the one I have now, I think, is hardly flexible so that the Ortho can manipulate the wire which explains the dent he did on the incisor because it won't return to its original arch shape. I believe this is the serious part where the correction of the bite is really at focus which is so good news for me! (I hope I'm still making sense here) XD

Pardon me if I haven't had any details on the type of food that I consume for the past few months. If you just had your braces installed, you won't be able to chew on anything hard for a week or two. Go on a soft diet like thick soups or mashed potatoes; any food that you don't have to chew because they'll hurt like hell. But once you get past that painful stage, you can eventually start eating 'the usual' as long as the food is cut into small pieces, specifically hard types of food. You can't bite on anything hard because it could easily damage or break your bracket/s which could mean wasting money on additional expenses and prolonging the treatment. After your monthly visits (adjustment/s or change of ligatures), you will feel a little bit of pain (could be just a targeted tooth undergoing correction or could be all of 'em depending on your situation) but it's highly tolerable and it'll just pass in a few hours.

As for cleaning, invest on a set of inter-dental brushes (of good quality) and always take one with you. I always have one in my purse and one at home. They don't have to be fancy and all; the simple ones will do the job. Choose the ones with the good quality because the bristles wear off pretty quick. I've had like a dozen inter-dental brushes for the past 3 months. I use them after every meal (be it a small snack or the real deal). It's easier to carry around when you're out since it's small, which means you don't have to take your bulky toothbrush with you and you don't have to use it with a toothpaste, too. It does the job of removing anything that gets stuck on the brackets or arch wires or teeth that a toothbrush can't do. Who says you can't eat pasta with sticky cheese when you're on braces? You won't be deprived of food like that if you have an inter-dental brush to the rescue! ;) Just don't try chewing on gum, though. I've no idea if the inter-dental brush can take care of that because I haven't tried it yet. Plus, I'm not a huge fan of gum anyway so I won't bother.

My Ortho provided me with a video on how to clean/brush braces properly (there are a lot of videos like that in YouTube). I was thinking of uploading it but I have yet to find it, haha! So I think that'll have to go on my next post. :)

01 Dec 2012

Hi! Today's appointment with my Ortho was at 13:30. Got my ligatures changed as well as my lower arch wire--the thickness is now the same with the upper arch wire (installed last month).

Photo taken: 01 Dec 2012

I've chosen Turquoise ligatures and, err, seeing how bright the color is with my ceramic braces makes me regret that choice; it's so noticeable. Ugh! 

Anyway, for comparison purposes... here's last month's photo:

Photo taken: 03 Nov 2012

As you can see, changes are not much and it seems that my lower set of teeth will take a tad longer to correct than the upper set. My Ortho said the treatment may take 12 more months (minimum). Again, it will depend on how my teeth will respond. I hope that happens SOON! Since I got my braces, I'm having like 2-3 sores/ulcers each month--something I'm not used to because I rarely experience those painful sores/ulcers (before these braces). I did some Googling and read that metal brackets tend to irritate more than ceramic--thank goodness for my choice of ceramic brackets! 

If you're experiencing those irritating mouth sores/ulcers, too, just rinse your mouth with warm water + salt mixture. It helps a lot!

And I think I'll stick to Gray ligatures if I run out of color choices. The color blends easily with the arch wires and ceramic brackets and no stains! Turquoise is just too bright, too eye-catching and I don't like it; guess I'll have to endure that brightness for a month. :(

03 Nov 2012

Hiya! Visited my Ortho this afternoon. The arch wire on my upper teeth was changed and it's a bit thicker than the old arch wire. As you can see on the latest photo below, the upper arch wire is now thicker than the lower arch wire (the latter was not changed).

My preferred ligature color for the month: Gray 

Photo taken: 03 Nov 2012

Photo taken: 08 Oct 2012

As you can see, there's not much of a difference from last month's photo. But the arch wires did get a little straighter and it's only been a month & 23 days! :)

The gaps between the upper & lower teeth on the left set of teeth on the photo (which is my right on actual) will take some time, according to my Ortho. Some teeth from the upper side will have to be pulled down a little bit, and on the lower to be pulled up so that they meet in between to a correct bite. I so can't wait for that to happen! 

08 Oct 2012

Hi there. I've just been to my Ortho this morning but he just changed my ligatures--the arch wires were not changed. 

I thought of mixing up light & hot pink and voila: 

Photo taken: 08 Oct 2012

Photo taken: 11 Sep 2012

I noticed a dramatic shift on my upper incisors compared to the photo taken on 11 Sep 2012. Yay!!! :)

It's only been 27 days and there was a very huge difference. Notice that the upper arch wire is no longer as crooked as it was on the bottom photo.

Bad news for me is that I might get molar bands in a few months, but I'll worry about that when it comes. I'm just so glad of the noticeable difference right now!

And no, unfortunately, the bubbly saliva thing is not temporary. I can't seem to get rid of all the saliva especially between my lower gum and lip. Well, I did attempt to do so just to get my tongue sore at some point. I've also had around 3 mouth sores for the last 27 days but I just didn't mind it and in a few days, they're better.

My next appointment is on 03 November. I can't wait to see more improvements!!! :)

11 Sep 2012

Hi, I'm Ianne. I'm 25 years old and I just had my braces installed this morning. But first, I'd like to show you how my teeth looked like without braces. 

Here's the awful picture from my previous Orthodontist:

The photo was taken on 29 Feb 2012. I had all 32 teeth then.

After a few months, I had all 4 wisdom teeth extracted (all impacted) in 2 separate surgeries, scheduled 2 weeks apart. It was a very gory experience!

As you can see on the photo, it's not much when it comes to crookedness--but it's a big deal for me. As I grew older, it got worse. And you might also notice that I don't have the correct bite which sometimes cause indigestion if I eat hard types of food or if I don't chew my food longer than I should.

Unfortunately, my mom couldn't afford braces during my teenage years. So now that I'm earning on my own, I decided to go for it. 

On my first appointment a few weeks ago (with my new Orthodontist), another set of photographs plus 2 x-rays were taken & impressions were made. According to my Ortho, the treatment (in my case) could take 18 months or less, depending on how my teeth will respond to the treatment. He suggested extraction of my 4 premolars (bicuspids) but, in my case, he also reiterated that it isn't necessary (just like what my previous Orthodontist said). The purpose of the extraction is only to improve my facial profile and the decision is up to me. I decided to opt out of the extraction, since I only have 28 teeth left.

The next appointment I had was this morning from 9:30 to 11:00 for the installation of the brackets & arch wires. Luckily, my Orthodontist did not use spacers on my teeth (I heard those hurt a lot). He did not put molar bands as well. Anyway, I just thought that maybe I don't need it (for now or for the entire treatment, I've no idea).

Here's a photo of my first day with ceramic upper & lower braces:

I've read online that Clear or White ligatures stain easily, so I chose Light Blue. 

The red and blue dots on the brackets have now disappeared (I think they're just indicators as to which tooth they're supposed to be glued on to). Anyway, it's been 9 hours since the installation of the 'appliance' and I couldn't chew on anything. Even speaking is painful whenever my lips touch my braces. I also find it disgusting that so much saliva sort of "clings" on to the spaces between the wire and brackets (as you can see in the photo). I feel like there's soap inside my mouth because of the saliva forming into bubbles. And as much as I want to get rid of it, there's nothing I can do about it. I do hope this 'bubbly' thing is temporary and will soon return to normal once I get used to my braces.