05 March 2013

First Check-Up Since Getting Wired

Today was my first check-up with my orthodontist! All is going well and he had nothing but "very good" to say when he poked around my mouth.  I've had no serious pain - nothing that would make me run for the meds.  

There is already observable slight movement in my teeth, including spaces opening up in back. 

My wire was replaced with a heavier gauge one and so far no discomfort other than a mild "sticker" at the far back on the right side which is easy to take care of with carefully placed wax.  I just need to remove it when I eat or drink a cup of tea!

In other words, I'm not an oral cripple....yet.  My lower braces are yet to be installed.

I also visited my regular dentist for a cleaning after I had the orthodontist's tech remove my wire.  Apparently my rituals with the water flosser and my SonicCare toothbrush is working. My hygienist thinks every six months is fine for cleanings.  

Also, for your viewing enjoyment.........

MY BEFORE PHOTOS

My central incisors are slipping out of alignment! They didn't look too horrible when I was a kid.

Here's my upper jaw as seen from above. That left central incisor is why I  made haste to the orthodontist.  There were slight irregularities when I was younger, but they weren't so bad that my agent at the time didn't think they'd hurt my chances at getting gigs.

My lowers as seen from above. I lost the molar due to an accident many years ago. I fell off my bicycle and slammed my jaw hard.  The damage took six years to present itself and by the time my tooth was shooting pain throughout my head it was too far gone and in January of 2010 it had to be removed. Oh, by the way....those are tea stains in my teeth!

Here's my bite from the side. You can really see the incisor "sliding backwards."

This is the view that really freaked me out. Here is why I decided to  get things straightened out. My  left central incisor looks like it is gone! (Photos are reversed)

ARE WE POTTENGER'S CATS?

Coming next week

1 comment:

~*Angie*~ said...

Hi there, I ran across your blog on the arch wired community. I am about to be braced as well. My to teeth look EXACTLY like your top teeth. My bottom are a little crowded but I chose just to get tops. Iknow thats not an option for many but I had orthodontics as a teenager and so I have a great bite... I broke my retainer about 10 years ago and decided I was tired of my front tooth hiding behind the rest of the teeth... and making my other tooth stick out. So here I am almost 30 doing this. I have 5 children and so this was a tough decision seeing as I feel like I should be saving my money for THEIR ortho work.. either way I am planning to follow your blog! Way to go getting braces. :-) Good luck