live,laugh&love

When I was about 12 years old and in the 6th grade, I went through what most people would consider a right of passage. I joined the ranks of childhood braces. Oh yes, I was sporting the lovely metal brackets with the colors of my choice for just under two years. I got my braces off under my estimated treatment time because according to my orthodontist (let's call him Dr. J) I took really good care of them.

A couple of days after receiving my bag of gum and chewy, sticky candy from Dr. J (and of course getting my braces off!) I got my Hawley retainers. And you want to know what color I chose? An awesomely bright, neon green! My orthodontist informed me that I would be wearing my retainers 24/7 for about a month at which point I would check in with him. I followed his instructions religiously and at my follow-up he said that I only had to wear them at night, for 6 months. Ah! Freedom at last! I no longer had any trace of metal (well, during the day at least!) on my teeth! About 6 months later I returned for my last appointment with Dr. J. He said that I no longer needed to wear my retainers every night. He told me to wear them at least once a month.

And I did. I actually wore them at least a couple of times a week. But, despite my efforts, my teeth began to shift over time. It wasn't horrible, but you could definitely tell. It was really starting to bother me. I decided that I really didn't want to go back to Dr. J. One of the reasons is that after research online (and later being confirmed by my new ortho) I should have had to wear my retainer 24/7 much longer than I was told. Because of that, I decided to find a new ortho.

At this time, we moved. This was also the point where I was having some medical issues (I had surgery on my left foot, which led to me being diagnosed with CRPS amongst the neurological problems), so my teeth were put on hold.
As some of my medical issues were being treated, my little brother (although my little brother he is 13!) was sent to the orthodontist. Dr. R. :] He had his consult with her and his treatment plan was for a palate expander (3 months) and then braces for about 2 years. During one of his appointments I met Dr. R and kind of explained how my teeth have shifted and how my retainer didn't fit as good as it used to. She was sooo nice and even offered to adjust my retainer (and gave me a new case - pink sparkles <3) for free! She suggested that I wear it 24/7 for 6 weeks and see if it corrected my teeth.

After the first 2 weeks, she adjusted my retainers again. After the 6 weeks, my teeth really weren't fixed. My bite was still off and my teeth were still a little crooked. At this time, I made an appointment with her. I had my consult appointment this past Thursday (8.27.09). Dr. R's treatment coordinator (M) took my pictures and x-ray (I will try to post those later...my brother got his, so I assume I will be getting mine too). After taking all of the pix, Dr. R came in and looked in my mouth and confirmed that my bite was off and that some of my teeth were crooked (probably because of this).

We then talked about my treatment options. She said that I could either choose Invisalign or traditional braces. I asked which was cheaper, bc I did already have braces once. She said that if I could get by with 10 trays or under I would be able to get Invisalign Express. This would mean that it would be the same price as traditional braces. If I were to need more than 10 trays, the price would increase and it would be cheaper to get braces. She said that I would probably need more than 10 trays (but I wouldn't know for sure until the company figured it out with my molds), so I just decided to go with braces. Another reason why, is that it takes about 6 weeks to find out how many trays I would need. And if it would end up being more than 10, I would end up with the traditional braces anyway - which would mean that I would be 6 weeks behind in my treatment time.

After Dr. R left, my mom and I continued to talk to M. She said that she felt so bad for all the medical stuff that I have been going through that she would give me the ceramic braces for no extra cost. I really honesty didn't care if people could see them or not. In fact, I thought I might as well have fun with choosing colors! So, after talking to her a little bit longer, I found out that I could still get colors. I realize that some people might think that it is a little strange for me to get colors on clear braces, but I honestly don't care. You can still see the clear braces (maybe not from far away) and having some colors on won't really make them that more noticeable. But whatever, I don't really care what other people think! :]

So, my appointment to get my braces is on Monday (tomorrow). It is scheduled for 2 hours (bc I have to get the impressions first). I will let you know how it goes and what color(s) I choose!
here is my blog (which has my second post and pix!) http://bracestimes2.blogspot.com/