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Linguals & Clarity braces in London

Introduction

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3 Comments
by
Wallflower
, 04-10-2009 at 06:26 AM (683 Views)
Morning,
I thought I would introduce the situation of my teeth right at the beginning of my blog.

Attachment 51

Lower:
My lower teeth appear much worse than my top.
I have crowding at the front, which was worsened by my wisdom teeth popping out.
I also have a baby tooth still residing on my left, with no adult tooth to push it out.

Upper:
My upper teeth actually require more work than the bottom.
My wisdom teeth coming out has resulted in one of my front teeth to rotate in a funny way.
I also have a tooth that has rotated quite a lot on my left to fill a gap on my left.
And I have a baby tooth on my right, with no adult tooth to push it out.
My centre line is also off and none of the teeth sit together nicely.

Consultations
I went for a consultation on Invisaligns but these weren't suitable for me.
Next up was investigating Lingual braces. These seemed perfect for me, being a 28 year old in a client facing role working at a business formal corporation. I also look a lot younger than my age so if I rocked up to meetings with a mouth full of metal braces I'd look like a 16 year old and no one would take me seriously! So getting braces that weren't visible was a big requirement.

I initially decided to get Linguals on top and bottom, however after my last consult with my Ortho we weighed up some pro's and con's and I decided on the spot to get ceramics on the bottom (Clarity to be specific).

Pro's:
  • Can get a white archwire initially which makes them less visible
  • Can't really see my lower teeth when I smile or talk
  • Cheaper!
  • My tongue won't get chopped up from beneath



Cons:

  • Still able to see my lower teeth when I say certain words like 'If' or 'Speed'
  • I worry they'll be bulky and look bulky
  • I've read that the white archwire can flake to reveal metal


Anyway I'll be getting extractions first, then ceramics put on my lower, then 6 months after that I'll have the Linguals put in.
Categories
Pictures , Getting Started , Consultations , Introductions

Comments

  1. Sunny's Avatar
    Great that you've done some research and come up with a combination that suits your situation Wallflower!

    Ceramic brackets are a little bigger in size, but not in height from the tooth, that's why an ortho can mix ceramic and metal on the same arch. I've found that ceramic brackets are smoother and for me were easier to adjust to than when I got my metal lowers, and eventually had metal put on all my uppers.

    There is always a period of adjustment when you get your brackets put on. Some of this is related to how well you look after the inside of your mouth, to the amount of alignment work needing to be done, to how you cope with discomfort in your oral areas, and a lot of it's about attitude. If a person expects to be in pain and feeling revolting, usually they are and take longer to find things improve, when compared to a person who's hoping everything will go well and can't wait to get their treatment started. Of course there are always exceptions ... but where I work, we have a criteria that we mark when interviewing patients to include things about what they expect from their treatment, how they think they'll look and feel when they get braces, after adjustments etc. It's interesting to compare the negatives one when they come in for adjustments.

    Most adults are looking forward to treatment, and this is reflected in how motivated they are to do everything the ortho and assistances ask of them.

    Good luck with your ceramics!
  2. Melody's Avatar
    Hi Wallflower,

    I have Clarity brackets, and while they do feel a little bulky at first, they don't seem as much so once you get used to them. I haven't had the white coated archwire, but have also heard that it has a tendency to chip.

    Good luck with your treatment!
  3. Anny's Avatar
    Wow you did a lot of research. I have bottom ceramics and you can't see them - people often ask me when I'll get the bottoms to match the top.