Braces off 4 months ago. Unhappy with results.

[atlantagirl]

I got my braces put on in January of 2006 and had 4 teeth extracted to "create space" for all of the other teeth that were crowding my mouth. I trusted that my orthodontist, who came highly recommended, would not lead me astray. Now, 2+ years later, I have my braces off and, although, my teeth are straight, my face and smile seem sunken in. I almost feel like an old lady with her dentures out!!! I never had major issues with my smile before it was just that I had a lot of crowding. Now, I hate my smile and am very self conscious about it. I need some advice, please. Is there anything that can be done at this point or is it just too late? I plan on talking to my ortho about it after getting a second opinion, but I was just wondering if there was anyone experiencing the same thing who could give me some advice. Please help!

[Zoso]

I wonder how old you are? Our faces do change shape during certain periods of our life, so it's possible these changes are just normal maturing and not due to orthodontia at all, depending how old you are.

[atlantagirl]

I'm 27. I figure some of the change is due to growing older. However, if you could see the end result, you might understand why I feel this way. All of my teeth are now somewhat inverted. All of my front teeth are at an angle leaning into my mouth and even my back teeth are tilted inward. If you can, try to imagine this and what effect it would have on one's facial structure.

[Sunny]

Atlantagirl please talk to your orthodontist about how you're feeling, as you need an explanation as to why your teeth have been finished in this way. Also it's important for your ortho to hear that you're not happy with the way your smile looks.

At 27 your face would usually not be showing much in the way of change, unless as a result of surgery or weight loss/gain. So please ask about what appears to you as the 'sunkun' look.

Good luck with having a talk with your orthodontist.

[gilda]

I could have writen your post. Since had the braces off I don't even smille anymore.

[Sunny]

That's really sad Gilda.

I hope you've been back to your orthodontist to discuss your results.

[gilda]

He said after the removal of the braces that he had no experience with lingual braces. He apologized!
Now I am going to have braces put by another orthodontist to fix what he had done.
I wish they had to disclosure when they have no experience before the braces are put on.

[Sunny]

Gilda, not having experience is not an acceptable excuse. All orthodontists' begin without experience and the only way to get this experience is by working with patients. Your orthodontist was not wrong to work with you, but was wrong to not have a mentor, which makes me question the supplier of the lingual brackets. All brackets used in the practice where I work, require you to keep up-to-date with what they're doing. This sometimes is only viewing a DVD and completing an online questionnaire, but it's good to have this continuing communication.

Good luck with your new ortho.

[gilda]

He did try to blame on the manufacture. He said " The manufacture assured me that it would work" .
I did not understand what he meant my that.
But made so many mistakes along the way in my treatment that I wrote a letter of complain to the state board.
I did not send it yet as I am trying to figure out what really went wrong.
You said you work on an orthodontist office. Would you be wiling to give a look on my letter and give me your opinion?

Thanks,
Gilda

[Sunny]

I would look at your letter and give my opinion, but I'm not sure how helpful that would be.

Have you had more consults with other orthodontist's to find out what needs to be done to your bite now? If not, I recommend you do and include any recommendations with your letter.

The manufacturer may have assured your ortho that the brackets would work, but as they're claiming they've not worked in your case, that's not a very accurate statement. If you read the advertising that's done to market a particular brand of self ligating brackets, you'd think that they were magic, instead of just a bracket, with very little differences to other SL brackets. You'd also be excused for believing that the archwires they use are only used by them and that they're magic ... again not true on either accounts. But ... both the orthodontist and the patient (or the patients guardians) need to do some research to find out if claims being made are correct. With all things comes responsibility of some form.

I hope you can get your issues sorted, as it does sound like your ortho is making strange excuses. Please have some more consults and then your letter may have a more positive outcome.

Good luck!

[gilda]

Three weeks after the braces were off I went to two orthodontists. One told me 12 months back in braces the other one 16 months in braces to fix what was done to my teeth. I have those quotes in writing to put together with my letter.
What I would like from you is to look at my letter with the eyes of a person who works in a dental office and give me your insight in what was really a mistake and lack of judgment from the orthodontist and what is not a big deal.
Do you have a private e-mail I can send it to you?

Thanks,
Gilda

[Sunny]

Great that you did that Gilda and have the written information to support your complaint.

I will PM you my email.

Good luck!

[gilda]

I didn't get your e-mail.

[Sunny]

Gilda I've sent you a PM (private message).

Go to your welcome box ... on the right of this screen, where it will say ... Welcome, Gilda. You last visited: Today at ....

Under that will be either Private Messages ... which you can click on and it will take you to your summary page, where you can then choose something from your inbox or check your outbox etc.

Instead of Private Messages, it might have ... Your Notifications, a number and a down arrow. Choose the down arrow and you'll see a heading is highlighted. Click on that, and you'll see what's changed.

My message, with my personal email, should show us as being in your inbox, as I sent it on Friday.

Hope this helps!

[Niki]

Hi,

I'm very angry with my orthodontist!!!!

He took them off and asked " are you happy with them?" I wasn't sure if my mouth just needed to settle back in or what, so I politely replied "yes"....

Now, a few months have passed and they are awful!!!!

As someone else has posted previously, my mouth looks as if it's sinking in!

I had this awful jaw contraption and a set of braces put on by this other dentist, which left me with teeth that went back to the way they were before and with a protruding chin (dentist was in a divorce and cut a deal with my dad: free rent for his ex in exchange for dental work.... probably wrecked my mouth to spite me...)

Any how, I have since gone to an actual orthodontist and he has left me with an ill-aligned and sucked in smile, with a massive over-bite. Now my chin looks another 4 times bigger and I want to cry. I will be going back to my home town soon and i plan to visit that orthodontist. He was meant to fix my teeth, not give me problems!

I am going to tell him that he needs to do them again, as this is ridiculous! If I wasn't so angry about the first experience of braces + awful jaw contraption (and aware that the dentist had to correct any bad work on his behalf!) , I would have gone back to him initially. However, I went to this orthodontist because he was meant to be good.

How do I go about this???
Your advice is much appreciated (and desperately needed!)

[Sunny]

Hi Niki and sorry you're feeling let down by those who've treated your teeth.

Firstly I recommend you get over your anger and then put a plan in place. Be aware that there are limitations to what can be achieved by braces alone, and if you have

ill-aligned and sucked in smile, with a massive over-bite. Now my chin looks another 4 times bigger

you may not find treatment to achieve the outcome you desire is possible without surgery, so please approach your ex ortho with plenty of questions, but never sound like you're going to 'attack', as that would probably result in you achieving little or nothing.

I doubt any dentist would have treated you with spite, as it was nothing to do with you what happened to his relationship or between him and your Dad. Please be mature about this and do your best to work out what might have happened. For example, how did your teeth move back to the way they were before, while you were wearing your retainers?

Good luck calming down and finding ways to ask for help appropriately!

[gilda]

My mistake was to have the original orthodontist fix his mistakes. It was just a nightmare after another.
Please consult other orthodontists. Choose wisely. And make sure you ask for your money back (actually how can you...it was exchanged for free rental). Ask him to pay for your new treatment. Not that he will but at least he will know how unhappy you are.

[ziyouniao321]

i saw some guys will be so all of them are adaws .the prove is not all after brace can have a good looking but child .some case can be better after sevenral moths ago after took off your brace.
do you know what i meant????/

[mark5inc]

Definitely make sure you ask for your money back. ziyouniao321 what do you mean?

[rosief80]

I got my braces put on in January of 2006 and had 4 teeth extracted to "create space" for all of the other teeth that were crowding my mouth. I trusted that my orthodontist, who came highly recommended, would not lead me astray. Now, 2+ years later, I have my braces off and, although, my teeth are straight, my face and smile seem sunken in. I almost feel like an old lady with her dentures out!!! I never had major issues with my smile before it was just that I had a lot of crowding. Now, I hate my smile and am very self conscious about it. I need some advice, please. Is there anything that can be done at this point or is it just too late? I plan on talking to my ortho about it after getting a second opinion, but I was just wondering if there was anyone experiencing the same thing who could give me some advice. Please help!

I also have the same problem and it's driving me nuts. My face was so cute and full and now it is long and sunken in. I don't even look like myself anymore, come to think about it I don't even look like my other sisters ! they have the cheeks I used to have. I look at pictures and compare my old face with my new one and get so frustrated.I'm going to my othro to see if they could reverse the results. I will let you know how it goes

[Sunny]

Sorry about that happening Rosie.

What age were you when you had braces? If you were early/mid teens, your face may have changed without any connection to you having braces. Also if you've lost or gained weight, your face will change. There are many reasons why a persons face changes, but without surgery to move the jaw/chin ... it's rarely orthodontic related.

Good luck talking to your ortho!

[aguy1010]

well, I felt a little bit the same way after getting mine off but I think my face is normal / better than it was before now. I felt really weird and awkward for a few months after getting my braces off... I thought about it a lot and I think basically the braces are pretty traumatic to your body, more so than you might realize as its pretty unnatural to have something pulling like that in your mouth all the time.

I had been kind of depressed while I had the braces on so I had stopped going to the gym, which I used to do a lot. Once I got them off I gradually started to go again and do resistance exercises and I think that helped a lot as I did shoulder exercises and other exercises to where I could feel my jaw and neck muscles tighten up again... I would recommend giving this a shot, maybe see a physical therapist or personal trainer... the way I see it the orthodontist just moves the teeth and there are other issues that they aren't experts at, relating to the muscles around your face, that may be better addressed by other professionals

[niknak]

Hi Atlantagirl - I experienced the same thing. I'd like to know if you were able to reverse or repair the situation. I had two teeth removed and I can't begin to describe the remorse I felt for doing so. Please let me know how you're doing now. Thanks.

[Sunny]

Hi Niknak!

The original post was nearly two years ago and not by a registered member, so I doubt that person will make contact again.

Please have a good talk to your ortho and know that sometimes extractions are the only way to go, so the results will remain stable with lifetime retainer wear.

Good luck!

[niknak]

Thanks for your reply Sunny. I realize that sometimes extractions are the only way to go... I just wish my ortho could have pointed out how my front teeth were slanting inward while being pushed back. I know I can't turn back the clock and I guess I need to learn to adjust and move forward. Take care.

[emmie]

wow these stories are scary! I wish you the best of luck, i know it may be a pain to go back into braces or what ever orthodontic work you need to have done.. but hang in there and everything will end up right =)

[18monther]

Yea...these stories do sound a bit frightening. What kind of braces did you guys get?

[Sunny]

18monther occasionally things go wrong, but more often it's to do with us having unreal expectations of what the outcomes will be. Many people look at the photos of models in magazines and forget (or don't know) that these pictures have been photoshopped and those smiles aren't real. Many forget that if their teeth are a certain shape, this isn't going to change etc etc etc.

The type of braces is not the problem.

[juppiejux]

Hi everyone, I'm new here Not even sure if anyone is still replying to this post. Was just wondering if this cases happen really often. I'm about to get braces done. The ortho has said that I needed to have 4 teeth extracted. After reading all these horror stories, I'm feeling a bit apprehensive and panicky. Is there any precaution that I should be taking to ensure it doesn't happen? Thanks in advance for any replies

[Sunny]

Jupplijux welcome to this forum!

Good luck with your treatment.

Hopefully you've researched a few ortho's and chosen the one you feel most comfortable with. This will help you communicate any concerns you have.

Sometimes people do feel there faces change during ortho treatment, but usually this is not related to the orthodontic treatment or extractions, but it's more about the age that most pepole have orthodontic treatment. During adolescence the face matures and the shape naturally changes and the body shift fats to the areas that are needing it more. This can result in a persons face changing from a more full look to a more narrow look.

Talk to your ortho about any concerns you have. Good luck!

[juppiejux]

thanks for the kind reply. I really hope if it changes, it's for the better. I have a bimaxillary proclination, moderate upper and mild lower crowding and crossbite on 2 on top and 2 on the bottom row. She's the second ortho to tell me that I need all 4 bi extracted. The first was my oral surgeon 6 years ago when I was 19

[MCOMarkhamOrthodontist]

Sunken in faces are usually a result of incorrect treatment planning and treatment execution. In some borderline extraction cases, it may be better to go non-extraction in consideration of the facial profile. Still, extractions are sometimes necessary to produce the best results and should not be "feared". To close space:

1. back teeth can come forward more than the front teeth move back (little to no profile change)
2. the front and back teeth can come back evenly (some profile change)
3. the front teeth can go back more than the back teeth move forward (largest profile change)

Each of these scenarios is possible but will require different ways of being achieved. An experienced and skilled orthodontist will know best how to work with an individual based upon their situation. Hope this helps!

[juppiejux]

Thanks a lot for the kind reply=D I've spoken to my ortho and she said she will push the front back and monitor it closely..once they've reached a desired position, she will bring the back teeth forward.

[bishybaby10]

hi ya. i have just had my braces off and knew i wasn't going to like the results because my face is now totally sunken. It is the worst thing and i have actually thought about taking my life because of it. I'm am at the moment trying to arrange having my teeth brought back forward with either a head brace or the invislign treatment as i have the models of my old teeth before i had 2 top teeth removed and the teeth moved backwards. Then i need to get implants to fill in the two spaces. Has anyone so far managed to have their teeth moved back and anyone know of any dentists willing to help me? I have an appointment in london next week and the lady said their is some hope as she had experienced worst sounding cases than mine, still have feelings very hopeful though.

[5yearbraces]

I am wearing braces right now to correct exactly what you explained. I had hated my teeth ever since my braces were taken off in 1987. I had 4 teeth extracted also when I really didn't need to. My mouth was recessed and it made my nose and chin stand out. I am having the 4 extraction sites reopened and am going to have 2 dental implants put in on the top and bridges on the bottom. I had lost bone in the front of my bottom front teeth so they could not be moved as far forward as they were before I had the teeth extracted. Therefore the 2 spaces on the bottom cannot be opened enough for an implant. The two bottom extraction sites are at 6mm each right now. The top two are at 7mm. It is hugely expensive for all this. The braces have been paid for already. I have had them on for 5 years! Even though I love my orthodontist dearly, I believe he is making mistakes and making things worse as he makes other things better. So frustrating because I had moved far from his office location after I had the braces put on and no one around me wants to take a transfer patient. They all want that $5,000 up front. So I'm stuck driving 1 hour to his office every other Friday only to have another mistake made.

So I say, follow your gut. If you don't like how your teeth look, do somethig about it or it will drive you nutts. It took me about 17 years to do something.

Maybe you didn't have crowding if your teeth are recessed now. If there truly were crowded then they should look right now. Or maybe you're not used to them looking more "in" than "out". Not sure but I sympathise with you if you do not like your teeth, especially after you put the time and money into them and after your prices real teeth have been pulled.

Let me know what you think and what you're going to do but make sure you take some action or it will bug you forever.

Thanks for listening.

[5yearbraces]

Also, my current orthodontist told me that my 1st orthodontist was probably following the "Tweed" method. There was a Dr. Tweed orthodontist who believed that extracting teeth was the fix for almost every problem. My current ortho told me now that my soft tissue is in the right place and that I did the right thing. I agree. I look normal now. Shame on my first ortho. When I think about him ordering me to get my 4 healthy, wonderfully normal teeth pulled, I get furious inside. It is so frustrating. I want to tell him what emotional pain he has caused me but I don't want to give him any satisfaction if he's the type to not care. But shame on him.

Nowadays orthos are taught to go towards non-extraction methods. Yay! I say to that!!! Too late for me though, unfortunately. Someday my teeth will be straightened, my implants will be in and I will be satisfied. Until then the emotional struggle with the ortho and my sadness about all this work and money and time that I'm in the ugly food traps.

[abristow79]

google DNA Appliance. I have been wearing one for the last 8 months for 12 hours a day as my Ortho's recommended form of treatment. The appliance widens the arch without surgery, straightens teeth, and as a bonus causes the bones in the jaw and cheeks to start growing and filling out the face, which might be of interest to some of the posters above complaining about 'sunken faces'. I managed to expand my upper arch around 7.5mm in 8 months, my wife got similar results, but we have a friend who is also getting the same treatment from the same ortho and she is aiming for 20mm. I think she had a bad ortho as a teenager. She wore braces but i believe she said she had 8(!) teeth extracted, and as a result ended up with an overall apprearance that she not too happy with. She'll end up with either dentures, bridging or implants to replace those missing teeth once her arch is fully expanded.

Long story short, for those people above who are suffering there might be a solution. I hope this helps. Good luck and keep smiling

[leelee hime]

I'm so glad that I read your problem before extracting my teeth.
In fact, that's exactly my concern, because the doctor recommended that I pull 4 of my teeth out, for just a minor protruding in my upper teeth and a minor crowding on the lower. But my profile looks OK, and my lips look pouty and nice, I really don't want my lips to sink in.
My orthodontist said that I will look better, but I have a gut feeling that I won't. I just want to straighten my teeth without my lips having to change. But his words kept ringing in my head and made me think "what if he's right, I do need to pull some teeth out?"
But now that I've read your problem, I'm definitely not doing it!

[Venna]

I've had 7 teeth pulled for ortho care. Talk about remorse....

[Funnyme23]

I got my braces almost 2 years ago now and my teeth are in an terrible state.When He took them off they moved around and now 2 of my teeth are moved back in my mouth to where they frist where.I recently went to another place my friend told me to go to as she had the same problem and it turned out that I had to many teeth taken out. I was then telling my friend what he had said and she ask who my orthodontist was and found out we had the same person. I am unbleivble angry I hate the way I look now. I asked if there was anything i could do to get it fixed and they said no. So Now I have to live with the horrible smile for the rest of my life :'(

[Sunny]

Have you been wearing your retainers every week since you got your braces removed and attending regular followups? If you have ... and can prove it, you may have an argument to take to the ortho society. If you didn't wear your retainers every week and go for follow ups, then you have to take some of the responsibility. Teeth will move for as long as we're alive and if they've already been moved, it's possible they move even more. This is why retainers are needed for life.

I'm really sorry about what's happened, but you may be best to investigate further ortho treatment and be commited to a life time of retainers ... which after an initial full time period and every night ... may become two or three nights a week.

[Funnyme23]

Yea Ive Been Wearing it Ever Since I got them off. And Ive Went to My Frist Few Followups Until I Just got Angry and they said I had to Live With It. Theres Noting I can Do Anymore Im Stuck With it now

[Sunny]

How did your teeth move back to where they originally were, while you were wearing your retainers regularly?

Have you asked other ortho's about what (if any) treatment you need?

I really feel sorry for you if this happened while you're doing all the right things ... but ... teeth don't move around like you describe due to having extractions, plus if you wear your retainers regularly ... full time to begin with, followed by every night and maybe two or three nights every week ... your teeth will be kept in the alignment of the retainers.

[Funnyme23]

I really dont know how they moved back with everything that I ve done right but according to my dentist and others ive gone to that theres noting they can do anymore. Put I do find it really wired Strange that its happened to me after everything

[Sunny]

Where you treated by a dentist or an ortho?

If your retainers are the shape of your finished treatment and you wore them for part of every day ... then how did your teeth move? ... it's just not possible.

Sorry.

[Funnyme23]

My Tretment was done by an Ortho. Belive me i really dont know how my teeth move back to where they where. I also tought it was not possible but it was. I cant explain what happened cause I dont what happened. I did everything right. Its so confussing belive me I know :/

[Sunny]

Teeth can easily move back to where they came from ... but only when you don't wear your reatiners regularly for the rest of your life. Teeth will always move and usually they move forward in the mouth, but not always. Research shows that people who had orthodontic treatment to treat gaps or teeth in front or behind others, are most likely to have relapse without regularly retainer movement.

What doesn't happen ... is for teeth to move while a person wearing their retainers regularly, unless the retainers are damaged. The shape of the retainer keeps the teeth in place, so as long as the retainer is good and the wearing is good, teeth remain where they should be.

[lajoi85]

I really wish that I had known about this site when my orthodontist said, "Well, we're about finished. The only other thing for us to do is have your teeth pulled. It would bring your profile back. You wanna do that?" That is ALL he said. He didn't explain the fact that I would have a brand new "bone structure"...the words he used when I told him I wanted to return to the way I used to look (You have a completely new bone structure now; I can't recommend you returning to the way you were). A COMPLETELY NEW BONE STRUCTURE??? I never asked for a new bone structure or a new face or a new jaw or a new anything! I LOVED taking pictures. I LOVED my smile.

I went to him with 2 wishes: to smooth the overlapping of one of my front teeth and the protrusion of one of my bottom teeth. THAT WAS IT. He said it would take 12 to 18 months to correct.

It's been 4 years now. FOUR YEARS. I am so frustrated. And to all of the people out there who are frustrated and struggling with insecurities that you NEVER HAD BEFORE.....I feel you. And I hear you. And I sympathize with you. I've read that some of you are opening up the spaces and having implants inserted. I've thought about the same thing. I'm so frustrated and so tired. 4 healthy perfectly fine teeth. I wish I had not listened to that orthodontist.

Any advice?

[Sunny]

So sorry to read about your issues!

What age are you? I'm asking, as your bones can change until you stop growing, which is usually during adolescence and then they can only change a small amount, unless the person has surgery.

Extractions aren't done a lot anymore, but if a person's teeth are too big for the their jaw bones, then the only way to align the teeth correctly is by making space by having extractions.

Good luck learning to love your smile and bite!