Week 1

[Candymomof3]

Hi everyone--wanted to introduce myself, my name is Candy, and I am in week 1 of this torture! Day 5 to be exact....it has been a long week!! I am looking forward to all the support and reading all your stories! I was formerly on Archwired and now it's not working. I am so glad I found you-I was wondering how I was going to get through this!
I have ceramic uppers, metal lowers, sentenced for 18 months, and wondering how I am going to make it!! I am 31, 3 kids, work full time and have wanted braces for 20 years...I still can't believe I have them!!! WOW!
Good luck everyone!

[mikeg]

That is the same treatment plan I had. You are def 31 years young, and it is not only good for your teeth, but the experience will be good to help your kids with if they need them.

It gets sooooooooooooooooooo much easier to the point that you don't even notice them.

I look forward to reading your blog.

Good Luck!

[jessi]

Dear Candy~

So nice to know there are others out there in the same situation! I am older than you, but not much...I'm 33 and got my braces on Sept 2007. I am "sentenced" to 18 to 24 months and since March will be 18 months for me, it's looking like I'm heading for the 24 months, although time really does fly.

I also wanted braces my whole life but as a kid with 3 siblings, my parents could not afford them. I finally decided it was time and am so glad I got them! I have my days when I feel worse about them than other days, such as right now, I'm having a problem thinking my teeth are getting yellower, but the support and suggestions on this forum are amazing!

As you progress, you will notice the changes your teeth are going through and how much better they look. You know what I do? I go on my ortho's web site and look at the "before" photos of my teeth and mouth and it is truly amazing what the braces have accomplished so far. I too have ceramic uppers and metal lowers. Everyone says they can hardly notice I even have braces. In fact, a friend of mine just noticed I had them on and asked me when they were put on!

Best of luck to you and I look forward to hearing updates on how things are going...it's all going to be so worth it!

Jessi

[Candymomof3]

Hi guys-thanks for responding, so nice to know that I am not alone on this adventure. I look at everyones teeth all the time searching for braces--and because you don't see it all the time, it makes you feel a little alone! I wanted them too when I was younger, my mom and step dad never brought it up, and I guess it was financial issues. I have spent so long wishing I had them when I was younger. That was the main reason I had my oldest daughter in the orthdontist at 7--LOL, that was for a check up, then she waited a year and had braces on at 8, and she just got them taken off this past August when she was 10. I was amazed, she looks fantastic! I made my consult appointment then for October and got things rolling. I had to wait til Jan to get them as I am using medical spending account. I had my impressions done Jan 2nd, and had my braces Jan 5th---no wasting time here!!! My daughter is a huge support to me, I am always asking her about stuff and she loves to help me...she is forever telling me I look great,and it upsets her when I get down about myself. Can't help it though, as much as I love having them....it is still hard to talk, and hard to close my mouth all the way....my molars don't touch and it's driving me crazy!
From everything I have read, I will be feeling better in 2 weeks and then I will forget about them----I can not imagine that, it's all I think about. My next appointment is 7 weeks away...seems so long, is that normal?
No ulcers yet--happy about that! I'm sure it's just a matter of time though!!! I will post pics as soon as I can, love to see everyones progress!!! I think I am already seeing some movement, is that possible? Anyway, talk to you soon Mike and Jessi!!

[jumwilms]

Hi Candymomof3,

Although I'm not wild about having them on again myself, I can say that from what I remember of my first time through you eventually forget they are even there. And trust me, once you get them off, you'll know it was totally worth it.


Good Luck on your treatment!
-J

[Sunny]

Welcome to this forum Candy and great you're able to do this for yourself!

Sorry to read that you're thinking of it as torture at the moment, but hopefully that will quickly pass. I've been pain free from the time my braces were fitted ... in fact four hours after my appointment, I was eating and have rarely had an issue in the past three years.

It's great that your daughter can support you and you'll find the folk on this forum will do the same!

Here's to movement!

[Janesays]

welcome to the forum. as you can see in the blog section, it gets much easier and really quickly.

[lisak17]

OMG - this is only my 2nd day and I can't see doing this for over a year. I am 38 and wondering what in the world did I just do to myself. I find some of this kind of funny right now because before getting them on, I was so concerned about how I would look, what people would say, etc. Today I could care less. I am more concerned with how they feel in my mouth. I wasn't expecting this to be so horrible. It is really not painful, it is just a throbbing ache. What bothers me more is just feeling them rub against my lips 24/7 and not being able to eat like a normal person.

I feel your pain!!

Lisa

[Candymomof3]

Hang in there Lisa...I hated, and I mean HATED the first 2 weeks...it gets better...and time does go by...It felt like forever til my first appointment after braces, and it is today already---excited to find out what is going on in there!!!
Hope you are doing better today!

[lisak17]

Actually today is the worst day of them all - day 4. Don't laugh, but I went around my whole office today begging people to go in their medicine cabinets and give me old painkillers they might still have!!

[Candymomof3]

The first 2 weeks were so bad for me, I just got back from my adjustement and he totally knew how bad of a month I had with how much my teeth moved! I told him the first week is horrible and he promised I would never have another week like that again...that's the hardest part...starting! All worth it though, my teeth have moved soooooo much in 8 weeks....I never thought it would be like this!

[Zoso]

Lisa - I hope you don't mean prescription pain relievers, as that would be illegal, and also potentially very unsafe.

Just take some ibuprofen and try to go about your life as normal - one of the best ways to cope with braces pain is to try not to think about it.

[Bella]

Hi Candy,
I'm new to braces and this website as well!

I'm 23 and thought getting braces at this age was ridiculous, but now that I see the growing number of adults with braces, I become more confident. My treatment is for 15 months so lets hang in there! I can't wait until it's over. With the pain and canker sores sometimes I want to quit my treatment, but knowing how beautiful my smile will be in the end makes me keep them.

Just like one of the guys that posted here, when I was younger my family couldn't afford braces for me, and now that I'm older and have a job, I can afford them!

[Candymomof3]

Hi Bella , I notice that when you posted a general message, you posted it in visitor messages on your profile. You can start a new thread with your introduction and more people will respond! Thanks for posting on my Week 1, I actually reread it and nice to see how far I've come in 3 months. I was miserable the first 2 weeks, and everything is much better and time is flying by! It is quite a journey to take, and this forum is a great way to ask questions and get support, especially when you are not having such a good day (and in braces, I think we all have them)
Good luck on your journey, when did you get them put on?
I have my 2nd adjustment soon and I am really excited! Even though the appointments are not without a little discomfort---going to them means progress!!!!

[Sunny]

Hi and welcome Bella!

It's great you can afford to have treatment at such a young age and it's good to read that you're feeling really comfortable about that. I was 47 when I started treatment ... and until I started working for my orthodontist, hadn't seen another adult with braces, so it was a scary start, but I was very lucky, coz it was painfree and no mouth sores!

Good luck with your treatment!