Extremely Frustrated!

[RicanMedic78]

OK! I have asked a few questions from time to time, but overall, I have had a very strange ortho experience. I've had braces for 3 years and 3 months. And my frustration came from the fact that very little progress had been made in almost 3 years of the time.

A little history:

I had an overbite with mainly upper cainine across to canine were separated and forward a bit (nothing too far apart). In the first 4 months, my ortho closed the front 4 teeth together fairly rapidly. After that, the remaining time has been devoted to bringing all 4 down and against the canines. For the last year entirely, I have had maybe 2 mm spaces on both sides btwn the canine and the smaller tooth in front of that (on both sides).

I have used elastics to keep me from biting down (which I think was the reason for the delayed improvement). But at the end of the day, the front of my bottom teeth have always touched the back of my front teeth, keeping the rubberbands from giving the force to press the teeth back into place.

I have gotten so frustrated with the slow progress and I have also been so frustrated with the lack of power chain pressure that I have actually begun to add my own variation of pressure using the remaining elastics that I have.

I have seen results that are amazing in just 3 days when hooking the elastics to the back, and swinging it across to "the opposite" canine and another in the other direction. It looks extremely funny but I have essentially closed my spaces on my own in 3 days, something that my dentist has not been able to do in 3 YEARS!

Your input on this would be greatly appreciated. Did I do something wrong by adding my own pressure? Does having to wait 3 years to close just a mm or 2 mean that my dentist doesnt know what hes doing? I see my dentist tomorrow and I am about to tell him what I have done. Again, any opinion would be great!

[Sunny]

RicanMedic if you don't trust your ortho please consult with another one or two and change to someone you trust.

Teeth moving is usually a result of the persons who they belong to, but as you have so many concerns, please discuss these at your consults.

Please don't use elastics in ways that you think may be right, as you don't know the science behind moving teeth and this could result in you damaging the roots of your teeth which may result in these teeth becoming too loose and falling out. There is also the chance that these teeth will move in a way they're not supposed to, which will further delay your treatment.

I think you should tell your ortho what you've done and why.

Good luck consulting with other ortho's and finding the best person to treat you!

[Denise]

I fully agree with Sunny - moving teeth is a science, and since we do not know the science behind it, we are not qualified to make our own judgment call about these things. Your gap may have closed, but it could have caused damage or halted other progression happening as well. Remember, what happens to one tooth, affects all of them eventually. I do understand your frustration, and honestly I think you should go back to doing as your ortho recommended, but seek another (maybe even 2-3 more) opinions. It's your mouth and your money and you have every right to be concerned, ask questions, and know exactly what is happening. Good luck to you!!

[RicanMedic78]

just an update. I went to my dentist, told him what I had done and he just said, "oh ok, good them." He was happy they were together tightly and that day he took them off and fitted my impression for a clear retainer. If it wasn't for what I had done, I don't know when I would of been done with treatment. I might have been able to have them removed over a year ago!

Now... I'm not condoning what I did. However, given that it was only a small tiny space in front of my canine and the fact that my chains were never ever tightened per visit despite my repeated concerns, I think I felt a little safe in trying something new. In any case, it worked. But you are 100% right, its dangerous and I took a chance.

Now my question will always be, why did my dentist disregard my concerns for making things tighter? I felt as if per visit, the chain was still applied at the same tention. And 2 years later with the same result should have given him warning signs that something is wrong! I'm definately smh on this one.

When I did ask, his answer was always, teeth are unpredictable and stubborn at times. 2nd and 3rd opinions just brushed me off and recommended that I stick with the same ortho and that the job was beautifully done. Also, having my bill completely paid off did not help my options as it would of cost a crazy amount of money to switch orthos when its only 1 mm to close. And it was a nice job overall, and I def did not complain about the quality, however, 2 years out of the 3 1/2 simply to move a mm space is rediculous! Especially since I know exactly what was holding it from setting back into place (my lower bite).

Now I have a clear retainer and I still feel that my bite is somewhat OFF. He says they will settle but my lower teeth still crash into the back of my uppers in a way that would push them forward again if I do not wear a retainer.

[Sunny]

RicanMedic did your dentist explain that the roots of the teeth won't have moved ... but just the visible part ... like an iceberg? Hopefully this won't matter, but the result can be that the visible part now moves back to where the roots are, although hopefully your retainers will prevent this. Please be vigilant with your retainer wear to help prevent this.

What you feel and what a specially trained person knows you need are not always the same. If you trust this person, trust their judgement ... if you don't trust them, then you should have made some changes during your treatment. Due to your second and third opinions agreeing with your treating doctor ... I think you have something to learn from that.

Hopefully your bite will settle well and you'll learn to be happy with the results the person you chose to treat you has achieved.

Here's to your bite and smile making you happy!

[RicanMedic78]

so far, I am wearing my clear (invisiline style) retainer religiously. But I have problems. First, I had told my ortho from the begining that my bottom teeth are crashing into the back of my top teeth when I bite. I feel the movement when I place my finger onto my front 2 teeth as I bite down. And since I have a tendency to bite down frequently, I felt that it could force a relapse in my overbite. He dismissed this and said it will all settle in time on its own. I was unsatisfied but went with what he said...

After my braces came off and was made the clear retainer, the next day he attempted to place a perminant wire in the rear only to have to remove it because my bottom teeth were biting on it (because again, they crash into the back of my front teeth as I have mentioned for a long long time). So now my ortho is at a loss as to what to do. He said he can make me another clear retainer in case I lose the first one, but the problem is, I don't want to have to wear this thing for life. Its a pain, it makes your mouth very sandy and dry, and it eventually brings bad breath when used all day. Its also nasty to remove and was hoping that like with most people, there would come a time where I wont need it. But given the way the teeth crash, I feel that this will end up being a lifetime dilemma

I'm at a loss as to what my options are.... any ideas sunny or anyone?

[RicanMedic78]

teeth look good. but bottom teeth crash into the back of my top teeth when I bite all the way down

[Sunny]

Wow ... your teeth look amazing!

Your upper teeth should close slightly in front of your lowers, so maybe it's about you learning to bite properly so that your lowers don't 'crash' into the back of your uppers.

Retainers are for life and are best when worn nightly to keep your teeth where they are now.

Good luck with training yourself not to clench so hard.