Rubber bands.
Today, I entered the fun-filled world of having rubber bands on my braces. I actually only have them on one side, which is in place to pull back my upper jaw and reduce my overbite.
The orthodondist gave me two small bags, which should have lasted me for two months until my next adjustment. Unfortunately, I just spilled one all over the driveway. So, I guess I've got a month of rubber bands.
They also added an "energy chain" to my braces, which is a chain of small plastic circles connected together that fit over the brackets. Mine are nearly invisible, and just make the brackets look a little bigger. No big deal.
It's pretty obvious my teeth have stopped moving as much as they were in the past. I'm guessing this starts the "fine tuning" phase of braces, where they work on adjusting my bite and alignment as well as my teeth.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Big Girl Braces: Day 155
When I first got the braces on, I expected glacial change. I really expected not to notice much change at all in the first few months.
I was wrong.
The change isn't glacial. It feels more like plate tectonics.
The pressure builds, slowly. You really don't notice any pain for long periods, and then... something gives.
Toothquake.
I'm having a toothquake tonight. It's not really so bad, made better by the presence of good beer in the house. Another reason to do this as an adult rather than a teen. But I frequently wonder if having braces as an adult is more painful, given that my teeth were crooked for 30 years before I started to move them.
The good news is that there is noticeable change going on. I keep thinking there's food in my teeth (because there frequently is), but it's not food--it's space! There are actually spaces between my teeth. It's incredible how much they've been moving in only five months. Maybe it won't take two years after all... but I don't want to get my hopes up.
And this ends my minor complaining, because I need another beer. Also, I risk a smack down from the Giant Internet Hand of Spanking for complaining about minor tooth pain when I should be more concerned about Joseph Kony.
I was wrong.
The change isn't glacial. It feels more like plate tectonics.
The pressure builds, slowly. You really don't notice any pain for long periods, and then... something gives.
Toothquake.
I'm having a toothquake tonight. It's not really so bad, made better by the presence of good beer in the house. Another reason to do this as an adult rather than a teen. But I frequently wonder if having braces as an adult is more painful, given that my teeth were crooked for 30 years before I started to move them.
The good news is that there is noticeable change going on. I keep thinking there's food in my teeth (because there frequently is), but it's not food--it's space! There are actually spaces between my teeth. It's incredible how much they've been moving in only five months. Maybe it won't take two years after all... but I don't want to get my hopes up.
And this ends my minor complaining, because I need another beer. Also, I risk a smack down from the Giant Internet Hand of Spanking for complaining about minor tooth pain when I should be more concerned about Joseph Kony.
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