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7. Chapter:

It felt like this is the big day (Spoiler: by now, there is a much bigger day to wait for).
I was really extremely nervous, when I sat down in the office and the big screen shows all the photos and x-rays. Feels weird to see your own mouth on display.
At first we look to the imaging of my bite movement, and he explains that when I opened wide, my joints are working as they should. But when biting down, the lower jaw moves back and presses tight into the joints. Fortunately there is no big damage visible yet, but this should definetly be addressed.
Sounds right to me, and proves my theory about the deep bite at this point.
Switch to another slide. Picture of my side profile and the X-Ray from the same side with multiple lines drawn in.
And here we get to the root of the issue. (Throwback: ChatGPT and me already "solved" it, but there is a reason why orthos exist and have a pretty hard time studying their profession).

I'm shown, that my front teeth in both jaws are tilting inwards instead of slightly outwards. And on the X-Rays with those multiple lines, he shows me the angle between the nose and teeth. This one is way too small, indicating my upper jaw is entirely too far in the back and those teeth really would have to come forward.

You remember my own mind? First immediate thought was: "No way, I would need a frickin' facemask." But I managed to stay calm, at least one the outside.

This condition of the upper teeth force my lower jaw to move significantly back when biting down. If I would bite down in the way my joints are supposed to, I would basically have an underbite.

To give you an analogy of what i saw: you know these videos, how an herbst-appliance influences the movement of your jaw? It looks exactly the same, just the opposite direction and with my teeth instead of an appliance...

After that we had a look at those asthetical issues, that would be gone by facing the bigger issue as well. But honestly I didn't listen very well, I was just focused how he wants to move this upper jaw, the scary thought of a facemask still in my head.

He comes back from the shelf with those models. At this point I got goosebumps:

The first model of an appliance for the palate, I've not seen before yet. It looks a little bit like a QuadHelix with additional TADs. I learned it is a slider-appliance, that is supposed to pull my molars (and with them the entire row of teeth) forward. At the start of the treatment I will have to wear "only" this appliance for 6 months and get those molars pulled forward by 4 to 5 mm.

I really had to pull myself together to stay calm at this point. Never had a serious thought of really getting something like this...

After these initial 6 months, the fixed braces will be added, to align everything over the next 1,5 years. The slider should stay in for the whole treatment time of 2 years, because he wants to have the possibility of reactivating it, when it shows that there is more space needed due to the bite that is developing throughout the treatment.

Holy shit, it's really a lot to process at this point. Is this really happening?

There are two options for the braces only, metal or ceramic. The lingual variant isn't recommended by him, because of the appliance, that already sits behind my teeth.
No way, I could decide this right now, but luckily I can wait until the appointment in 6 months to finally decide. "You can change your mind until the point the first bracket is glued to your teeth"

Even though my mind is a mess at this point, I managed to ask another question: "Once we have enough space in the upper jaw, how will the lower jaw be aligned to biting down properly?"
In my head were more additional appliances spooking around.
But he explains, that in most cases, the lower jaw would come forward (out of its forced position) completley by itself, perhabs with some help of rubberbands.


You can tell I was completely lost at this point. It's getting real, it is necessary and it's way more complex than ever expected.
I don't know why, but without further thinking I signed the treatment plan and the contract right on the spot and made an appointment for putting the appliance in mid of July.

6. Chapter:

The first week after that appointment I went nuts... my thoughts were running from "no matter what he will come up with, just do it." To "screw it all, you hadn't had serious problems at all"

And I went deeper into my rabbit-hole. After some time I was sure, it all has to do with the deep bite. So I have to expect fixed braces with bite Turbos or even a biteplate. There was no other way to explain it. And ChatGPT thinks the same!

I had to talk to my best friend again.
I explained my situation to her, starting with this new feeling of these nightguards going to the propable need of fixed braces.
Her reaction was hilarious, but I like her exactly for this: at first real concerns about me having serious medical issues, then some giggling about fixed braces as an adult. While she was probably imagining me with braces, she said "at least you don't get these shiny traintracks like teenagers as an adult". Hmm, yes you do, we have to face that this could probably be an option at least.
Of course I couldn't tell her that I like metal braces on others.
She quickly changed to her supportive personality and assured me, that I really should do what is good for my health without concerns about others. She is right if you think about it completley without emotions. But I can't hold them back like I want to.

The weeks went by, and at least one thing in my mind cleared up:
If he comes up with an treatment, DO IT. Because I probably would absolutely hate myself for later issues, that could have been prevented.

In my head it was clear as well: it will be a treatment with fixed braces for sure and something for the deep bite as well.

But still the question:
Face my inner desire for metal brackets? But how to argument for them when asked why the obvious option?
Ceramic? Not that obvious, but with my life? I'm surviving of cigarettes, coffee and indian curry. Could be messy within the first week...
Lingual braces? I don't like them... and something constantly irritating my tounge? I would go insane probably.

Well, I still don't know what he will come up with anyway... could still be, that my mind just plays a really weird game with me.

The six weeks went by, mind constantly racing. But the thoughts are still the same. If treatment, then do it. If fixed braces, take another thought about the type and listen his recommendations.

But honestly: That night before the appointment, I got way less sleep than during my time as a student working in a club.

So, first off, I'm very excited.  So is my GF apparently for the upper and lower "retainer with brackets and headgear tubes."  A few snags in the process, probably my fault for not being specific, but the Braces Shop people are top notch and their customer service is the best.  They are truly dedicated to customer satisfaction. 

In a few weeks, we should receive the fakes that will help us flash back to when we met all those years ago.  However, I have a few questions for those of you who have experience with the product.  I am mainly concerned about rubber bands (i.e. intraoral elastics, the type that extend from one arch to the other, not ligature ties.)  Any experience here?  I know that the Braces Shop doesn't recommend them and that's understandable. However, I was advised to use the lightest pull force available. 

I'm assuming that anything that creates a downward force will be problematic.  I'm hoping that we'll be able to achieve the look of something that is reminiscent of "finishing" or "bite settling" elastics.  I know, sounds adventurous, but it's my dream.  Any recommendations or caveats?  Just looking for ideas or experiences that might be helpful. 
   

5. Chapter:

There i was, still unsure what to exactly do with the informations I got on that day. Of course I went back into my rabbit-hole, googling and asking ChatGPT...

The only thing that was more clear for me: Something is off, now for sure. Some kind of treatment will come up for sure, the only question: how complex.

Within those weeks I got this custom night guards from the dentist. It already is at least some kind of a splint, with these special planes to bite on. And wearing these made it even more obvious: I wake up way more relaxed, and my whole face felt different, but it always went back to that "normal" feeling, latest until lunchtime.

But there was a "downer" included as well: my own "compliance". I like wearing them and feel, that they are helping with my sleep, but anyway there are only about 75% of the nights where I wear them. And honestly, I hate myself for this but it just happens...
And with this knowledge I had to admit to myself: no matter what possible treatment-options ect. I would get in the future appointments, aligners won't work for me. I always liked fixed braces way more, but in reality for myself the thought about aligners were kind of a straw, if I would chicken out on my appearance with a possible upcoming treatment.

It hasn't been easy weeks for my mind and I was kind of relieved that the next appointment was coming up quickly. While I was still nervous, it atleast didn't feel that awkward to walk into the office like it was the first time.
I got all kind of examinations.
At first the assistant took pictures in all angles of me, my mouth ect. It really felt ridiculous having such a big camera that close to my face. I honestly would have been able to lick the lense if I had tried to...
Then X-Rays. At first the standard panoramic one, after that a special 3D X-Ray (of course coming with additional 100$) for the joints.

After those I had to go to the treatment room. A teenager getting braces on, in one chair. On another a boy in his late teens, having a serious talk about wear time and compliance. I instantly felt really sorry for him, this could have been me for sure...
To my surprise, I was completly calm at that point.
Two more things to do:
At first this intraoral scan. By far the best invention in years to replace these disgusting impressions.
At last, a functional analysis of my bite-movement. A frame with multiple sensors around my face to completley record how my jaws exactly move when I'm biting down ect.

At this point I thought: that wasn't too bad of an appointment. But I was invited to the ortho's office for a quick chat.

First question: How am I doing with these new nightguards.
He doesn't seem too surprised about me, feeling way more relaxed after a night with them on.

"How about the wear time? Every night?"
I feel kind of caught.
"I'm asking because you already told in the first consultation about your compliance during your first treatment as a teenager. And if it isn't way different now, I could and should take that into account right away while I work on that treatment plan with today's results."
I honestly agreed with him, slightly embarrased.
And then there was the other question. "How would you feel about a treatment being visible to others, like fixed braces? Is it an complete no-go or would you consider it if today's results would recommend it?"
There it was completley back. The mix of pure excitement about fixed braces and the fear of my own appearance to others...

"I think I would consider it, if it would be absolutely necessary!" Well, it was kind of the truth, but was it the complete truth? I don't know.
But what I already knew, that this will be very long six weeks, until my detailed diagnosis and treatment plan is ready.

This is a great read, looking forward to more!

corynnehunzyker said:

That's an unexpected turn! And now, what do you think about really getting braces? Fascination? Fear? Impatience of waiting? turn-on? I hope you get what you really want!

Click to expand...

I honestly can't tell right now. I think all of it more or less?
Sometimes a turn-on, most times really fear of it getting really awkward and weird. I feel like going insane of this mix of emotions...
What really is prominent all the time is the impatience, as the time between the signing and the official start feels extremely long.

4. Chapter:
It's a really crazy feeling. I'm sitting in an orthodontic chair, surrounded by all kinds of tools ect. that i know out of all the videos I watched the last years.
On a shelf nearby, all kind of demonstration appliances. Removable braces, fixed braces of all kinds, aligners and all the additional appliances like expanders ect.

I really can't tell what's going on, is it the anxiety of reality or the inner fantasies? In the end it doesn't really matter, but I didn't feel very comfortable in this situation.

The ortho isn't much older than me, pretty fascinating career, owning his own office at that age. We start with a conversation about the reason of my visit. Obviously it's the recommendation and since then my own feeling of something beeing off. Then my dental/ortho history, and some general health related questions.
Then it slowly starts to get more focused: "Snoring?"
Bulls-Eye, right to another weak spot...
"Ahh, honestly... very very much"

The chair reclines and he starts to dive right into the first quick examination.
- " Can confirm, overall good health of teeth and gums"
- "This wear on your front teeth is really strong"

He takes all kind of measurements while I'm opening and closing my teeth all the time, combined with his "buzzwords" that were then noted by the assistant. Most of them I know, some are new. But even while i knew these words, the numbers which he combines with the different orthodontic alignments still remain a secret to me.
Perhabs it was the best for me, not knowing if its good or bad, as my mind was going completly crazy in this situation anyway.

After all this examinations inside my mouth, he goes over to my jaws and joints.
I obviously had tried to examine them on my own at home before. So far I had not experienced any pressure or pain that I could relate to my jaws.
And my own -probaply very amateurlike- examination according to tipps of the internet didnt reveal any issues there.
But when I opened and closed my jaws he managed to hit some points. Let me tell you, he obviously knows better than me, where to touch to reveal some really uncomfortable pressure.

After some time the examination is over and the chair lifts again. My mind shifted as well, still nervous but as well some excitement wether my "self-diagnosis" was right or not.

"Well, what I've seen so far, there are some gaps between your teeth and some of them are rotated a little bit. And we can see the deep bite, that is about 4mm."
"These alignment issues, are more or less a cosmetic issue, that could be addressed with every treatment option if you would like to."

Hmm, hopefully there is more information and recommendation coming. With this vague info, I'm not coming anywhere near making a decision... But I didn't have to wait long.

"Where I'm not 100% sure about is, wether these obvious issues are the cause of your teeth grinding and obvious tensions in your tmjs. Why didn't you mention any pain in your tmjs earlier?"

"Never felt real pain, feels like always"

"Okay, you must have a pretty high pain tolerance and it developed slowly over years so you didn't feel the changes. But there are some real tensions I could feel."

Great... I knew that I had a high pain tolerance, but so much I could ignore this?

"I would recommend to dive further into diagnosing and examining this, to determine what exactly is going on. Unfortunately this isn't covered by the free first consultation. I would like to give this contract for the preparation of a detailed treatment plan to you, that costs 450$. Take it, think about it and when you return it signed you can schedule the next appointment for all detailed examinations."

"What kind of treatment should I expect then? I'm a little nervous about it"

"Well, it really depends on this next step. As you are here because of the functional question not asthetics, I currently think that it could go somewhere of wearing a tmj-splint at least at night. But if its more complicated it could be recommended to have a treatment that could tackle these aesthetic issues as well as a side effect."

To my own surprise, I signed this precontract without any further thoughts right on the spot.

Now there is the waiting for the appointment in three weeks.

3. Chapter:

I should go and see an orthodontist. What shall I do with this information now?
I'm not sure, should I feel excited because of my own fantasy about this whole topic? Or am I nervous and scared about it, because it was clearly a fantasy and i would never have the guts to do it in real life?

These thoughts came back constantly in the week after the recommendation (and are not completly sorted out until today).
And there happened another thing, that was totally be expected:
I managed myself completley into a rabbit-hole, searching for everything about TMJ, Bruxism and all the possible relations to bite-issues ect.

And, like always on the internet, Horror-Stories...
You know the drill: put the slightest health issue into the google-search and you will probably die from it.

I soon had to acknowledge:
The way of googling and self-diagnosing me, didn't do much good to my mind. But now I knew, that there could be something out of shape, and it would bother my mind as long as I didn't get an professional opinion on it. There is no way out than to take the step towards an orthodontic consultation.

The office I found nearby offered online-scheduling as well. At least no embarrasing phone call, explaining the appointment is for me and not one of my kids (don't have kids, but would be possible agewise). 

Oh my god, I really booked an consultation in two weeks. Am I going to sit in a waiting room full of teenagers? Are there other adults?

It has been two really intense weeks. Mind racing between the embarrasing image of wearing braces as an adult and the lingering excitement, that there is a slight possibility that these fantasies could come real.

At one point I had to talk about it and explained to my best friend about the orthodontic consultation. She really showed me a mirror: "you're freaking out about a consultation before even knowing if a treatment is necessary?" "Even if, your teeth look pretty straight to me, as an adult you just take some of these fancy aligners. Noone will ever notice it anyway".

Propably she is right, but my mind keeps playing tricks on me at this point, isn't it?

Finally the wait is over and I drive towards the office for my first consultation.
As expected, in the waiting room are mostly teenagers. And one woman of approximately my age. Is she in treatment as well? Don't look obviously, just focus on your own nervousness.
Thoughts are quickly gone, as she just had been waiting for her kid.

But right before I could think about beeing the only adult around, the assistant shows up:
"Okay Mr. W, please follow to the consultation room."

That's an unexpected turn! And now, what do you think about really getting braces? Fascination? Fear? Impatience of waiting? turn-on? I hope you get what you really want!

Do go on 

2. Chapter:

While towards the end of my twenties my career finally really started and my workplaces happend to be all around the world, I never changed my dentist. Still the same dentist in my hometown, where I had been since ever.

It was a logistical challenge to align checkups with the rare and then always busy visits at home. But at least I managed it to get a checkup almost every year. And as mentioned earlier, there had never been real issues to my teeth, gums ect.

The only thing that took place at around the same time at the end of my twenties was, that sights of wear on my teeth were starting to show up.
According to my old dentist, nothing to really worry about. Probably just grinding at night due to the stress of my career. He made some nightguards, basically just a thin essix-retainer, to prevent further damage.

I really can't tell why, but I was confident that he is absolutely right about it and did no further own research. It would have been obvious to do this research, as I occasionally read about all kind of orthodontic things due to my general fascination about this topic. But it never happend.

My journey with this night guards appeared normal to me. Every year I got a new one as the old retainer was really worn down. The only issue I had was my own wear-time.
Just the old topic of my own consequence, that I couldn't manage since years. I sometimes hate myself for it, but I kind of managed living with it.

Two and a half years from now, the old dentist retired and his office was closed due to the lack of someone willing to take over. And coming back to my own consequence, you can guess what has happend since then:
I hadn't been to any other dentist for a checkup since then.

By new years eve, and with some career steps resulting in less travelling ect. I made a commitment to focus on myself a little more this year.
And besides some other ideas like stopping smoking (side-note: this didnt work yet) and trying to loose some pounds (worked at least a little), there was a dental checkup on the list.


So I found a office nearby, new, modern and -important today- with the possibility for online-scheduling.
And only two weeks into the new year, I sat in this new and really modern dentist office.
Well I was kind of nervous and also a little embarrassed showing the completley worn down nightguard.

What I learned that day:
1. The wear on my front teeth is significant and should be addressed
2. My teeth and gums are still in a really good health considering the fact how much I obviously "work" on them.
3. The idea of just wearing a retainer-like device at night to prevent damage isn't anymore the state-of-the-art treatment since years.

You can imagine, I was a little surprised. Mostly about myself, that I never had considered that the techniques of my old dentist could be as old as himself. Normally I'm a person reconsidering really everything, researching many things ect. But on this topic, even with my fantasy, I have been completly blind.

At the end I agreed on getting a custom "splint", a clear device with special planes for the teeth to work on.

But there was this recommendation, that almost gave me goosebumps:
"The amount of wear on your teeth and the old nightguard really isn't what we consider "normal". As I'm no expert in this field, I would recommend you to go and see an orthodontist. As I think this isn't just "stress-related" grinding, we should check if there could be an issue with your bite or the joints of your jaw".

Boom, there it was: Orthodontist, the person of hidden fantasies and now real anxiety.

Interesting and relatable!! Absolutely hooked, please tell us more!

1. Chapter:
Dental and orthodontic history:
Well, I always was blessed with a very good oral health. To this day, I never had a single cavity, nor issues with roots or gums (knock on wood) even while I was probably not the person with the highest standards on hygiene for a long time.

As a teenager around the age of 14 I nevertheless needed orthodontic treatment. My mom and me were referred to an ortho because of my -as i know today -pretty severe deep bite, my lower front teeth were hitting and irritating the gums behind the top ones. As almost every teen this age I was kind of excited to get braces, like much of the other kids in school.
You can imagine the slight disappointment when the ortho mentioned that this could be treated very efficient with removable braces and there is no exact need to have fixed ones, but we would have both options to choose from.
I tried a discussion with my mom, who was totally into the removable option. But as a teen this age, how would you argue. The argument "everybody has them and it's cool" was really weak against her arguments regarding the costs, the impact and my own consequence regarding the dental hygiene at this time.

So I ended up getting a kind of bionator/activator appliance to wear after school and at night. In the retrospective, I still can't tell why it worked anyway, because for my stubborn teenager me it was a new challenge to find ways, avoiding to wear it at least after school. I can't tell how much, but there has been a bunch of emergency appointments because something on the appliance was broken again. But it did it's job, or at least did what was expected that time: the deep bite got better and the irritation in the gums was gone. Treatment done.

What wasn't gone, or became even stronger after that, was the fascination of fixed braces. I absolutly liked the look. At around 18, I dated a girl my age, who still had braces, and kissing her was kind of mindblowing to me.


So this stayed as a strong fantasy since then, especially with the then more rare sights of braces on woman. I often had the fantasy of getting them as an adult, but there has always been many things to consider:
1. My teeth themselves look pretty straight, no crowding, only a few minor gaps. Not really good arguments to talk about the need of adult braces. (You could still talk about the deep bite, but I had no issues with this either)
2. While it seemed absolutly exciting in fantasy, I would be completely self conscious about having them as an adult male (I never liked the look on males tbh.)
3. For a long time I was constantly broke, so even if I would need them I couldn't afford them.

At the end all of the braces thing stayed just my own fantasy, watching videos and reading fictional stories about braces.
Just until the start of this year...

Hello everyone,
As I unexpectedly slipped into an orthodontic treatment as a 35 years old male, I thought it would be fair to share my experience to you, after all the hours I had been strolling this forum, reading your stories, watching your video collections ect.

As a short comparision: While I was always fascinated by braces and had some fantasy about it, I recently slipped (really unexpected for me) into the journey towards a real orthodontic treatment.

While this is still completley crazy to me (and I honestly don't know how to feel about it), I decided to share it to you like a story, but completly based on true facts.

Currently I signed the overall treatment plan and wait for the day, the journey really starts. So you can expect some chapters of the story in the next few days until we've reached the current status. After that I plan to update everytime "something" happens.


Please feel free to ask any questions you have and give all that advices regarding my writing (non native speaker).

Hi Tommy,

: Gibt es eigentlich auch den Fall,das ein Kiefer zu breit ist ?

Klar.

: Wenn ja ,wie wird er verschmälert ?

Gar nicht. Stattdessen werden die Zähne nach vorne geschoben.

: Setzt man eine geweitete GNE ein und dreht diese schmäler sofern die Kiefernähte noch nicht verknöchert sind.

Nein, das funktioniert nicht. Wenn nur der Oberkiefer zu breit ist, und man das knöchern beheben möchte, müsste man den Unterkiefer kieferchirurgisch verbreitern (Distraktionsosteogenese, quasi eine GNE im Unterkiefer.) Da die Unterkiefernaht im 2. Lebensjahr verknöchert, ist hier immer eine OP nötig.

: Oder muss dann operativ im Gaumen ein Segment entfernt werden ?

s.o, macht man nicht, da man ansonsten Probleme mit der Nasenatmung bekommen könnte.

: Bin gespannt auf eure Antworten.....

Bitteschön!

VG, Stefan

Würdest du jemals darüber nachdenken, Fortschrittsbilder oder Bilder von Gummibändern hier zu teilen? ;D
Es wäre so cool zu sehen, das Profilbild ist so klein  :

Pünktlich nach sieben Monaten, hatte ich heute wieder einen Kontrolltermin.
Die Lücken sind nun fas alle erfolgreich geschlossen und mit Drahtligaturen fixiert. Nun geht’s an die wohl hartnäckigsten Lücken, nämlich zwischen 2 und 3 auf beiden Seiten, im OK. Hier wurden heute die ersten Gummis reingeknotet.
Zusätzlich darf ich nun täglich für 12 Stunden Gummizüge zwischen den 3“6ern im OK und den 3ern im UK tragen. War damit heute gleich mal brav für gut 10h damit unterwegs…
Ganz schön heftig. Diese Nach lass ich sie mal draußen. Morgen werd ich dann mal schauen, die 12h auf 3-4 Blocke aufzuteilen. Mal sehen ob das leichter verträglich ist.
Hat da irgendwer Erfahrung damit?

Thanks for the feedback - much appreciated.

Noted that the tubes are for your archwire. Have you got your brackets and archwires yet? Will your brackets be metal or clear?

How often do you have to turn your expansion screw and do you know how many turns you will do in total?

If your new appliance expands your upper arch significantly, how is your ortho going to ensure it still fits together with your lower arch?

From your photos it appears that you have lovely teeth.

I think it would be worth doing. I did in my 50s and have no regrets. I had clear brackets which made it more discreet ( but by no means invisible). That helped my confidence both socially and in my professional career.