Before last appointment I used polymorph (plastic which is moldable when warm) to create a bite registration ish to test and see how my bite fits currently. To my untrained eyes it looks pretty good, all teeth have good contact. I showed it to my ortho during last appointment, who was amused to say the least. She said my bite looks very good. She wants to take impressions for an analysis model to confirm that we're done with my bite. If that's the case, she recommended that I schedule a visit to my dentist for a lower bruxism night guard. I reminded her that the gap behind one canine is opening back up slightly, and that I'd like for my upper and lower incisors to touch, i.e., if she can pull them back a bit. With these slight modifications still open, I asked if it makes sense to have the night guard made now as it's adjusted to the bite and contact positions of the upper teeth.
She concurred that she'll first make the upper wraparound style retainer. By applying pressure to the labial bow she'll push my incisors back and thus also the canine.
I had one upper and lower impression made for the analysis model and another upper one for the wraparound retainer. They bought new impression trays just for me as the other ones never really worked that well for me. But those trays didn't have a palatal section. The first upper impression had a large air bubble and was thus unusable for my retainer that should fill the full palate. The solution for the second and third attempts was to first fill my palate manually with the impression material and then use the spoon. Which meant that my mouth was overfull with the impression material and it oozed everywhere.
The next appointment was scheduled for in two weeks time (which is tomorrow).
During that appointment the ortho asked me if I'm still apprehensive regarding the fixed retainer. I have less problems with it than I expected, but I still don't like food getting stuck there. She said that her treatment plan always intended the fixed retainer to be used. But if I really want to get rid of it once I have the lower bruxism guard, she'll remove it against her recommendation.
And wouldn't you know, when flossing last Thursday, the retainer came loose from my right canine. I called and went in that same day. The excess glue was removed, everything cleaned, etched and the retainer glued back to the tooth. The glue blob is way larger than before, giving it an even more artificial feeling.
The wraparound plate was already finished, so the ortho test-fit it. If it were to need a larger adjustment with new impressions, those could be done until the scheduled appointment 5 days later.
To fit the plate, first the elastic hook on my upper left first molar needed to be removed. I find it interesting how strong the hook is held on the tooth, but how little force is required to pop it loose. As that tooth is extremely sensitive, the ortho was very careful when grinding away the glue and applied lots of fluoride varnish afterwards.
The plate fits well. Only few small adjustments were needed like bending the wire in one place and grinding away some acrylic. She checked that I don't bite into the acrylic and only my teeth touch, for which she needed to grind away a bit more in the front. I was told to try wearing it for 10-12 hours a day and see if I notice any adverse changes. The ortho will start activating the string and labial bow during the next visit tomorrow.
I didn't get to choose a color and expected blue to be used just like for all my other appliances to far. Unfortunately, instead, it's transparent, which from my experience with the previous bruxism guard will quickly turn yellow-brownish (which is why I went for blue).
The wire is very thick, thicker than any of my previous plates.
The acrylic starts at the tooth and covers all of my hard palate, exactly as I wanted. It goes back very far to behind my wisdom teeth. It's rather thin, especially towards the back.
I (unfortunately) don't have any kind of lisp when wearing it. I was exited for some kind of lisp. But there's nothing. Even when it was first inserted, I didn't have any trouble speaking. If you didn't see me wearing it, you wouldn't be able to tell.
It fits rather nicely. It was applying lots of pressure on the inside of my upper right first molar. I took the liberty to use a small file (intended for 3D print cleanup) to file away bit by bit day by day from the plate at that tooth until now it doesn't apply that much pressure anymore.
I also bent the labial acrylic down and to the left a bit because it wasn't touching my incisors but pressing significantly on my gums. The right U-loop was also pressing into my gums, so I bent it away a bit.
The back edge of the acrylic was very sharp and dug into my palate. I used some sandpaper to round it, but didn't get far as it's so thin. I think about asking if it could be made thicker to better round it. The sanding helped a bit, but could be better.
These were only very slight modifications and the plate does fit way better now. I don't know if I should tell the ortho tomorrow or if she will scold me for it.
To conclude, here are some images of the wraparound retainer:
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/863502137362743399/1102593341696254013/1.jpg
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/863502137362743399/1102593342170214410/2.jpg
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/863502137362743399/1102593343080382534/3.jpg
https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/863502137362743399/1102593343654998157/4.jpg
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what would y’all say?