BracesForum.net
English => Orthodontic Treatment => Topic started by: MikeB on 23. February 2017, 01:06:27 AM
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My wife’s getting braces next month, so I thought it might be fun to chronicle the process here. First some background:
My wife is 36 and doesn’t really *need* braces. Her teeth are reasonably straight for someone who never had orthodontic treatment, and she has a nice smile. Her teeth are very healthy, but she does have a crossbite, some overbite and overjet, and some mild crookedness/unevenness, especially in her upper arch. She’s willing to get braces primarily to satisfy my fetish, but also to get a perfect “Hollywood smile” (she admits to being vain).
She’s been doing consultations for a few months now (with a long break for a trip to Virginia to help a cancer-stricken family member). We live in Phoenix, so all her consults have been in the greater Phoenix metro area. She’s very willing to get metal braces, which is my preference for both aesthetics and practical reasons. Metal is also less expensive, though price isn’t a huge consideration since we’ve saved a substantial amount of cash for this and my insurance has an orthodontic benefit.
Practice #1 – Recommended metal braces on upper arch only. This ortho did not realize that she wants to correct her bite along with improving aesthetics. Price was $2700 with treatment time of about a year. She didn’t especially like this practice, finding it a bit “ghetto.”
Practice #2 – This is a small chain that operates in Arizona and Colorado. After some coaching by me, she was aware that she needed to emphasize bite correction in addition to cosmetics. This ortho recommended metal braces top and bottom with elastics. Price was $3300, but with a 20% discount for prepayment. Treatment time was quoted at 18-24 months, which is longer than she really wants to be in braces. She liked this ortho very much, but once again found the practice a bit “ghetto.”
Practice #3 – This ortho recommended metal braces top and bottom with elastics. Price was $4500 and treatment time quoted at about 18 months. She liked this place very much, especially since it has a separate entrance and area for adults and it’s a very nice and modern office. It’s also near my work, so I could attend appointments with her.
Practice #4 – This location is in downtown Phoenix, walking distance from our condo. It definitely caters to adult patients who work downtown. They only have a general dentist, however, not a fully-trained orthodontist. He recommended Fastbraces. Price was $4800 and he could have her finished with treatment in 10-12 months (she liked that part!). But we did some research on Fastbraces and decided it wasn’t a great option for her, since it’s primarily used for cosmetic treatment, and general dentists are certified to use them in weekend seminars.
Practice #5 – This is a very nice practice with three locations in Phoenix. They recommended metal braces top and bottom with elastics. Price was $5800 and treatment time about 18 months. This place odd in that she only saw a treatment coordinator and never the actual orthodontist. She was also deluged with marketing materials, including a couple of books about braces written by the orthodontist. Frankly, the price seemed a little steep in terms of value compared to Practice #3.
That’s where we stand now. She has several more consults scheduled, mainly because we’re making this process fun. She sends me photos and videos after each consult, explaining each one. We’re also documenting the whole process in a YouTube-style video blog.
I’ll update this thread as she continues with the consults.
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Here's an example of one of her treatment summaries:
A comprehensive evaluation of the teeth including bite characteristics, arch discrepancies and tooth positioning was performed. When biting down, the upper molars on the right side are forward of the lower molars. There is spacing (<4mm) in the upper arch. There is adequate space for all the lower teeth. The center of the upper two front teeth corresponds with the center of the face. The center of the lower two teeth is 2mm to the right of the center of the face. A severely excessive vertical overlap of the front teeth exists. The upper front teeth are significantly far ahead of the lower. The upper back teeth are completely outside the lower back teeth on the left side. No additional problems were noted.
The upper jaw appears to be in a good position. The lower jaw appears underdeveloped and set back from ideal. The lips are together at rest. The muscles over the chin appear normal.
I recommend comprehensive orthodontic treatment with full braces to create a more optimal biting relationship. The estimated treatment time is 15-18 months.
She has two more consults today, so I'll report back on those.
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UPDATE!
Practice #6 - Location is in a large suburb east of Phoenix, so it's a bit of a drive, but my wife has family nearby and could visit before or after appointments. My wife liked the staff and the dentist. This one is also not a true ortho, but the wife said she seemed very competent. They recommended Tip Edge metal braces with elastics. Projected treatment time is 18-24 months, but I think the dentist just doesn't want to overpromise and under deliver. Wife didn't like that time frame, but I sure did!
There's a Groupon for this practice for $2800, so the price is good (but using the Groupon prevents us from using our orthodontic insurance benefit). That doesn't include retainers, though, so it's an extra $300 for those when the time comes. Normal price is $4800, which our benefit would knock down to $3800. Obviously smarter to use the Groupon.
Her next consult is in about 30 minutes!
Anyone have knowledge of Tip Edge they can share? https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://tipedge.com/
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UPDATE!
Practice #7 - Location is in a university town just east of Phoenix but an easy drive. It went well. She liked the staff and the (real) ortho. She was visibly relieved in her post-exam video because now she's getting consistent treatment plans, which she wasn't at first. Metal braces top and bottom and elastics, treatment time estimate at 15-18 months. She didn't balk at that at all, even though it's longer than the year she was initially hoping for. No Fastbraces or Tip Edge or anything, just normal traditional braces, which I prefer. Total after insurance would be only $2300 plus a $100 "starter fee" for photos, x-rays, etc. Not bad!
She also uttered words she hasn't before: "This place could be the one."
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I would recommend that your wife uses a proper orthodontist rather than a general dentist who also does some orthodontic work. And I would be nervous of any dentist who has to resort to Groupon.
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I concur, Embracer. We discussed it over dinner last night, and she also prefers an actual ortho to a general dentist and their somewhat gimmicky braces schemes.
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My wife and I had a long talk over a lot of wine Friday night. She seems like she's pretty well settled on Practice #7. She may cancel her two remaining consults this week.
The plan is for her to get her braces put on right after we return from our vacation in Sonoma in mid-March, so it's getting close.
In another interesting development, she actually discussed getting braces with her older sister via video messages. The sister was considering Invisalign, but now it looks like they're going to take the braces plunge together. My wife thinks doing it "together" - even though the sis is in Virginia and we're in Arizona - will make it a little easier for both of them. She showed me the videos of she and her sister talking about doing braces "together." Very cool!
I volunteered to investigate local orthos for the sister, since she has six kids and little free time, and I just sent off a spreadsheet with five well-reviewed practices. I also added some info on Invisalign versus traditional braces, general dentists versus real orthodontists, and links to some other online resources for adults thinking about braces.
We'll see if the sister decides to take the braces plunge along with my wife!
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(oops, wrong thread)
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UPDATE!
It's official: Practice #7 is the one. She cancelled her other consults and will make an appointment at #7 to get her braces put on right after we return from wine country in mid-March.
Funny thing, she now talks about it very casually. For example, we had artichokes with dinner last night and she just offhandedly commented with a chuckle, "Well, I won't be eating artichokes once I get my braces." Total acceptance.
No word back from the sister on the info I sent her yet.
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UPDATE!
I've apparently lighted a fire. Sister sent a video message yesterday thanking me for gathering the info for her and saying she's going to schedule consults right away. She was ALL excited in the video. She also mentioned that her teenage daughter would be getting braces at the same time, and they were excited to be doing it with my wife. Sister said, "So we'll all be bracefaces together!"
Looks like my wife will be going to Virginia for a week in early May, so I'm hoping they'll all be in braces by then.
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UPDATE!
Well, the date is set. She settled on Practice #7 and made an appointment to get her braces on Friday, March 24th. Boom!
Been a very long road to get here. I still won't completely believe it until she has a mouth full of (real) metal.
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Hi you're very lucky bet you can't wait,are you going to post any pics when she has them.is she fully aware of your fascination with them.
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Yay, great news! You must be very excited! Be prepared for her aching, ice cream makes a thoughtful present :)
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Thanks! And yes, I'm very excited.
are you going to post any pics when she has them
Sure. I intend to document everything. I guess I'll need to get an account on a photo hosting site, though.
is she fully aware of your fascination with them
Very much so. That's by far the main reason she's doing it, and that's what makes her enthusiastic about the whole thing. She's worn fake braces whenever I want for the last five years or so, in public and in private. She'd have never entertained adult braces had it not been for my interest.
Be prepared for her aching, ice cream makes a thoughtful present :)
Yes. I'm hoping it won't be too bad. I have a list of soft foods for her. We eat low-carb, though, so some things will either be bending the rules or will have to be avoided. There is low-carb ice cream out there, though, and she's already asked for a low-carb cheesecake!
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My wife's aware of my love for braces but won't go as far as yours in wearing them,you're very fortunate looking forward to your pics.
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Hi just had a throught,you could maybe video the whole process of getting the braces and post it on this site,this may help other husbands who would like to see there wife's in braces,they could show the video to them,it might not seem so strange to them,anyway good luck with the procedure.
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@Jonny 12 - Maybe you could get your wife into some fake braces? My wife and I have had a LOT of fun with her fakes over the last five years, and they definitely helped her turn the corner to getting real braces.
As far as a video, I definitely plan to take some video of her getting her braces put on. I may post it, but I don't know how helpful it'll really be. There are already hundreds of videos on YouTube of people getting braces.
Today I ordered a whole bunch of stuff to help my wife take care of her braces (the countdown is at eleven days):
Waterpik WP-660
Braces Survival Kit from DentaKit
Interproximal brushes
Plackers flossers for braces
Bite wafers
Comfort Covers
She already uses a nice Sonicare toothbrush, though I expect she'll go through more of the replaceable heads with braces. I already have wax, which she's occasionally used with her fakes when wearing them for a long time. Does anyone have other suggestions for things I might have missed?
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Hi MikeB,thanks for your reply yes their are lots of vids on YouTube,I have discussed getting fake braces or my preference fake retainers with my wife but unlike yours don't think it's going to happen.its a shame she has good straight teeth if there were otherwise it may be different,as for fakes I would need her to get moulds done,don't think that will happen either but I'll keep on trying with her.Did you both wear fakes together and where did you get them from,was it braceshop.good luck with the procedure.
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Jonny 12, be persistent! It took me five years to convince my wife to get real braces, but it's finally happening. Retainers especially seem like no big deal, at least to me, since they're easily removable.
I bought my wife's fakes from an American company that's no longer in business. I taught myself how to make fakes using acrylic trays, so I'll just make my wife a new set once she gets her real braces off.
Only she wears the fakes. I don't have any particular interest in fakes of my own.
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Here are a couple of images from consultations to get us started:
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://i1244.photobucket.com/albums/gg573/MikeFXB/Dunn%20edit_zpszs5jkx42.jpg
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://i1244.photobucket.com/albums/gg573/MikeFXB/Dunn%20treatment%20summary_zpsxlb2nugl.jpg
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In exactly 24 hours, my wife will be going into the exam room to get her braces put on.
YESSSSSSSSSSSSS!
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Exciting stuff Mike, bet you can't wait!!
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That is an understatement! :o
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She's in the shower now. After she prepares herself - hair, makeup, the clothes and jewelry I picked for her to wear today - we'll be off to breakfast (and mimosas for her). Then it's time to get braces!
I admit I am almost shaky with anticipation, though I slept surprisingly well. I figured I'd be like a little kid the night before Christmas. A couple of glasses of wine helped, though.
Sometime last night, she left a sweet note on my bathroom mirror:
"Today is the day, my love."
Indeed.
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Is she going well? :)
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The day went great! We had one minor non-braces hitch, which I'll tell you about as I describe the day. Other than that, I could not have asked for a more perfect day!
We got up and got ready. I'd already selected my wife's outfit, which was a pink polka-dotted dress, open-toed suede heels, and various diamond and mother-of-pearl jewelry I've bought her over the years. She did her hair and makeup, and off we went.
There were three crucial things to bring: my pocket video camera, a pile of cash (I paid in full), and her "braces survival kit." I'd laid them all out the night before so I wouldn't forget in my excitement.
We went to a breakfast place near ASU and the ortho office, and this is where we hit the only minor snag of the day. I'd mistakenly thought ASU was still on spring break, but students had returned last week. The restaurant was PACKED, when I thought it was going to be empty. It was a 40 minute wait to sit down, so we left and found another place. Luckily, the second place seated us in five minutes, and my wife immediately ordered a mimosa. She was nervous. I was more excited than nervous, so much so that my hands were shaking a little.
We had a leisurely breakfast. She got eggs benedict and I got hash with over easy eggs. I drank about five cups of coffee, which didn't help the shakes! She downed four mimosas and took a couple of preemptive ibuprofens. We left for the orthodontist, and that's when I started my video of the whole process.
"Where are we going?" I asked her on camera.
She smiled. "We're going to get braces, love."
This phrasing was intentional, hearkening back to the very first video we made when she got her first set of fake braces over five years ago.
We arrived at the ortho a few minutes early, but there was very little paperwork to do since she'd consulted there a few weeks ago. An ortho tech brought us to the private exam room and talked to my wife a bit, then the orthodontist arrived. He went over her records, made doubly sure that she really wanted to get braces today, and gave the tech some instructions. The tech was a little offish or dismissive at first, for some reason. She went off to get the supplies needed.
We went to the treatment coordinator where my my wife signed a couple of documents and a contract, and I laid down a few thousand dollars in crisp $100 bills. That felt GOOD.
We were escorted back to the exam room. When the tech came back, I asked her if she minded if I took pictures and video. She said she couldn't do any of that because of HIPAA law, but that as long as it was okay with my wife and I didn't record any other patients, it was okay. Excellent!
The tech, named Coral, started with cleaning and bonding my wife's teeth. She was quick and efficient, but quiet. When I started taking video, and told her it was going on YouTube and my blog, her demeanor changed completely! She brightened up and started narrating everything she was doing, and encouraged me to get really close so the camera could pick up everything little movement.
Coral finished the bonding and moved on to adhering the brackets. She positioned them quickly and very efficiently, mentioning that she'd been an ortho tech for nine years and had done this thousands of times. She didn't cure the brackets, and the orthodontist arrived to do the final positioning of the brackets. Once he was done, Coral used the UV light to cure the adhesive - and my wife had braces!
My wife picked her ligature color. We'd already discussed this and I told her I wanted her to do plain silver/gray. Coral placed and clipped my wife's archwires - a NiTi 14, so not the lightest wire, but not a strong one, either - and placed the ligatures on each silver bracket. After making sure there were not high spots or sharp edges, Coral had us watch a short video on braces care, and off we went.
I walked out that door into a beautiful Arizona spring afternoon with a beautiful wife with a mouth full of beautiful metal braces!
Check this album for some pics of the day:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/albums/72157682149222830
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Great pics,you are very fortunate MikeB having a pretty wife with a mouth full of metal.I would imagine many people on this forum are very envious ,I certainly am,is she experiencing the pain you always get the next day as the wires pull the teeth into position.
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She's feeling pressure on her teeth, but the only real pain is one lower premolar that needs to rotate pretty sharply.
She's eaten a slice of cheesecake and some scrambled eggs. She seems to be adapting pretty well. I think five years of playing with fake braces helped!
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Thank you for generously sharing you and your wife's experience Mike. Jonny 12 is right - I am very envious!
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Great pics,you are very fortunate MikeB having a pretty wife with a mouth full of metal.I would imagine many people on this forum are very envious ,I certainly am,is she experiencing the pain you always get the next day as the wires pull the teeth into position.
I also agree
thanks for sharing the pictures
it brings back strong memories of when my "ex" fiancée had a full set of braces fitted to correct a minor imperfection, but was willing to do it for me as well (2000 to 2002), such a long time ago
the metal braces also suit your wife perfectly, she must wear them with pride, and you must enjoy them every single day, before you know it the treatment is over.
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Thanks for the kind words. I appreciate it. I've been sharing these compliments with my wife, as well, and she feels very flattered by the nice things everyone is saying.
I'll be adding pics to Flickr pretty steadily. One of my requirements for her is that she send me at least one selfie a day. I'll be adding these to the Photobucket as I receive them. I'm also requiring her to write a weekly journal to chronicle her braces experience.
I'll also be posting some close-up pics of her braces as soon as she's ready for a lip spreader. Right now the inside of her mouth is still a little too tender. Regarding that, she tried the Comfort Covers last night, and reports they really help with the inside of her mouth. She's also been using the Orajel designed to help with mouth sores, and that's been helpful, too.
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any updates ?
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Nothing as far as treatment. I don't know if I mentioned that she has bite stoppers. They're driving her a little crazy, since it's difficult for her to chew properly. Other than that, she's doing very well.
If anyone is interested, I can post about the varying reactions she's gotten to her braces from friends and family. It's not really treatment-oriented, of course.
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Yes please, that would be extremely interesting. With me, its all about reactions if it comes ro braced
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Sure thing.
From the day after she got her braces:
We went out and made the rounds of several of our favorite downtown pubs. She was eager to get out of the house, so off we went. Reactions:
Pub 1 - no comment at all from the pretty young bartender, whom we've known for a couple of years. She definitely noticed the braces, but was too polite to say anything.
Pub 2 - no comment at all from the gruff Irish-immigrant bartender we've known for a year. I seriously think he didn't even notice, but if he did he clearly didn't care one whit.
Walking between Pubs 2 and 3, we ran into a couple of gay guys we're pretty good friends with. No comments until my wife said, "Look what I did!" and pointed to her mouth. One said, "I noticed! How long do you need to have them?" She told him a year and a half. The other just said, "Well, that's way better than having them four years of high school like I did." And that was that.
Pub 3 - no comments from the two Hooters girls. We didn't know either of them, though we do know some of the bartenders there. Mainly we just wanted to sit on the patio because it was a beautiful afternoon.
Pub 4 - Biggest reaction in this Italian restaurant/wine bar. The gay bartender immediately asked, "What's in your mouth?" She showed and said she got braces yesterday. He told her she didn't need braces and she gave him the song and dance about the bite corrections and the Hollywood smile. He accepted it and that was the end of it. He and I talked about working out way more than they did about braces.
Apparently straight people don't care and gay people care a tiny bit, haha!
From the Sunday after she got her braces:
I took her to the Suns (pro basketball) game. She grew up watching basketball with her father and brothers, and loves it to this day. We stopped at our favorite local sports bar (Pub 1 above) for a couple of pints prior to the game. It was pretty crowded, and she got some reactions to her new braces:
A bartender we've known since the place opened five years ago, had zero reaction. We chatted with him quite a bit - we know him pretty well - and while I could tell he noticed, he either didn't care or was too polite to comment.
An absolutely gorgeous (literally a model and actress in TV commercials) young server we've known for a couple of years, came bounding up to us in her usual very energetic way. I sometimes compare this girl to Tigger because of her boundless, happy, bouncing, friendly energy. First thing she said: "Look at you with those braces!" with a big smile. That was the extent of her comments on the braces, and we moved on to talking about all the big events scheduled for downtown Phoenix that weekend.
A fellow regular at this pub is an older and completely henpecked man. He was drunk and I could tell he wanted to ask about the braces. But he's terrified of women, so he refrained.
Another bartender we've know for a couple of years, visited with us for a few minutes. He said, "You got braces? Did you need braces?" She gave a short explanation about wanting a perfect smile and the conversation moved on. This bartender is quite young, about 24, and I think he's fairly accustomed to women in his age group having braces, so it's no big deal to him.
The best was another server, a great guy we've known for a couple years. We know him well enough that we occasionally hang out with him outside the bar. He came up and said, "Look at those train tracks!" She acknowledged and smiled at him. Not satisfied, he said, "No, let me really see those things!" So she gave him a giant grin so he could see her braces in all their metal glory. He asked the usual questions about why and how long. Finally he said, "But your teeth were good before. Are you spending money just to spend money?" She talked about the gaps in her teeth plus her bite issues, and then we moved on to other topics, like our horrible local pro sports teams.
We went to the game, which was surprisingly competitive considering our young and inexperienced team playing against some borderline NBA superstars. We went to the beer stand twice. She did not get carded, which I think disappointed her slightly. She commented about how this was her "first Suns game in braces." She also kept teasing me by discreetly running her tongue over her braces. Oh man!
After the game, we dropped into the sports bar again (it's between the basketball arena and our condo). This time we ran into a middle-aged retired couple we know pretty well. We all chatted at the bar, and after about 15 minutes, the woman noticed the braces and they talked about them for several minutes. I missed most of it because I was talking to the man about a musical they'd just seen at the local theatre. But the woman came across as extremely supportive, almost enthusiastic. In fairness, she and her husband were both pretty tipsy.
Lastly, another female bartender turned around from the cash register and just said, "YOU LOOK SO CUTE!" My wife smiled and was all happy.
It was a fun night!
Reactions from her family have ranged from envy (her older sister REALLY wants braces of her own) to supportive "Good for you!" type statements from her parents (her father also had adult braces).
One of her friends just said, "You didn't tell me you were getting braces!"
Her best friend knows the *real* reason she got braces. We hung out with her to watch a Final Four game last weekend. She wasn't terribly interested in the braces. She just said, "Well, you look like a normal person who has braces."
Of the best friend's buddies was more interested and kept steering the conversation back to my wife's braces. He teased her on and off about them, but I didn't hear much of it since I was talking to someone else. When he left, though, he told me, "You must be a really happy guy!" He was being sarcastic, of course. If only he knew!
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Hi MikeB.You really are a very lucky guy.the pics of your pretty wife with her braces are great,she looks very confident wearing them,there's almost a glow around her,it's as if she's wanting people to ask her about them,as I've said before there must be many people on this forum very envious of you,keep posting the pics their great,also please pass on the compliments to your pretty wife she looks amazing in them.
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Hi Jonny 12 - thanks for the kind words. I do pass along these compliments to my wife, and of course she loves it. Attention is the coin of the female realm! Yesterday she even asked how the "braces guys" are doing and if they're still enjoying her daily selfies.
As I mentioned to someone in a PM, I don't know how much of all this is luck versus carefully and intentionally maneuvering my/our life to make this possible. But I am very grateful that I found a woman who was willing to do this for me. I certainly went through a lot of women before I met her!
I'll keep posting her selfies on Flickr. Last night's was from the local pro hockey game (last home game of the season). Today it'll be from the pro baseball game! She's still waiting to get carded buying a beer, and I think she's a little disappointed that she hasn't been.
Went to a pretty good friend's birthday party yesterday. Not many questions overall, but one guy seemed very interested. He made a point of coming to sit next to us, and he brought up her braces several times. It's pretty clear that he's had the hots for her for a couple of years now - we move in the same circle of friends - but he seemed extra interested yesterday. Hmmmm.
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I talked to my wife over dinner last night, about a PM I received here from someone who was having difficulty talking to his partner about the braces fetish. She told me she'd be more than happy to correspond with girlfriends and wives about the whole braces fetish, fake braces, how she came around to getting real braces, etc. Someone else's wife did this for her and I think this is my wife's way of "paying it forward."
She also said she wouldn't mind posting here in the forum, since she's journaling about the experience anyway. Not sure yet if I'll just post her comments under my username, or if I'll get her set up with her own username. Any username suggestions more interesting than "MikeBs Wife"? ;D
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I have been reading your posts right from the first time you posted about your wife's braces journey. I have really enjoyed what I have seen posted, both here and on the picture site. It sure seems as if she is happy with her decision to get braces.
I think that she should have her own account. It would be very interesting to hear what she has to say in her own words. As for a username, maybe something like "Mrs B"
You could always try some more unusual names such as BracesQueen, QueenOfBraces, or something like BeuatyInBraces. :)
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She and I talked about it last night over dinner, and she'll create her own account here.
I'll let her pick her username. Maybe she'll take one of those suggested!
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Whew, what a weekend! We went to see Big Bad Voodoo Daddy Friday night then turned it around and went to Vegas for two nights. We danced, we sang, drank good wine and cheap beer, played billiards, watched the desert sunsets, drank "mimosas in the rainbow," ate tapas and fine Italian food, shopped at the Venetian, got lost in the MGM Grand, and people-watched on the Strip.
Minor disaster struck when one of her brackets broke loose, the lower right canine. Her upper canine was touching it and finally knocked it off. She's going in for a repair this afternoon, but I suspect they'll also enlarge her bite stoppers, which will be a low-grade irritation for her. I told her she needs to make me before-and-after videos. >:D
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Confirmed, her bite stoppers were made much larger. I'll put a pic on Flickr.
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My wife is about to resume treatment after over a years hiatus. Despite this spelling the beginning of the end of my braced babe (maybe 6 months left), it'll be great seeing new things happening in her mouth! I just feel sorry for her after painful adjustments.
Glad to hear things are going well with your wife's treatment, sounds like she's taking everything in her stride
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Your wife took a pause in treatment? Why's that?
My wife's doing pretty well. She doesn't like the new, larger bite stops very much, but she managed to eat normally last night. Other than the loose bracket and the bigger bite stops, everything's been pretty smooth sailing.
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I've heard the bite blocks are a real pain, thankfully my wife hasn't had them as part of her treatment.
We moved house over a year ago to a rural area, she simply hasn't got around to getting a new ortho (we've had a lot on) - I'm amazing she hasn't broke anything in that time.
I guess once she's all done she will have had them on for 4 years or so.
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Four years? I envy you. I'll be lucky if I get 18 months with my wife.
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Just got back from Atlanta, and took the wife along. Good times there, and she even got carded a few times! She's become pretty adept at eating in public now, and quickly cleaning her braces after a meal.
We had the good fortune to meet up with a fellow braces fetishist local to Atlanta. We had a few drinks and went to the Hawks playoff game. The Hawks lost and were knocked out of the playoffs, but we all had a great time.
Wife is visiting family in Virginia now. It'll be a long week without her around, but at least she made some good videos to hold me over! And of course she continues with the daily selfies for Flickr.
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Wife had her first adjustment today. She's experiencing some discomfort. She got new, stronger wires, which she says already feel very tight. This time the ortho used a wire tie instead of a figure-8 ligature on that pesky rotated tooth, which she says she can really feel.
The ortho went to stronger wires because she complained about the bite stoppers. He wants to really move things quickly so she can get the stoppers taken out. That sounds to me like it'll accelerate treatment, so maybe not so good for me! I'll honestly be very relieved when she gets the bite stoppers removed, though. They really make eating a lot more difficult for her.
We're off to the ballpark to see the Diamondbacks and Pirates tonight. I doubt she'll eat her customary ballpark burrito due to soreness, but she'll probably drink a few beers to ease the pain!
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Incidentally, she joined the forum yesterday. Just waiting for admin approval, then she'll chime in on this thread, and probably others.
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just saw this thread - thanks for posting your journey. you must really have an understanding wife to go along with this! She looks great in the braces, too.
Are or were you in braces yourself? If not, would you do it so you both could have them at same time?
My wife is also in braces - clear on top and bottom for her. She had wanted to get them after our kids went through them and we finally had saved enough for her to do it. I got the bug after seeing her experience and our plan is for me to get them this summer after some other health issues are taken are of and I get some needed dental work for crowns and root canal. not sure if we will overlap, but hoping so for at least a few months.
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@bradhov - She is understanding, yes, but mainly it's simply that she loves me and wants me to be happy. This is the thing that makes me the happiest. I feel the same way about her, but show it in the ways that make her happy. She was approved by admin last night, so she may chime in on this today or tomorrow.
I had braces as a teen, but have no interest in having them now. My "thing" is for pretty adult women in braces, not for myself.
Congrats on your wife getting braces, and good luck with your own journey!
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Thanks for the reply mike! Keep us posted on your wife's braces journey. I like seeing my wife in braces, too. Didn't think I would, but will miss it a bit when she gets them off
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I know for sure that I'll miss my wife's braces smile when they're gone. But hey, Hawley retainers for life! ;D
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Incidentally, I found Photobucket extremely clumsy, so I started a Flickr album instead. Bonus is that I was able to put up the video of my wife actually getting her braces.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/albums
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thanks for the link. like the pics at sporting events - you have me jealous as it is hard to get my wife to go to games!
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My wife LOVES going to games. Sports was one of the things we bonded over when we first met, actually. I taught her baseball and football, and she taught me basketball. Now we're learning about hockey together, since my adult daughter has become a giant NHL fan.
Taking my wife to games with braces was definitely a "braces bucket list" item. I can check that off the list for baseball, basketball and hockey, and of course we'll keep going to games. One of the great things about living where we do is the very easy access to sporting events. Easy walks to the Diamondbacks, Suns, and Rattlers, and a pretty quick drive to the Coyotes and Cardinals. And we do spring training baseball games every year, too!
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Hi everyone. This is Carrie, Mike's wife. I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for your kind words about my photos. I'm glad everyone is enjoying them. It took Mike a long time to talk me into doing this, but I am very glad I finally made the decision to do it. It's been amazing to see how much he enjoys it every single day. It's been very fun for me to see how pleased is.
I do get frustrated sometimes, particularly with eating. My bite stoppers are quite large, and it makes it difficult to chew certain foods. But overall it's certainly worth the inconvenience.
Do any of you have any questions I can answer? Obviously Mike can answer any treatment questions. I thiink he knows more about my treatment than I do. But if you have any questions about my experiences thus far with braces, I'd be happy to answer them.
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Thanks Mike - yes, you do have it great living where you do for all the major sports teams and spring training baseball, too. I hit games whenever I can here in Detroit for our college and pro teams. Sadly, most of them are not contenders most years.
Welcome to the site, Carrie - congrats on the braces and being willing to share the journey with everyone. Much appreciated! how are the bite stoppers? I'm set to get braces end of June and was told I'd need them and/or bite turbos for the first number of months when the braces are put on because of my overbite. The treatment coordinator told me they' be an adjustment.
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Welcome to the site, Carrie. You look great in braces - they really do suit you!
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Welcome Carrie.You look great anyway,but in your braces wow.you seem to wear them with confidence.Like the photos and video Mike has been doing.Mikes a very lucky guy that you wear braces for him and also that you love sport as well.what more could a man ask for lol.
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Hi and welcome! Your braces really suit you! You also have excellent taste in sunglasses ;)
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Sadly, most of them are not contenders most years.
I hear you, Bradhov! As I like to say about Phoenix sports fans, we're some of god's most pathetic creatures.
Thank you all for the kind welcome to Carrie.
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Let me also say welcome to Carrie and thank you for sharing your story. It gives me hope. Carrie how did Mike win you over finally? Was it a long process?
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Thank you everyone for being so welcoming.
Bradhov - I wanted to answer your question about bite stoppers. I'd like to start by saying that I don't typically do much complaining about anything braces related. I got them for Mike and I certainly don't want to make him feel guilty about any discomfort I experience. But since you asked, and you're getting them yourself, I'll be completely honest.
I hate the bite stoppers. They drive me nuts. It's not very difficult to adjust to how they feel in your mouth, in general. It feels strange not being able to close your teeth all the way together like you're accustomed to, but you get used to that easily enough. The thing I still haven't gotten used to is eating with bite stoppers. Since I can't bite my teeth together, the only place where there is contact between top and bottom is where the bite stops hit my bottom teeth. It makes it very difficult to chew certain foods. Eating has become a bit of a nuisance.
Sorry to give you negative information, but I hope it is helpful. I should also mention that mine are pretty big. I had a bracket come loose after a few weeks in braces. It happened because one of my top teeth was hitting the bracket, so when I went in to get it repaired they made my bite stops bigger. Hopefully yours will be smaller. Good luck!
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Mr. Majestic - I also want to answer your question about Mike convincing me to get braces. It certainly was a long process, but that husband of mine is extremely persistent and he wore me down!
I'm going to go all the way back to our first conversation about braces. He told me he needed to tell me something, and he was clearly very nervous. It took him a long time to come out with it, and while I waited I was becoming more and more prepared for him to tell me something awful. When he finally told me he liked women in braces, I couldn't believe he had gotten so nervous over that. It didn't seem like a big deal to me. Keep in mind that at this point he wasn't asking me to get braces. He did feel me out about wearing fakes, and I told him I would be very happy to wear fakes.
I never had any objection to wearing the fakes. I can say with 100% certainty that without the fakes I wouldn't be in real braces today. Seeing the effect they had on Mike really made it fun to wear them. I didn't just wear them at home, either. We used to go to a bar near our place (but not too near) and shoot pool or watch sports about once per week. That was where we spent the majority of our public time with the fakes, and Mike and I both have very fond memories of it. My fakes were very convincing, so all of the staff members there just thought I really had braces. And they had no idea what was really going on between Mike and me - the way he was looking at me, the way I was teasing him with a smile or kiss, or the way he watched me apply my lip gloss. It was a lot of fun.
I wore the fakes for years, and have a lot of good memories because of it. One thing that Mike did was to make plans and take me to do cool things in braces. We went on lots of trips and to cool events where we included the fakes. I think over the years I came to associate the fakes with good memories more and more, and I'm quite sure that helped his case for the real things. One thing about Mike, though, is if he decides he wants to do something with me in braces, he follows through. He doesn't just talk about the things he might like to do some day, he makes them happen.
When he first started talking to me about real braces, I found it very upsetting. I considered this very different from wearing fakes. For a long time he thought I didn't feel as confident in braces, but that's not the case at all. One of my biggest hesitataions was that I already had really straight teeth. I didn't like the idea of having to give some fake answer when people asked me why got them. When I wore the fakes, it was around people we didn't know, so they didn't know what my teeth looked like before, and there was no need to explain. What I've realized since, though, is that most people just don't care. They don't care what my teeth looked like before or why I have braces. I have had several people point out that my teeth were already really straight, and it's still not my favorite conversation to have, but I know what to say and I get through it just fine.
I think one thing that really helped in convincing me was when Mike finally agreed to let me tell my best friend about it. For all the years I wore the fakes, no one knew about it except Mike and me. That was fine with the fakes, but I was having a really hard time thinking of going through this whole process without having a girlfriend I could talk to about it. I just wanted one person who was in on the secret. Plus I really didn't want to have to lie to her about why I was getting treatment. That was really a turning point for me. I told her about it, and then I put my fakes in to show her. She's a pretty open minded girl, and I knew she wouldn't judge. I know it was really hard for Mike to let go of that control, but I'm not sure I would have gotten to this point if he hadn't.
You probably weren't expecting a novel for an answer, but I hope you find my experiences helpful. Before making the decision, Mike also put me in contact with friend's wife who got braces for the same reason. It was definitely helpful to hear her perspective. She had very positive things to say about the experience. I would be happy to do the same for any other wives or girlfriends out there.
And now we are headed out to the pool to enjoy Sunday Funday with lots of sun and white sangria. :)
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Carrie,
I appreciate the novel. It saved me from asking a lot more questions. I do have one more. Where did Mike get your fakes from? Were they comfortable? I guess that's two questions. I may have to get you to talk to my wife.
Thanks again.
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I'll let Carrie answer about the comfort level with her fakes, but I got them from an American company that has since gone out of business. Unless you want to make your own fakes, the Braces Shop here seems like the only game in town.
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Carrie - thanks for the reply back on the bite stoppers. Appreciate the feedback. I'm guessing I'll have some decent sized ones as they said they are concerned about my bite breaking off some of the lower brackets, both in front and in the back. I am guessing that eating may be the most difficult adjustment. So, getting my fill of popcorn and other crunchy, chewy foods before braces go on.
Thank you everyone for being so welcoming.
Bradhov - I wanted to answer your question about bite stoppers. I'd like to start by saying that I don't typically do much complaining about anything braces related. I got them for Mike and I certainly don't want to make him feel guilty about any discomfort I experience. But since you asked, and you're getting them yourself, I'll be completely honest.
I hate the bite stoppers. They drive me nuts. It's not very difficult to adjust to how they feel in your mouth, in general. It feels strange not being able to close your teeth all the way together like you're accustomed to, but you get used to that easily enough. The thing I still haven't gotten used to is eating with bite stoppers. Since I can't bite my teeth together, the only place where there is contact between top and bottom is where the bite stops hit my bottom teeth. It makes it very difficult to chew certain foods. Eating has become a bit of a nuisance.
Sorry to give you negative information, but I hope it is helpful. I should also mention that mine are pretty big. I had a bracket come loose after a few weeks in braces. It happened because one of my top teeth was hitting the bracket, so when I went in to get it repaired they made my bite stops bigger. Hopefully yours will be smaller. Good luck!
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I added a video of Carrie talking about her first month with braces:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWurgB-IiU0&t=17s
She also has one talking about her first adjustment. I'll try to get that one edited and added to Flickr, as well.
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Also added the video with Carrie talking about her first adjustment:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aW__-o8x8s&t=36s
Some pretty good shots of her braces in this one, even though it's cell phone video and not super high-quality.
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Mr Majestic - I found the fakes to be quite comfortable. There were times when I wore them for an entire weekend. They're basically the same as teeth whitening trays with brackets glued on. The brackets feel kind of weird at first, but I found it a very easy adjustment. And you don't eat with the fakes in, so you don't deal with the same complications you have with real braces.
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Thanks to you and Mike both. You are a wealth of information for fellow enthusiasts. I hope you are both loving the journey as much as you show in your pictures.
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@mrmajestic723 - It's my pleasure. Really. ;D
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Not really an update, but just a couple of things of interest. Carrie and I spent the holiday weekend in Tucson. We stayed at a nice resort, we had some nice meals, visited a couple of wineries, and went to a reptile show (as you may have seen in the Flickr photos). On a more somber note, we also visited the grave of one of my comrades who fell while we were in Afghanistan.
We were having a sundowner at the resort with a nice bottle of white wine when I asked her if she was still glad she got braces. She responded, "Absolutely. I wouldn't do any of it differently, and I'm very happy I got braces."
We drove back to Phoenix yesterday and spent most of the day lounging at the pool with a group of friends, some of whom were new to us. One of the new friends was curious about her braces, and mentioned that he'd thought about getting them himself. They talked about it for several minutes, which was interesting to hear.
Last night after the pool we were sitting on the couch and she was playing with her new snake (purchased at the reptile show, now named Henry). I was snacking on some cubed watermelon, and I started to feed her bites of it. It was surprisingly sexy!
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Any updates? How is life in braces Carrie? Mike how is it living the dream? I hope all is going well. Those are some great pics you have been posting.
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@mrmajestic723 - We just got back from a trip to Santa Fe for a family reunion. It seemed to me like reaction to Carrie's new braces was minimal to nonexistent, though maybe I missed something and she'll mention it when she responds. Anyway, we had a fun time visiting with family at the very cool resort.
As far as living the dream...it's even better than I'd dared hope. I literally cannot remember a time when I enjoyed life this much. Ticking things off the "braces bucket list" is extremely satisfying. And I expect things will only get better based on a couple of recent conversations with Carrie. For example, even though they haven't been prescribed for her yet, we started playing with her wearing (very light) elastics, which has been REALLY fun.
I'll keep updating Flickr. Thank you for the kind words!
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Carrie (or Mike for Carrie) Any thoughts on sparkly or metallic lipstick? I have seen it work on other women to bring extra shimmer around the braces and compliment/highlight them.
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Carrie's on a cross-country road trip, so I don't expect she'll post in the next week or so. She'll keep up with the daily Flickr selfies, though. I'd be all for the sparkly/metallic lip gloss. Pretty cool idea!
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So I wish a good time for both of you. I haven´t been here for quiet a while and came to this report of Carrie´s adventure in braces. She is for sure a true beauty, because she shows so much inner beauty in addition to the obvious outer beauty. :) It is very rare in our times that a woman is acting with pure love, so she is maybe the one out of several millions, congratulations, Mike!
There is only one aspect that I am concerned about, the safety aspect. As far as I understood your report, you are both very keen in sporty activities. A long time ago I was standing near a woman in braces, when suddenly during a play a guy gave her with his elbow a heavy punch into her face without intention. I will never forget this, because she was heavily bleeding in her mouth, the lips had been pushed into the braces. This woman was the sister of a friend of mine, so I went to the family quiet often. After all these years I cannot remember how long she was suffering from this injury, but it have been some month for sure. And now comes the point, why I write this message: She was very soon after this had happened wearing a so called mouthguard for both the upper and lower braces. She once told me, that she very much regretted the fact, that she did not have such a protection for her lips when the accident occured. If I remember correct, she even was wearing this mouthguard at home, when she was playing around with a younger brother.
I am sure, that you both will understand, why I am writing this message, it would be such a drama, if anything alike would happen to Carrie. May you please think about this safety aspect and may you, please, excuse all my faults, because I am not a native English speaker. I wish you a peacefull future for all the rest of Carrie´s treatment and the rest of your lifes.
Greetings from good old Europe!
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@anton08 - Thank you for your kind words and your concern for Carrie's safety. I'm sorry to hear about your friend's injury! Fortunately, the overwhelming majority of sports fans here in Arizona are kind, polite, and relatively calm. We've never felt like we were in any danger -- accidental or purposeful -- at the ballpark. I can't really picture Carrie wearing a mouthguard at a baseball game, though I suppose her Comfort Covers might be discreet enough to wear if she ever felt the need.
In any case, since we practice very traditional gender roles in our marriage, it's my responsibility to see that no harm comes to her, whether from stray baseballs or rowdy fans. While I am a very friendly person, as a former Army paratrooper and war veteran with a reasonably muscular physique, I can be fairly intimidating to folks around us in the stands if I want to be. Carrie is also a delightfully friendly woman who makes fast friends wherever she goes, so we don't tend to encounter trouble no matter where we go.
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just wanted to say thanks for continuing to keep us updated on your wife's journey and posting the picture. fun to see her progress. My wife is in home stretch and they at doing one more month of fine tuning. She gets her braces off end of July. We'll see what they recommend for retainer wear and then I get to start.
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Carrie has an ortho appointment this afternoon. It'll be either pink or light blue ligatures this time! I'm going with her to get pics and probably some video. I'll give everyone an update tomorrow and post the pics to Flickr.
Really hoping she'll be freed from the bite stoppers!
@bradhov - We're definitely going to get Carrie Hawley retainers when she's done with her treatment. We'll also get her a set of Essix for dressy occasions, but the Hawleys will be her main retainers.
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Any chance of another adjustment video? The pics are great but the videos add context.
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100% chance. Just give me a day or two for some editing.
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UPDATE:
Carrie went with pink this time. She got a power chain on her top teeth, which looks great. I was a little surprised that she got a power chain this early in her treatment, but the movement of her teeth was opening a gap between her front teeth and also on the left side. The chain will obviously help close those up. No luck on the bite stoppers, alas.
I took some video of the appointment (the ortho tech was also quite hot!) which I'll post on Flickr once I get it edited.
And as a reward for being a good braces girl, she got Coldstone ice cream, a new pair of Warby Parker sunglasses, and two pairs of Johnston & Murphy shoes! ::)
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I just uploaded the newest video to Flickr. Hope you all enjoy!
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uvok0pgrq1Y&t=36s
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FURTHER UPDATE:
She definitely looks different with the pink chain, that's for sure. I love the look. When she had the gray ligs, her mouth always looked a little "dark" (which was the first thing one of our regular bartenders mentioned when he first saw her). Now it looks really bright, fun and cheerful. I definitely like this look more than I expected.
Wires are 22s, which you can hear the ortho say in the video if you listen really closely. She's definitely feeling achy between the new wires and the addition of the very tight power chain. The stubborn lower tooth finally rotated into position enough that she no longer needs the wire tie or even a figure-8, so that's good at least. She commented at yesterday's ball game that she was accustomed to her lower teeth being sore, but the uppers hurting this much was a bit of a new sensation. She's on very soft food for now: ice cream, Ramen, refried beans, mac-n-cheese, etc.
Interesting sidebar: a week or so before this adjustment, she was being poked by the archwire on her lower left side. Because her teeth had moved, the wire had emerged from the molar tube. She didn't want to bother to go in to get it fixed when her appointment was so close. She did ask me to order a distal end cutter in case it happened again, so I can just snip it off if it happens again. I have one on the way.
She was very pleased that I attended the appointment, as was I, so I'll plan to attend the next one. We goofed and scheduled her next one for August 11, but then realized that she'll be in Maine that week. She's going to reschedule today, and I'll take at least a partial day off to attend that appointment, too.
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How have things been since the last appointment? What about the power chain? Does Carrie likes the way it looks?
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Carrie doesn't complain about things, but I suspect her upper teeth are still a little tender from the power chain. Heh, on Sunday she bit into a Swedish fish (gummy candy) and yelped that it hurt her front teeth. Though, hmmm, Saturday night she was able to eat a slice of pizza without an issue. Maybe she'll chime into the thread at some point on this.
As far as how Carrie thinks the chain looks, I don't know. I've never asked and she hasn't volunteered. I'd guess she's not crazy about it, but she doesn't really like how braces look on her in general. She's told me that she "likes to look her best" and that braces aren't her best look. This was one reason she was resistant to the idea of getting braces for so long. It looks good to all of us here, of course, but braces aren't of any interest to her except as they relate to me.
Next appointment is August 16. I've taken that afternoon off...and the next day. >:D
She also requested a new set of Comfort Covers, so I ordered those, and the distal end cutter arrived the other day. I'm always trying to make this as comfortable an experience as I can for her.
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I just checked the picture page. Great shots. Carrie looks wonderful and the braces suit her well. How has she been with everything?
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Thanks for the kind words, mrmajestic723! I'll actually have a bit of a pic dump on Flickr later, when I get a bunch of images from Saturday's casino night. I expect there will be some good images in that pic dump, since she was being very...playful...with her friends.
Carrie's been excellent. She very seldom complains about anything at all. The biggest change since she got braces -- thanks to the bite stoppers -- has been her choices in food. She's definitely moved to softer foods in general, but this seems to suit her fine, since she's never been a "foodie" type. In fact, I often tease her about having the palate of a 12 year old.
I did recently order her several more sets of Comfort Covers. She likes to wear those when she sleeps, and her original pair was getting worn out to the point that they were slipping off her back brackets.
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Just uploaded a bunch more pics from casino night. Pretty good stuff!
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Just uploaded a bunch more pics from casino night. Pretty good stuff!
Great pictures, thanks for sharing
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Thanks! It was a really fun night.
She's off to a family reunion in Missouri, but I told her I expect daily selfies!
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Mike or Carrie, is there anything Carrie (you) haven't been able to eat since getting the braces? I'm hitting all the no-nos while on vacation. If you or she think of anything, let me know.
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Carrie's back from her family reunion, so maybe she'll chime in.
Her main issue has been the bite stoppers more than anything. She was never really a big consumer of most of the "forbidden fruit" foods, so giving them up hasn't been much of an issue. She definitely tends toward softer foods most of the time, and has basically given up on our normal low-carb lifestyle while she's in braces. She eats a lot of mac-n-cheese, Ramen, pasta, refried beans, soft stuff like that. Surprisingly, she's had no problems with bread, and can eat pizza, eggs benedict, etc. She also has no problem with her favorite Taco Bell meal of a Mexican pizza.
The puffy Cheetos, though. Oh man. She literally won't even eat them when anyone else is around. That and salad. She hates how all that gets caught in her braces.
Like I said, palate of a 12 year old!
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My wife has had braces for over 20 months and the only major things she has not been able to eat are nuts and corn on the cob. A few tortilla chips that are hard are also off limits, but she's found substitutes Yes, my wife has similar issues with salad and is always asking if she has food stuck in her teeth whenever we go out to eat. She's avoided any appliances, but has had to wear elastics for well over 1/2 her treatment and that is more of a pain for her than the braces themselves.
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not sure you've had this happen to you or not, Mike, but my wife and I went to baseball game last night (another blown lead and loss for my Tigers, but that is another matter!), but the woman sitting right by us had braces on and noticed my wife with braces. The two spent half the game talking about their treatment, the good and bad. It was pretty entertaining. The woman had metal braces and elastics and was about half way through her treatment. This was the first time we've gone out and had someone get into extended conversation about braces. most times, there is maybe a quick comment from someone, but usually nothing more.
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Condolences on the loss. My Dbacks lost last night, as well, though we weren't at the game since they're in St. Louis. Our #2 pitcher got hit in the head by a liner, but he's apparently okay, thankfully.
Carrie is extremely social and talks to just about everyone, but I'm sad to say I've never observed her having such a braces-centric conversation with another person in braces. She's had many (dozens, probably) convos with family, friends and acquaintances about her braces, why she got them, etc. But those have mainly been brief, as most people only care superficially, and the talk moves on to other subjects quickly.
The only somewhat lengthy convo I've observed was with a friend of ours who is a dental hygienist who also recently did Clear Correct (Invisalign knockoff). She had an above-average interest in Carrie's braces, for obvious reasons, but it wasn't anything like what you and your wife experienced. I can only wish!
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Carrie has an appointment this morning with her regular dentist for her routine six-month cleaning. They don't know yet that she now has braces. Also, haha, this is the same practice that basically told her she was crazy for considering braces. But the son has now taken over the practice from the father who told her that -- and Carrie used to babysit the son when she was a teen!
I'll report back if anything of interest occurs.
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Nothing big to report regarding Carrie's routine cleaning. No cavities and teeth sparkling clean. Her braces weren't a big deal. She did talk to the young dentist about them a little, which I found a bit comical:
"So a couple of years ago I asked your dad about getting braces. He told me I was crazy and didn't need braces. So I thought about it for a year...and got them anyway."
Young dentist: "Haha, that's cool."
And that was about it. Not even dentists care when adults get braces!
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My wife actually had good experience with our dentist when she suggested braces to her and they recommended several places to go to. When I asked the dentist about braces for me, she said it was no big deal and just said I'd need more cleanings during treatment. I don't know if we just got lucky, but they've been suportive, though we had to bring up getting braces. They didn't come right out and recommend we get treatment.
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My dentist recommended braces more than 10 years ago. When I brought it up recently he seemed to be somewhat dismissive, though I do t know why. My guess is he thought I was only asking in relation to tmj disorder which the braces don't always fix.
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I added a fun little video on Flickr, "90 seconds of selfies." Maybe it will save someone some scrolling time!
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/35518554524/in/dateposted/
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nice collection - thanks for putting it together, Mike!
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Glad you liked it. It was very easy!
I'm documenting all this for posterity, but it's also a lot of fun.
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after seeing your, I s=wish we'd done the same with my wife as the change has been pretty significant in terms of her smile and alignment.
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I deleted the videos on Flickr. I only just now realized Flickr limits vids to 3 minutes! I'm setting up an unlisted YouTube channel to host Carrie's progress videos. I'll post a link here when the channel is up and running.
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Just dropped like 15 pics into the Flickr album of Carrie's little side jaunt to Boston. Some cute pics.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/albums/72157680716009024
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This afternoon will be Carrie's third adjustment. She'll *probably* go for lavender ligs. To be answered today:
Will the hateful bite stoppers finally come out?
Will she continue with the upper power chain?
Will she get elastics to start working on her bite correction?
I'll be taking the usual video at the appointment, of course.
On a side note, she'd quit wearing the Comfort Covers for a couple of months, but the inside of her mouth was still getting a bit irritated. She's back to wearing the Covers when sleeping. I ordered her three sets so she has spares, and wrote a note on my bathroom mirror (dry erase marker) to remind her to put them in before bed.
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Oh and just FYI, I got Carrie's videos sorted out and uploaded to YouTube.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRKtdhbQm9CJV_5RAacgh0g
If the link fails, just search "Mike FXB braces."
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Awesome - thanks again to you for posting and Carrie being okay with pictures being posted!
My wife just got hers off yesterday and was bummed I couldn't break free from work to see them get taken off
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@bradhov - That's sad news about missing your wife's removal appointment. I missed Carrie's first adjustment, but I'm not going to miss another. She prefers it when I go with her, anyway.
UPDATE:
Carrie had her third adjustment yesterday afternoon. I took a half day off work. We had lunch (Mexican food) and a couple of drinks, and headed to the ortho practice. We waited about ten minutes and then they took us in.
The orthodontist saw Carrie immediately. Results:
- She got a slightly heavier upper archwire. No change to the bottom, except re-tying with new ligs.
- She's continuing with the upper power chain.
- They did not have lavender ligs/chains, so she went with light blue. We both think it looks good.
- She had a couple of ligs in "figure 8" configuration previously, but those are now gone in favor of standard configuration.
- The hated bite stoppers remain in place.
- No elastics yet.
- The ortho will do x-rays at her next appointment and is likely to move some brackets. She may get the bite stoppers out at that time.
- Next appointment is October 12th.
Naturally she immediately felt pressure on her upper arch, because of the stronger wire and the power chain, but it's nothing she can't handle. We went to happy hour after the appointment, where she had some wine but no food.
In all, it was a pretty normal adjustment. I got some good video which I will post on YouTube once I get it cleaned up.
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Latest vid is up on YouTube, same channel as above.
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Just put up a new video with Carrie talking about Comfort Covers, probably her most useful braces "accessory" besides the Waterpik.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LEVbdCXG_LI
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We're off to Milwaukee tomorrow through the 29th, so Flickr updates might be sporadic. I'll try to keep on top of it in case any of you are following!
Business trip for me, but Carrie is going to take a day and drive to Indiana to see her brother in Lafayette then some friends outside Chicago. That girl is always on the go.
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The Milwaukee trip went well. We had a nice time exploring downtown Milwaukee, and Carrie enjoyed her trip to Indiana and Chicago. Many pics on Flickr. We were on separate flights (my decision to bring her was last-minute) and she did encounter a couple of delays on the way home, but nothing serious.
Her bottom teeth are clearly moving. The archwire on her lower left emerged from the buccal tube while we were in Milwaukee and was stabbing her in the cheek. Once we got home, I pulled out the trusty distal end cutter and clipped it off. She was immediately relieved!
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It seems it was a nice trip ! Thanks for the news !
I hop the archwire did not hurt her too much ! How does she tolerate the treatment after a few months ?
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Carrie isn't a complainer, so she doesn't make a big deal about soreness most of the time, even right after an adjustment. The fact that she mentioned the poking archwire several times is how I knew it was truly bothering her. I'm glad I'd already bought the distal end cutter so I could take care of it when we got home. Making an appointment at her ortho and driving 40 minutes round trip just to clip a wire seems excessive.
Anyway, she said she felt better immediately after I clipped the wire, and observed just a couple of hours later how quickly her mouth healed from the sharpness of the wire. Now if I could just get her to wear her Comfort Covers more consistently, she'd almost never have any irritation issues!
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I think we're going to do a couple of more videos between now and Carrie's next adjustment (October 12th). The first will be about her Braces Survival Kit, a cool little item I picked up from Dentakit right before she got her braces.
The other potential vid is a Q&A. This is an idea I got from a member here. I doubt we'll do it on YouTube Live, but if you have questions you want her/us to answer, post them here or send them to me in PM. If there's sufficient interest, we'll do the Q&A.
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Driving to Rhode Island from Boston, Carrie reminded me that she's now been in braces six months. How time flies! She's a third of the way through with treatment already.
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Carrie had her fourth adjustment yesterday. It was nothing earthshaking. They took an x-ray, went to a stronger archwire on the bottom, and left the top wire the same. She chose silver ligs and power chain. The way the ortho talked, it seemed like keeping the power chain was sort of optional, but he recommended keeping it and so she did. She still has the bite stoppers, but they're going to move some brackets at her next appointment, so she may finally be freed of those accursed things in late November. Still no elastics. I have to say that I REALLY like the look of the silver ligs/chain.
I'll be putting a video on YouTube today or tomorrow, so stand by!
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Fourth adjustment video is up on YouTube:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=55eJdBQqzMI&t=33s
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Time is flying by! We had a nice Thanksgiving and then a long weekend in Las Vegas -- shopping, eating, drinking, dancing -- which was super fun.
Carrie has her next adjustment tomorrow afternoon. Her ortho plans to move some brackets, so it should be a longer appointment than usual. I'm still hoping she can lose the bite stoppers, which continue to somewhat frustrate her. She may also get elastics at this appointment. I'm going to have her stick with the silver-colored ligs (and power chain, if she continues with that). I'll make the usual video and put it on YouTube, of course!
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Carrie had her fifth adjustment yesterday. No luck on getting rid of the hated bite stoppers, which she may have for the duration of her active treatment.
As far as braces changes:
- She is released from the "pain chain" (upper power chain).
- The ortho repositioned the brackets on her upper front incisors and her right lateral incisor. Presumably he will use the brackets on the front incisors as pivot points to bring down her lateral incisors and give her less of a "bunny rabbit" look to her front teeth.
- She got a stronger upper archwire (.16 x .22, I think). Her lower archwire remained the same. I think her ortho is being considerate and only causing aching on one jaw at a time!
- Same ligs as last time (silver) and I think they look chunkier when new. They do seem to sort of "settle in" as the weeks pass, though, and begin to look a little smaller.
- The ortho told her she'd get elastics to start midline correction at her next appointment (January 11). This means rubber bands for our next Vegas trip!
She's feeling a bit of pressure across her upper front teeth this morning, but nothing she can't easily handle.
I posted some pics from right after her appointment on Flickr:
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/37822549455/in/dateposted/
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/38654622436/in/photostream/
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/26934472259/in/photostream/
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/24837477408/in/photostream/
https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/37822548155/in/photostream/
I took quite a bit of video, which I'll try to edit today and put up on YouTube.
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Thanks for the updates, Mike! Looking forward to more updates in the future.
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My pleasure. This little archive will be something I can enjoy for years after she gets her braces off!
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The latest video is live now: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9FTS_APjMtg
It's pretty lengthy since this adjustment was more complicated than usual, with the bracket repositioning.
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thanks again for the updates!
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Thank You for Your Informations, pics and Videos ! all the Best for You!
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Great update ! I hope it is not too long or painful for her !
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Just a quick little update:
Carrie's only had some mild pressure and soreness since her last adjustment, and really just on the three brackets that were repositioned. The soreness has gone away now. However, her rearmost lower right bracket (with the buccal tube) came off on Saturday morning. Fortunately, the exposed archwire isn't stabbing her or anything, but she can't get into the ortho until Tuesday to have the bracket replaced. If the archwire does end up poking her today or tonight, I can just clip it with my trusty distal end cutter, as I've done with other poking wires before.
Me, when learning the bracket had come off: "Were you eating something hard, that you're not supposed to eat?"
Carrie: "Ramen noodles."
Me: "Oh. That's not supposed to happen."
Carrie: "No kidding."
She managed to recover the bracket. I put it in a snack bag to keep as a souvenir. ;)
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Carrie got the broken bracket replaced yesterday. She had to do a walk-in at the ortho practice, since no appointments were available and the orthodontist needed to be present to position the new bracket. She sat in the waiting room for about an hour before she was called back. The replacement was uneventful, however. She made a short video about it:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QXGGD0YQtB4
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Also of interest, I had a slight scheduling conflict with her next appointment. She offered to move the appointment back a week or so. The thing that jumped out in her text about it? "I can move it back to the next week. I don't mind moving things back to prolong treatment a bit."
Verrrrrrrrrrrrry interesting!
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Is she enjoying this more than she anticipated?
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I think so. She's well past the point of the braces being uncomfortable, save a little soreness after adjustments, and cleaning is just an accepted routine now. All the awkward little conversations with family and friends are in the rearview mirror, as well, so now there's really nothing to the braces except how much it pleases me. She observed a couple of weeks ago that we have sex way more often than we used to, and that's true. Frequency has probably doubled, and since she's basically insatiable, she's really been enjoying it. That may be a lot of the motivation for her -- and maybe not even so much the sex itself, but simply being found so desirable.
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We're off to Mexico for a few days, so if anyone is following the Flickr account, there won't be any updates until we return next week. I'll try to take lots of pics while we're south of the border, especially since this will in all likelihood be Carrie's only Christmas in braces.
To everyone who celebrates: Merry Christmas from Carrie and me!
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Enjoy Mexico - merry Christmas to you, too!
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Well, we had a great time in Mexico over Christmas, and fortunately there were no orthodontic incidents or issues! I only got a (very) few sightings of Mexican women in braces, though, so maybe that's actually more common among Latinas here in Arizona than in Mexico. We also had a fun time on NYE, and I put a bunch of pictures from that night on the Flickr album.
Carrie also did a video "review" of DentaKit's Braces Survival Kit over the weekend. I just put that up on YouTube here:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3kYiosKbNGs
Her next adjustment is January 11th, and she's expecting elastics at that appointment. She's also begun talking seriously about ways to extend her treatment so she can wear braces longer. Anyone have ideas beyond postponing adjustments and poor elastic compliance?
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That's cool that Carrie is talking about ways to lengthen treatment, I guess she appreciates how happy her tinsel teeth make you!
My wife has been in braces since Oct '13, she hasn't had an appointment in 2 years now. As well as the obvious of postponing appointments, what really slowed down her treatment was that the orthodontist gave her short sections of powerchain to change each week to close her premolar extraction gaps. She found this difficult and fiddly, basically she pretty much never changed them and the gaps were incredibly slow to close. Now, with no powerchains in 2 years, the gaps are around 5mm (top and bottom, left and right).
Her 6 front upper and lower teeth are in twisted wire ligature wire so they aren't going anywhere, though I am amazed that she hasn't popped a bracket or anything. Despite the lack of ortho visits, her braces are in perfect condition. I do miss her (semi) regular appointments, it is fun seeing the new hardware added to her mouth and getting to explore that.
Good luck!
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If you are willing to put a little more money into her teeth, just ask the ortho to extend the treatment. Most ortho's should be willing to add appointments if they are still making money. Ask your Dr. how much he/she will charge you. They all base the treatment costs on the length of time and the number of appointments. Most of the cost is not in the materials used, it is the cost of the building and employees.
Braceface 2015
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Really good news for both of you that she thinks to extend her treatment time ! Is she beginning to appreciate to have them or is it just a way to satisfy your request ?
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I would have thought it unethical for an orthodontist to extend treatment time beyond what is properly needed, although there must be a significant margin as to what constitutes "finished." Braces do leave ones teeth in a somewhat vulnerable state and should not really be worn for longer than clinically required. But I would think you and Carrie will have plenty of scope for extending your fun with carefully chosen retainers!
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Thanks for the suggestions! I appreciate them.
@Braceface2015 - I paid for Carrie's braces in full before she began treatment. There was an estimate of time in braces (15-18 months), but that was it. I think if she just postpones several appointments, and perhaps doesn't comply 100% with elastic wear, we could probably stretch her to two years without much trouble.
@radian - She appreciates them in the context of how happy her treatment makes me, but she doesn't have any particular appreciation for them herself. However, she did comment that having braces just wasn't a big deal anymore, and she barely even notices them except when cleaning her teeth. As far as other people, as she put it, "everyone who would comment on my braces has already seen them."
@Embracer - I definitely wouldn't ask her ortho to do anything unethical or harmful. I doubt, however, that the difference between 18 months and two years in braces would really affect the (excellent) health of her teeth. Many people wear braces for two years and often well beyond with no ill effects. I do intend to get Carrie both Hawley and Essix retainers once her active treatment is complete, however, with specific rules for the wearing of each. >:D
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The teeth are most at risk will they are being moved. That is when the roots are being affected. After they are in the final position, the braces really are no different than a fixed/bonded retainer. The orthodontist really treats the patient for the minimum length required to do the work needed. In theory, there really is no maximum amount of time a person could have braces. There may be some issues with cavities if a person doesn't brush enough or a build up of plaque between the teeth, but having a regular dental cleaning can take care of those issues. Back when bands where the normal thing, treatment time was longer then it is now with the the improved techniques in use.
I have talked with my orthodontist about the length of my own treatment. He has said that he was willing to spend a bit longer treating me. There are always very minor things an ortho can fix.
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Carrie's next appointment is in a few hours. She's expected to get elastics at this one, and probably an archwire change. She expressed some nervousness about the elastics last night ("I don't want to get rubber bands!"), but I'm sure she'll be fine with them.
As usual, I'll capture some video and post it to YouTube.
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Looking forward to seeing it!! Hopefully with elastics!
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Let us know if the elastic part has begun !
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It was a very interesting adjustment! Let's break it down:
THE GOOD
She got new archwires top and bottom. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to determine the gauge. The top archwire looks more rectangular. I'll study that further. I was too excited yesterday for a really close inspection.
She stayed with silver ligatures, which she knows is my preference.
She got Class II elastics. They run from her upper canines to her rearmost brackets (the hooks on the buccals). She was issued "medium" strength, but the ortho promised heavier elastics next time. There was already commiseration from the ortho tech and the ortho about how sore the elastics are going to make her teeth.
The ortho tech was a very attractive young Latina with metal braces, pink ligs, and elastics. She mentioned she'd been in braces for over three years because she'd been non-compliant and skipped three months of appointments!
THE BAD
The ortho referred to these archwires as her "second to last." :(
She's in more pain than she's been since she first got her braces, and took ibuprofen for the first time in months. Fortunately, this hasn't stopped her from performing interesting oral activities, both yesterday and this morning. >:D
THE FUNNY
She had a heck of a time putting in the elastics the first time. It was pretty funny, and I captured it on video. I'm going to put it on YouTube as a separate bonus vid in addition to the normal adjustment video.
I had her take some selfies in the car right after her appointment, so she made some silly faces and snapped pics. The pics are in the Flickr album: https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/
After the appointment, we went home and celebrated with some champagne and other interesting activities.
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Wow, her treatment is going fast. Enjoy the elastics!
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I definitely will! And she's still making noises about ways to (moderately) extend her treatment, so we'll see what happens there. The soreness from the elastics might push her toward finishing up as soon as possible, though.
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Mike, hope you don't mind but I've been following your wife's story as a lurker for a while now, thought it was time to get in and contribute too! Hope everything is going well. Seems like you've been able to be very open with her about things which is rare, and great! All the best to you both!
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Your wife looks great with her braces! Too bad itll be over soon though lol
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@ortho218 - Yes, she's one of the most open-minded women I've ever met, so I can tell her pretty much everything without a bit of embarrassment. She's always eager to accommodate me. And feel free to comment as often as you like. Carrie doesn't really post here, but she checks in on the thread from time to time.
@erin_wires - Thank you. Not sure how soon things will wind down, but some people have had "finishing wires" for a while. And there are always Hawley retainers after that!
I just put up a couple of videos on YouTube.
Carrie's sixth adjustment: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mak761gt_Gg
The elastic struggle is real: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C64Ib5EqDy8 This one will probably bore the general public, but the folks here might enjoy it. I thought it was funny.
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Wow - I can't say I'm not jealous! You really are a lucky man......
Hope the elastics aren't hurting too much - they look great and I bet they feel great too for you.
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Unfortunately, the last several days have been the roughest patch since she first got her braces. The elastics are really irritating the insides of her cheeks, and they're putting a lot of pressure on her lower arch. I'm hoping this will ease up in the next few days.
On the plus side, she's pretty tough and the discomfort hasn't stopped her from doing everything she'd normally do with her mouth. >:D
Heh, Saturday we met with a group of friends for drinks. Two of them are dental hygienists and one is a dentist, so there was a lot of braces talk and inspection of Carrie's mouth. She made a point of calling attention to her new elastics, which was a fun conversation to observe.
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Based on a request from the Braceface Beauties account on YouTube, Carrie's going to do a "custom" Q&A video about her braces experience. Braceface Beauties wants her to talk about what she'd say to other adults considering braces, which is fine. But I thought she could discuss other things like:
- Why did you choose metal braces?
- How does it feel when you first get braces put on?
- What are bite stoppers like?
- What are power chains like?
- What are elastics like?
- How do you care for your braces?
- What's kissing like with braces?
- How do people react to your braces?
Can anyone think of other questions she might answer in the video? Keep in mind that Carrie isn't remotely shy -- about her braces or anything else -- and will answer any question as long as it doesn't violate YouTube's TOS.
We probably won't be able to make the video for a couple of weeks. We're traveling to Flagstaff and then Las Vegas over the next ten days, so it'll be after that, unless she wants to do the video in Vegas. So you have plenty of time to think up questions!
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This project sounds great.
I've thought to these questions :
- What are the benefits of the braces (except of course to get a perfect smile) ?
- what is the main disadvantage for her ?
- what does she think about the treatment duration ?
- did she have the desire to get them off immediately at some moments ?
- does she bother when meeting old acquaintances she has not seen for a long time ?
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Whew! Back from our whirlwind trip to Flagstaff and Las Vegas. We had a great time, and I only had to remind Carrie to put in her elastics a couple of times.
The most memorable braces moment was in Flagstaff. Carrie's braces are very obvious, of course, but our friend Britt's Invisalign isn't. Britt took hers out at the first bar and the bartender (whom we know slightly) came over, glanced at Britt's trays sitting on a napkin, and asked me, "So are you their orthodontist?"
Had I been clever I would have said, "No, gynecologist." But I was slow and missed the opportunity! It was still a fun comment from the bartender, though.
I was also able to cross off another Braces Bucket List item: attend the annual Brewhaha with Carrie in braces. All in all, a very successful week. I did a pic dump on Flickr this morning, with 20+ new images from Flagstaff and Vegas.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/albums/72157664267164718
In actual treatment news, Carrie still finds the elastics a bit uncomfortably tight. I looked more closely at the package and they're actually 3/16" 4.0 ounce (heavy) elastics, so I'm not surprised she's still feeling a lot of pressure. On the plus side, she can put them in smoothly without a mirror now.
We'll make the Q&A video this week, possibly tonight.
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It's been a busy week, and we've fallen behind on making the Q&A video. I did unearth some low-res videos of Carrie goofing around at various events over the last few months and spliced them together into one little 2-minute video. There's no braces content, however, and the vids are so low-res you can barely see she has braces. They do give a little look into the goofball side of her personality, though.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t-WnLpQDT0
I'll try to get on that Q&A video this weekend, though we're busy with the symphony tonight, a funeral and a monster truck rally Saturday, and a nacho/margarita/sportsball party on Sunday. But maybe we can squeeze it in!
Lastly, would anyone be interested in a video about her multiple consults prior to getting braces? I could splice that together, too.
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I just posted the Q&A videos at YouTube:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eOzQ3z5Rn5c
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpyRJH-VB_Y&t=4s
Carrie and I hope you enjoy them!
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thank You for Your photos and Videos - I like them , they are GREAT !
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My pleasure! I'm happy to share them, and Carrie and I are both glad you enjoy them. Stay tuned for another adjustment video, too. Her next ortho appointment is February 20th, and I'll have a new video up shortly afterward.
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Admittedly unrelated to treatment, Carrie decided (with some prodding) to do the YouTube "rubber band challenge."
Results here: https://dereferer.me/?https://youtu.be/3q925RIzLf0. Enjoy, I guess? :o
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nice videos on the Q&A - thanks again for doing this and your posts!
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Hi,
great !!
How many elastics ? world records ?
see you
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Glad you fellows are enjoying the videos! She got up to 20 elastics before it became too much.
On another not-totally-treatment-related note, I thought this was a funny picture: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/40224770371/in/dateposted/. Snapchat filters are sometimes hilarious! And you can also detect our friend's Invisalign, too, if you look closely.
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love the videos, Carrie is refreshingly honest :)
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Glad you like them, ortho218!
And yes, she is one of the most honest (and least self-conscious) women I've ever met.
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20 ! great !
can she still open the mouth with that ?
perhaps it's a good solution to have silence during a football match with friends :-)
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Yes, she could open her mouth -- barely! ;D
She also said her mouth was sore for a few minutes after she took all the elastics out, too. (Except the ones she's actually required to wear.)
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She also said her mouth was sore for a few minutes after she took all the elastics out, too
probably depend how you put it... but if you put all in the same direction, its's probably can accelerate the treatment :)
when you have removable brace, it's the same on the morning, your mouth is sore too....
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Heh, the Rubber Band Challenge video was marked by YouTube as "age restricted." Wouldn't want those kids doing it, I guess! ::)
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Great Video! Thank You !
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We're off to Carrie's seventh adjustment this afternoon. We anticipate heavier elastics, possibly in a different configuration, and she may get her final/finishing wires (based on her ortho's comments last time). I'll post a report here, put pictures on Flickr, and post a YouTube video in the next day or two.
Carrie's feeling a bit of dread regarding even heavier elastics, since she had a tough time getting used to the current rubber bands. But she'll plow through, I have no doubt.
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It seems so fast that she'd be on a finishing wire already. Crazy how quickly time goes by. Good luck today!
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Carrie had her seventh braces adjustment yesterday. As usual, I took a half-day off work to take her to the appointment in a neighboring suburb. It was a surprisingly eventful adjustment, from an orthodontic perspective! Changes this time:
- A new, heavier lower archwire (.19x.25 steel).
- Wire ties on her upper canines with standard ligatures over the ties.
- Much heavier elastics (6.5 ounce, up from 4.0).
The heavier lower wire, the ortho explained, is to continue “leveling” on her lower teeth.
The ortho did not explain the wire ties, but the assistant explained that they’ll grasp more tightly and move the canines quicker.
The ortho commented that the heavier elastics were to continue working on her overbite.
The ortho originally thought he’d reduce her bite stops, but changed his mind once he saw how worn down they are. He elected to leave them alone.
No word on a removal timeframe, but the ortho definitely didn’t act like it was anytime soon. It seems like he thinks there’s quite a bit of work left correcting her bite.
On the way to the appointment, Carrie once again mentioned figuring out ways to extend her treatment besides postponing appointments. I was actually able to push back her next appointment by a week, but that was simply because my father will be visiting from the east coast and I didn’t want to take time away from his visit.
Carrie instantly felt the heavy pressure from the new elastics. I’m sure she’ll also start feeling that heavier lower archwire, if she hasn’t already. We’ll see how she responds to the wire ties.
I mentioned to her this morning that, when she first seriously considered braces, I assumed her treatment would be very simple. Not that her braces are SUPER complicated or anything, but I didn’t anticipate bite stoppers, wire ties and extra-heavy elastics. This is even more fun than I expected!
YouTube video to come, as always.
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I edited the video and posted it on YouTube. Seventh braces adjustment:
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LCr1uuIEaIs
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wow so much progress! glad the process has been rewarding for both of you, such a good attitude! :)
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Thanks! Temporary soreness aside, I think she's enjoying this much more than she expected.
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Hi Mike,
let me just say - I quite envy you ;-)
If you're still looking for a way to extend the treatment - you could request your ortho to leave the brackets on for the beginning of the retention phase. As paying customer you should get the opportunity to choose from the possible options, and leaving the brackets on as retainer should always be an option.
And there sure are reasons for that - others than just enjoying the brackets ;-)
I suppose the other options will be Hawleys or a bonded lingual retainer. A friend of mine has such a bonded lingual retainer - and the teeth got loose from it and shifted back. Also I personally found this one quite annoying. Hawleys are normally worn full time for the beginning, which can also be quite annoying, so Carrie could say that as everyone knows her in brackets, she likes better to keep them as long as she would otherwise be supposed to wear retainers during the day...
Good luckand a good time to both of you ;-)
Dominik
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Thanks for the ideas, domreuter!
I hadn't considered the idea of leaving the braces on for retention. That's a very interesting thought that's worth exploring.
My current plan is to order at least one set of Hawleys (possibly two) and one set of Essix for her, once her active treatment is complete. Her orthodontist doesn't care at all for fixed/bonded retainers, and uses them extremely rarely.
Interestingly, we met some friends at a pub last night. They were on their way to a concert at a nearby venue. A friend of our friends was there, a VERY attractive woman of 31 with upper ceramic braces and metal lower. She's scheduled to have them removed in just about two weeks, but mentioned that she'd worn them an extra several months simply because she wasn't 100% satisfied with the alignment and leveling when her ortho suggested removal. So possibly Carrie could go down a similar path with her own braces, and keep them a bit longer.
Carrie is also pushing back her April appointment, which will buy us a little more time. She's definitely interested in extending her treatment time, mentioning it frequently. And overall, we're having a very fine time!
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So Saturday March 24th will be Carrie's one-year anniversary in braces. Anyone have good ideas on ways to celebrate, beyond a champagne toast and lots of sex? I may take her to a spring training baseball game, since that was one of the very first public activities we did when she got her braces last year. I'll probably have her do a video reflecting on a year with adult braces. Any other thoughts?
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Do you have a chair to play with? Giver her a check up with an assistant to “help”
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Haha, in fact we do have a chair! But I don't know where we'd come up with an "assistant" for that, sadly.
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Haha, in fact we do have a chair!
that's cool. sounds like a step more 'acceptance' than most people would ever achieve from their SO.
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Yeah, she's really cool about that kind of thing. Part of the reason I chose her is because of her open-mindedness and eagerness to please, and she definitely hasn't let me down! It did take time and persistence on my part to bring her to this level of understanding, though.
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In about an hour, it will be exactly one year since Carrie got her braces. The year has been an incredible experience and a tremendous amount of fun (at least for me). The year has certainly flown by, though I've tried to enjoy it as much as I possibly could. I think I've done a pretty good job documenting it, too, between the YouTube videos and the Flickr albums.
We were originally going to celebrate today at home, but a very close friend invited us to her "first BBQ of Spring" party, and we're going to that. We'll push off the "Brace-iversary" celebrations until tomorrow. Plans include making at least one video, some time in the dental chair, and of course lots of sex. What better way to celebrate a momentous event?
I did get her a little gift for the occasion, which has already appeared in a Flickr pic: a cool new pair of sunglasses from Warby Parker. I'm not sure which she likes more, sunglasses from Warby or shoes from Johnston & Murphy! But springtime calls for a new pair of shades.
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Partially due to my somewhat last-minute business trip to Kentucky (starting tomorrow), and her desire to extend treatment, Carrie rescheduled her forthcoming adjustment. Initially scheduled for April 12, it's been pushed all the way back to May 19. I was frankly a bit shocked that it was moved back over a month, but I'm not going to complain!
Obviously there won't be an adjustment video this month, but I am going to have her record videos on her favorite cleaning tools and a retrospective on a full year in adult braces. We've been meaning to get to these two vids for a couple of weeks, but the last few weekends have been very busy with trips to Vegas, pool parties, concerts, and other things. She'll have some free time while I'm in Louisville, though.
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nice to have treatment extended - at least for you! I remember trying to talk my wife into keeping the on longer, but she did not want to be in them any longer than she had to. I was kind of bummed when she got them off. The follow up visits I've gone to with her for the retainers are just not as fun as the ones when the braces were on.
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I just put up two new videos on YouTube.
Reflections on one year with adult braces: https://dereferer.me/?https://youtu.be/-07Y0V4zovU
Favorite cleaning tools: https://dereferer.me/?https://youtu.be/czwKuBv-JWw
Hope you enjoy.
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Great vids. They seem to be geared to the norms out there. Old love to see her talk about it from a fetish perspective or the wife of a fetishist. Had having them changed her feelings etc?
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I have to keep it for normies on YouTube. Neither my ultraconservative industry nor her ultraconservative family are at all accepting of deviance or fetishism. Wish it were otherwise, but that's the reality. She'll make me any video I want, but I can't put most of it on YouTube.
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Thanks a lot to both of you for the new vids. It is sad for me to hear that Carrie has hurt her lips, because this simply has been the reason for my message last June, where I recommended a mouthguard as a good protection against such injuries. May Carrie never have this problem again! :)
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Haha, she seems to fall down about once a year on average! Luckily her lips are always there to break her fall. She's fine now. It wasn't really a big deal.
It WAS funny, though! ;D
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In other news, Carrie's pushing back her May 19th adjustment AGAIN. We got a chance for a free trip to Mexico that weekend, so it seems like a reasonable "sacrifice."
She's rescheduling today. I told her she needs to get another Saturday appointment so we have the whole weekend for...fun. >:D
But at this rate, she'll be in braces for two years. Sweet!
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So Carrie FINALLY went to the ortho after postponing two adjustments. Surprisingly, her ortho didn't even scold her! Changes at this adjustment:
- Repositioned the bracket on her left upper front incisor
- Removed her wire ties (were on upper canines)
- Tweaked her lower archwire to try to "widen" her arch a bit
- Went with purple ligs (she was tired of the silver she's had for ages)
Elastics are the same at 3/16" and 6.5 ounces.
She took off for Virginia the day after the adjustment, but she hasn't mentioned any soreness in texts or videos she's sent me.
Video here: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z138AdlE1Cs
Next appointment is scheduled for September 1st. We'll see if she postpones that one, too! ;D
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nice that you can extend the treatment time this way, but you must have nice ortho. My kids (and then us as parents) got the lecture every time they missed an appointment, though they seemed to roll easier with my wife when she missed an appointment.
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Yeah, he's a very nice guy. He's a mild, soft-spoken Mormon man. In retrospect, I really don't know why I thought he'd scold her for postponing appointments. It would be out of character for him. And it's not like her postponing appointments creates extra work for him, so I'm sure he doesn't care if she's in braces longer than expected.
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To take it one step further - you are a paying customer, he is kind of service provider for you, and scolding a paying customer is quite inappropriate in most situations ;-)
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Paid in full already, too! ;D
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I posted an "interview compilation" video on YouTube. It's mainly just 20 minutes of Carrie talking about her braces after each adjustment, if that's of any interest.
https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vpZYSQrW7oM
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So as it turns out, we're going to attend a large wedding in Boston in early October. I asked Carrie if she wants to have her braces off by then (which would be understandable). Her response: "I don't care if I still have braces in October."
Okay then. I guess we'll shoot for two years in braces! >:D
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So as it turns out, we're going to attend a large wedding in Boston in early October. I asked Carrie if she wants to have her braces off by then (which would be understandable). Her response: "I don't care if I still have braces in October."
Okay then. I guess we'll shoot for two years in braces! >:D
it sounds to me like she's rather enjoying this after all! :)
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In a bit of interesting news not directly related to Carrie's braces, our very good -- and pretty -- friend Britt has also just gotten braces. She went with clear top and metal bottom. She sent Carrie a video saying, "Look we're braces sisters now!"
Britt has been through three prior rounds of orthodontics: braces in her late teens, Clear Correct in her middle 20s and Invisalign in her late 20s. She's 30 now, and has finally found an ortho who can actually fix her underlying jaw problem (with a surgical assist). She'll be in these braces for nine months before lower jaw surgery, and an indeterminate time after surgery.
I should see her this weekend, and I'm looking forward to seeing her new braces!
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Carrie had another braces adjustment on Saturday September 1st. A few changes:
- "Final wire" on top
- Many bends in both archwires (this is causing some soreness)
- New elastic configuration (triangle) on the left to try to correct her midline
Video here: https://dereferer.me/?https://dereferer.me/?http://anonym.to/?https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCrOz0kCYzM
Next appointment is October 26th, which is almost two months out. Heh, Carrie did that intentionally to try to drag out treatment as long as possible. Nice!
This also means she'll still have her braces for our friend's wedding in Boston next month. Excellent!
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wow Carrie really is in this with you isn't she, you'll be the envy of many on this forum!
I'm sure Britt was inspired by Carrie's openness and positivity about the whole thing, good on her :)
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Yes, Carrie has really turned around her opinion on braces, that's for sure. In the beginning, she only wanted them for a maximum of one year. Now she wants to keep them as long as she can!
Britt is a dental hygienist and is always in pursuit of the perfect alignment and bite. Unfortunately I haven't been able to see her in her braces yet!
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looks like you struck gold on this experience - my wife wanted to be out as soon as she could, which was great for her, but disappointment to me!
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I think she'd keep them indefinitely at this point, if it wouldn't arouse some major suspicion!
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I think she'd keep them indefinitely at this point, if it wouldn't arouse some major suspicion!
what an interesting outcome. I guess you may have to settle for fakes but your journey has been a fun one for you (both) no doubt!!
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Part of me is actually looking forward to Hawley retainers, which have their own fun aspects. Heh, the other day she said, "If I fall asleep and forget my retainers, you'll have to put them in for me..."
She knows that she'll be wearing Hawleys the vast majority of the time, and for the rest of her life. I will give her special dispensation to wear Essix for dressy occasions, though.
And yes, I'll also need to make her a new set of fakes for occasional use. But right now I'm just living in the moment and enjoying it as much as I can.
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I posted a new video of Carrie talking about her struggles adapting to the asymmetric triangle elastic configuration: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GGTK7vU2GB8.
Hope you enjoy.
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Thanks always for keeping us updated and doing the videos
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Carrie had another adjustment (her tenth) on the evening of Friday the 26th. Not a whole lot of changes, but some interesting things happened.
- The ortho made some more tweaks and bends to her archwires, but kept the same sturdy rectangular stainless wires.
- He told her to continue wearing her elastics in the current asymmetric pattern (Class 2 on the right and a triangle on the left) to continue work on midline and overbite.
- He did some initial shaping and polishing of her upper front teeth, with more to come once her braces are removed, to get her closer to the “Hollywood smile” ideal.
- He estimated a mid-January removal date.
- We discussed retainers. He prefers to use Essix, so I told him I wanted to get Carrie a set of both Essix and Hawleys. He thought it was weird, but of course anything is possible with money!
- She went with silver ligs.
So we have a tentative removal date, which causes mixed emotions for me. While I’d obviously prefer she stay in braces longer, I can tell that her smile is going to be absolutely deadly when the braces come off and the ortho does the final shaping. I am oddly excited about seeing that killer brace-less smile.
I’m also looking forward to playing with Hawley retainers! She already understands that she’ll need to wear her Hawleys at all times when I am around, though I will give her special dispensation to wear the Essix on dressy occasions (like the symphony, for example).
I did the usual video, but we took a trip to Flagstaff over the weekend and I haven’t had a chance to edit it just yet. I hope to get to it tomorrow. I’ll post here when I upload it to YouTube!
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Video of tenth adjustment now available on YouTube: https://dereferer.me/?https://youtu.be/A19MjP9Homk
Warning - it's almost 30 minutes long!
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Thank You very much for the new Video!
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A little late on an update, but Carrie had an appointment the evening of Friday 12/14. We took off for a trip into the mountains early the next day, so I haven't had much of a chance to update between that and the usual holiday craziness. Anyway:
- Her teeth were 3D scanned for retainers.
- No changes to her archwires.
- She was put back in an upper power chain (silver at my choice).
- She is continuing with the same elastic configuration (Class II on the right, triangle left).
- Braces removal date is January 31.
I ordered both Essix and Hawley retainers for her. Her ortho recommends Essix, but of course Hawleys are preferred! She understands that she's required to wear the Hawleys whenever I'm around, but with special dispensation to wear the Essix when we do something "dressy" like the symphony or a wedding.
I took the customary video, but it will probably be a few days before I have time to edit it down, due to the aforementioned holiday craziness. I'll post as soon as it's done and uploaded to YouTube.
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I finally got the video edited (my usual trash quality, haha) and uploaded to YouTube: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8nTR98p0A6U
Sorry for the delay, fellas. Hope you enjoy.
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another fine video post - thanks for sharing!
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Just a quick update. We've been traveling a lot this month, with trips to Prescott and Flagstaff (Arizona) and Las Vegas. Had a little braces hitch in Flagstaff. We were having dinner with some friends Saturday night after a beer festival and Carrie's rearmost right-side lower bracket popped off. This is the one she uses for her Class II elastic. She had to wait until Tuesday to get it fixed as a walk-in, which took about 90 minutes (most of which was waiting).
That's her third popped bracket, but luckily her ortho gives three "freebies" before charging to replace them!
We're now very close to her removal date, which is Thursday the 31st. I've ordered her both Essix and Hawley retainers. I'll do a video of the removal process, teeth shaping that her ortho has promised, and retainer delivery. She's also doing a whitening immediately, at home with a dental hygienist friend (also in braces!) who will just bring the supplies home from her office.
I think I'll also do a video where she can reflect on her whole braces experience and give the good and bad -- at least for normies.
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sounds like she'll have a busy mouth for a few days!
what are your thoughts/feelings about finally having her braces removed?
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My feelings are mixed. On the one hand, I'm sad that the active-treatment part of the "journey" is ending. On the other hand, I'm excited to explore the Hawley retainer aspect. I'm glad that Carrie can breathe a sigh of relief that the braces are finally coming off and she can feel she looks her best again. But mostly I'm profoundly grateful that I was able to experience this, and that I have a giant record of photos and videos documenting it all.
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And the journey is complete! Carrie got her braces off yesterday after 22 months. A few details:
- She got both Hawley and Essix retainers.
- We kept her braces, which I may use to make a new set of fakes for her.
- They didn't even charge us for the second set of retainers!
- Her new Hollywood smile looks FANTASTIC! (https://dereferer.me/?https://www.flickr.com/photos/mikeinreallife/32008703987/in/dateposted/)
Video is here: https://dereferer.me/?https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HGAXLo4842E
And now we go forth with lots and lots of retainer fun!
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Congrats to your wife on getting them off and congrats on a new chapter of exploring!
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wow, the new smile looks amazing. congratulations to her!
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Thanks, guys! I appreciate it.
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Congrats - thanks for sharing the journey with us !
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Wow Mike, such beautiful perfect teeth! I think I would have kept the braces too, but I bet she's pretty happy to have her mouth back. Thanks to both of you for letting the rest of us ride along with you on her journey.
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How are the retainers treating her?
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Thank you for asking. She's doing fairly well with them. She was required to wear them 22/7 for about six weeks, then the ortho moved her to nighttime-only wear. She does forget occasionally, so I remind her and sometimes even have to wake her and put them in for her, haha.
She prefers the Essix for comfort, but wears the Hawleys a lot just because I prefer them. The Hawleys still induce a lisp, which I find charming.
I really need to have her make a video comparing the two retainer types.
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So Carrie had her very final visit to Dr. Prince on Saturday. It was a pretty quick checkup on her retainers (both sets) and teeth positioning. She of course thanked Dr. Prince for his excellent work -- she's still thrilled with her smile -- and said goodbye.
The end of an era!
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Congrats! Her smile looks amazing
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Thank you! Yes, Dr. Prince did fine work. Though Carrie didn't really "need" braces, she's thrilled with the improvement in her smile.