Braces II

For each of my visits thus far, this is how it goes:
X-ray + consultation >> Extraction >> Braces bonding + Extraction >> Monthly follow-up

Basically, during the consultation, my dentist talked to me about my problem, which was teeth overcrowding and my midline not being aligned. It's the best time to "bomb" your dentist/orthodontist with questions because during subsequent visits, you may realize that you do not have the luxury of time to talk to him/her and that bothered me because afterall, it's your teeth you're talking about and of course you want all your doubts cleared am I right?!! I was initially told that I had to have 4 teeth extracted, all at one go. But there were some amendments along the way, and so it's 2-1-1 for each visit.

Taaaadah, a picture of me after 2 teeth extractions looking all gloomy (not that I was in pain). OUCH!! My tolerance for pain is quite high but the tugging and pulling was uncomfortable though. And with the gauze soaked in blood and me not wanting to swallow my saliva, I must say that.....THE STRUGGLE WAS REAL.
Anyway, after the extractions, I rinsed my mouth with warm salt water so that the wound can heal faster. Apparently, most people did it so there's no harm giving it a try!

poker face mode on

And how I looked after the bonding of braces and 1 tooth being extracted. Not much discomfort while the brackets were glued onto my teeth
and the arch wire going through the brackets.
3 things to clarify:

1) Only the top row is fitted in as the dentist wasn't confident of the cleanliness of the bottom row had it been fitted in, while the top row is being worked on, particularly creating space (hopefully I don't need to extract my 4th tooth) for my left canine to shift downwards and my right canine to shift now that my first premolar is gone.
2) No bracket on my left canine and upper left lateral incisor yet as I've explained above and also, it may cut my lip/inside of mouth.
3) I look like I was smirking. NO, that was the best smile I could give while waiting for anesthesia to wear off.

 

 

 

I had no issue with pain & sleeping..... which in my opinion was great news because I read online about how terrible others felt. But, my teeth was damn sensitive!!! Whhhhhooooaaa, imagine me accidentally biting down both rows of teeth and each time going OOOWWWWWW. That was sick! I stuck with soft foods like porridge for the first few days of my meals and slowly experimented with different foods. Ohhh and please expect water to leak out of your mouth while drinking or crazy amount of saliva drooling while taking naps. It was funny though ha ha hahahaha.....

 

 

This is what my teeth looks like after 1month+ into treatment. You should be able to picture me with my not-so-perfect smile prior to having braces. :((

 

pardon my dry lip & yellow teeth

 

 As you can see on your left (my right), I've got this very obvious red plastic chain attached from my bracket on my canine to the bracket on my first molar.

 

 

This is what I meant. NOW CAN YOU SEE A GAP BETWEEN MY CANINE AND UPPER RIGHT INCISOR BECAUSE I CAN!!!!! Yes, it may be a small achievement...but it has gotten me excited about what the next few months have in store for me!


Now on the left side of my teeth is this open coil spring.

It's meant to create space so that my canine can shift downwards. Keeping my fingers crossed that I don't have to extract my premolar but according to my dentist, I may have to.

 

 

That's all I've to share for now. I'm planning to do a monthly review of my braces progress here. Either that, Braces III would be when my bottom row is fitted in (probably 2-3months time). Through blogging, I hope to document my braces journey so that when it's time to remove my braces, I have something to look back at. To be frank, I benefitted quite a lot from doing research online, watching youtube videos of people with braces.

So... this is my humble contribution to anyone who might stumble upon my blog! I'M ON MY WAY TO A MORE CONFIDENT SMILE!!!

 

 

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