Wonky Gob

......I have a surgery date! 30th Nov 2012. Excited beyond belief :-)

Gap Watch: What gap? Oh YEAH.

Gap is tiny, less than a playing card. Surgery looking ever so slightly closer :-)))))

I measured my remaining gap using playing cards. 2 cards. That's around 0.6mm. Next appointment in just over 3 weeks and I'm DETERMINED that my gap is a gonner.

Well today's appointment was a very different experience to two weeks ago! First off the consultant told me that she would be dealing with my treatment from now on. This is brilliant news as she is a) very senior and experienced and b) I have had some dealings with her before so she is familiar with my case. Interestingly enough my notes showed no record of the appointment a few weeks back which proves that something went very wrong that day. So let's just pretend it didn't happen and move forward.... I started by asking her a few questions that my dentist had asked. Firstly, will I need extractions on the bottom jaw? Answer: No. Secondly, was the loss of cement around my back molar band cause for concern as it is a potential food trap? Answer: Yes, more cement promptly installed. There. That was easy, wasn't it? On with the adjustment. The powerchain fitted a few weeks back had already served it's purpose so off it came. Off came my archwire so it could be n...

I'm not happy. About 6 weeks ago I saw my Orthodontist and he told me that he was leaving. I was a bit upset at this news, apart from the fact he was a nice chap, he also had been with me from the start, always kept me informed as to what the next stage was, and more recently always squeezed me in for an adjustment every 4 weeks. Oh well, life goes on. A few weeks ago I had an adjustment booked, and was quite keen to meet the new person who would be looking after me. I am still really desperate to put some sort of time scale to the op; being self employed means that I will have to put suitable measures in place to make sure I don't miss deadlines, and childcare is always a big issue. I felt pretty optimistic..... First minor annoyance was that I had to wait for AGES. This was only annoying because I have been going for appointments for quite a while now, have never had to wait 45 mins before. I occasionally take my kids with me, frequently the appointments are just befo...

8 months on....still waiting... It's been a year since I had two extractions in my upper jaw, and I'm STILL waiting for the stupid gaps to close. I'll try and explain what exactly I'm waiting for.... On my left hand side I had my first molar removed (my second to last tooth as I have no wisdom teeth) and in the last year my two pre molars had shuffled up to fill the gap, leaving me with a gap between my left canine and first premolar. My canine is now being moved back using powerchains and extra elastics to create a gap between my canine and lateral incisor. It's been about 5 weeks since this tooth started moving and it's moved about half way through the gap. On my right hand side I had my first premolar removed and over the last 12 months my canine has slid back to fill the gap leaving me with a nasty gap between my lateral incisor and canine. Once I have matching gaps each side between my lateral incisors and canines my four front teeth (which are curren...

I know it's been about 100 years since my last post but not much has happened really. Back in March I had some top teeth removed to hopefully enable my top teeth to move back as much as possible to create a decent sized underbite prior to surgery. Ever since then we've been waiting for the gaps to close up. I know they are starting to but it seems to be happening soooo slowly it's frustrating. I feel like I'm in limbo. I cleared my summer this year in anticipation of my surgery (well, when I say 'cleared' what I mean is I didn't book certain things like music festivals and holidays)and judging by how reluctant my teeth are to move anywhere I'll have to keep NEXT summer clear too. From September onwards I have a steady stream of 'big' birthdays, plus an important wedding (and associated celebrations) so it's just guaranteed that surgery is going to screw with something big anyway. Am starting to get very miserable about my appearance too. ...

I have had 6 spacer bands put in between my bottom teeth and they are KILLING me. It's to make space so that my last two unbracketed teeth can be bracketed and wired up next week. I forgot how uncomfortable spacer bands are :( -- Post From My iPod Touch

I have had 6 spacer bands put in between my bottom teeth and they are KILLING me. It's to make space so that my last two unbracketed teeth can be bracketed and wired up next week. I forgot how uncomfortable spacer bands are :( -- Post From My iPod Touch

Without Braces: Pop snack in mouth Chew, swallow Repeat ad nauseum With Braces: Take snack and break tiny bite sized piece off Pop in mouth Chew using the one tooth that isn't causing brain numbing pain at that moment Keep chewing through the pain of the salt getting stuck on your ulcers Realise that you have accidentally swallowed your dental wax as you feel the wire poking into your cheek with every bite Enjoy the sensation of having every part of your braces stuck full of food Probe stuck food with tongue to dislodge Wince as the brackets tear your lips to shreds Begin to probe remaning food with finger with until you prick your finger on wire Swear loudly and frown at bleeding finger Find mirror and toothpick and poke about for a while dislodging more food, some of which you realise you actually ate at lunch Get glass of water, sloosh like crazy 7 or 8 times, each time marvelling at the amount of crap you're dislodging and wondering if you've actuall...

Yesterday I went to have my spacer bands removed and my metal bands fitted. The plan was to have 8 bands fitted over my back 8 molars in preparation for my full braces in a few weeks. These bands each have a little tube and hook arrangement on the outside for securing the archwire to the teeth and stay on throughout the whole process. The little bands are like fitting shoes, they come in different sizes and you have to sometimes try a few different ones to get the best fit. The blue spacer bands had made a little more space between my teeth but it was still a pretty tight squeeze sliding the bands over my molars. Much of it involved biting gently onto a plastic stick to nudge them down into position. Not painful, just a little uncomfortable. One tooth was particularly troublesome so the ortho decided to leave it band-free and deal with it next appointment. I could feel the metal hooks rubbing against the inside of my cheeks, not a great feeling, not looking forward to the full wor...

Just under 24 hours until spacer bands come off and metal bands go on. Can't wait, these little blue things squidging between my molars are getting on my nerves. Have been having lots of fun reading many, many ortho blogs by people who have gone or are going through the same proceedure. Fascinating reading! I'm not quite sure if I feel less apprehensive now, or slightly more so, a common thread is that braces hurt like hell, waiting for surgery seems like purgatory, and that I will be eating nothing but soup for at least two years. Deep joy.

It hurts to bite, hurts to chew and my teeth feel even more squashed up than normal. They seem to be touching in placed that they weren't before. Having spent an uncomfortable few days wondering if I was going to be able to cope with the next few years of orthodontics I was encouraged to read on the Archwire.com website that spacers are notoriously uncomfortable. It says "Many people on Metal Mouth Forum have remarked that spacers were the worst part of the entire process." "The braces don't hurt like the spacers; in fact, when the spacers are removed, it feels so much better, even after the braces are put on!" So I'm feeling a bit better about it all today. Roll on Friday.

I had some spacer bands fitted today. These are like very small blue elastic bands that are wedged in between my molars top and bottom that will make space for the metal bands that I am having fitted next week. They were a bit tricky to get in as my teeth are rather crowded, but the good news is that because of the tight fit they are unlikely to get dislodged and swallowed. It feels a little odd, kind of rubbery when I bite down, but not uncomfortable as yet. It feels a little like I have stuff stuck between my teeth, which, essentially, I have! I imagine this is how meat eaters feel after eating spare ribs. I can tell they are doing something already as if I lightly tap my front teeth I can feel the vibrations in my back teeth very strongly. They aren't really noticable at this stage, unless I open wide and then it looks like I've been eating smurfs. So next Friday I have these removed and the metal bands placed around my second to back molars, top and bottom, both sid...

All systems go! I had my appointment at the orthodontists yesterday, to sign the consent forms and get a schedule in place. I was slightly disappointed to learn that I could no longer supplement my NHS treatment and opt for the tooth colour brackets because it would mean mixing NHS and Private Healthcare which is no longer allowed, so it's metal brackets all the way. I must admit I was pretty gutted about this and spent the afternoon feeling a bit blue, but I have a better sense of perspective today. At the end of the day, as long as the people who love me aren't bothered by my braces then why should I be? So, here is the plan: November 18th: Spacers go on back teeth to make room for metal bands in next stage November 27th: Metal bands go on back teeth, the archwire is attached to these December 11th: B-Day! Braces go on (gulp!) 18 months of braces Jaw Surgery 6 months of braces post surgery  As I said in my last post, I seem to have been focussing too much on...