Braced!

Finally, the braces are on! It is proving very difficult to get a decent photo with my camera still missing. These are too blurry but they are the only ones I have. The fitting this afternoon took an hour and was pretty painless and uneventful, although the cleaning was uncomfortable because my teeth were really scrubbed and buffed! Having the brackets glued on did not hurt at all. In fact, I had not slept well so I nearly dozed off!

I managed not to really taste the glue, just a bit of bitterness in the corners of my mouth, not on my tongue. It didn't feel like I had braces on until the wire was put in and my teeth suddenly felt really heavy, but this soon wore off. It is very odd feeling the wire under my lips but not uncomfortable. The worst part is the two lumps of glue on my very back upper teeth to stop me biting the lower brackets. It's uncomfortable to bite on and I keep biting my cheeks when I speak.

 

Here are the awful blue glue lumps on my back teeth, It is not clear from these photos but the very back tooth on each side, top and bottom, are not braced. My orthodontist thought it would be easier because my mouth is very small but will brace them later if necessary. Instead of molar bands to hold the wires in place, I just have clips on the second to last teeth, which are not clear like the rest of my brackets, although you can't really see them anyway.

I am going to make an appointment to go back soon as the bracket in the circled area below appears to have become totally unglued already and is sliding around on the wire, which is holding it in place. It is a very small tooth and the rest are all fine so I think maybe the glue just didn't set properly on that one. It started to wobble before I had even tried to eat anything or clean my teeth after coming home but eating today and cleaning several times finished it off. I left a message for my orthodontist and will try and get an appointment this week. My first official adjustment is not for 9 weeks!

When the fitting was over, I was given a dental kit similar to the one I made, which has become my travel kit for work. I have not tried to floss yet, still too sore but all of the brushes are proving useful and I am going through a heck of a lot of wax, so it is a good job the orthodontist gave me some more cases. I had, being naive, only bought one. Mainly, I find the wax helpful on the sides where my cheeks are catching and wax is currently keeping the loose bracket still because otherwise it rattles and irritates my tongue. The only item I am not happy with is the 'lip bumper' which seems virtually impossible to put on. It's a shame, because the rubber is very comfortable for my lips.

There has not been too much pain so far, the worst discomfort is coming from the glue lumps and the feeling of the wires under my lips. It is just so weird and it feels like my lips are sticking out. Speaking is fine. One of my biggest fears was a lisp but that hasn't happened. I do have to be careful about catching the inside of my cheeks when I talk. Eating is different and not comfortable at all. My mouth feels like it's already full before I put any food in and I can't chew at all, plus it all goes straight to those glue lumps! And they are very fiddly to clean! Here are a few more pictures.