Additional Info

Here is what was given to me from the dentist
INSTRUCTIONS

COST

Insurance: $ 2,000

Out of Pocket: $ 2,700

Total: $ 4,700

INITIAL BEFORE AND AFTER :)

Alright! They are officially on! I ended up rescheduling yesterday from 10 am to 3:30 so thankfully I was still able to get them on on Tuesday!

The APPOINTMENT lasted 1.5 hours. During this time:
- Chatted more about the braces
- Put a cleaning solution on the teeth (for better bondage)
- The placing of the brackets
   This part happened in 4 steps. The brackets come in 4 sets. It was similiar if you can imagine to putting a retainer on, except the braces were prepositioned within the tray so 5 brackets and what looks like a crank are all attached at the same time. (At least I think the crank was attached at the same time) I can see how this is much less stressful for the dentist! The picture shows both trays being applied at the same time, followed by pressure to get a bond
- After the brackets were on, my bottom were filed down on the sides a little bit to create "interproximal" space. Basically, so my bottom teeth could move more easily. 
- Then my dentist took what looked like a finger nail file and filed in between my bottom teeth. And this, felt exactly like you think it would.. ughhhhhh
-The wires were attached, simple enough
- In my specific case, due to my bottom crowding I had 4 "quick ties" placed. I was told this was just to create a better connection between the bracket and wire. 
- To finish the appointment I had bite guards placed on two of my back upper molars.
And that was it! None of it was painful and the most uncomfortable part was the filing! 

The first day, the pain level was between 1 and 2. nothing at all! 
The thing that is kind of bothersome is the rubbing of the brackets on the inside of my lips. I was given wax to help with that, and can always purchase more at Walgreens, or a similar.

The first time brushing felt a little weird. My guess is that they are more durable than I'm thinking, but I was very careful not to brush too hard. Overall the entire hygiene part of it took about 7 minutes after eating.. so not bad at all. 

What I HAVE EATEN:
-Broccoli Cheese Soup
-Runza Casserole 
-Cottage Cheese
- Eggs
- Toast (with butter, without the crust)
-Sausage links
-Chocolate Pudding dessert
-Coffee (out of a straw)

So far my ADVICE: 
Half your bites, double your chews. 
Rinse (brush too if you can!) with water immediately after something you think may stain (ie chocolate pudding or coffee)

PAIN
Today, (Wednesday) My top teeth are pretty sore if I put any sort of pressure on them. And the inside of my lips are tender. But! it was/is all pretty much what I expected! 
Overall, on a scale of 1-10, I'm at a 3. BAM!

APPEARANCE
I have been told that they aren't very noticeable from the outside looking in.. but inside looking out, they feel pretty bulking, but even from yesterday to today I have gotten more used to them. (Initially I felt like my lips hardly would cover them!)

NEXT TIME
My next appointment is Dec 2nd, where I will get my bands changed, most likely not the wires though. (Shooting for the 2nd month appt to switch to a tighter wire). 

PICTURES
So here's the pictures I have got for you!

Until next time kids! 
Shelby

2nd appointment

On Oct 14th, I had my 2nd appointment.
This appointment consisted of 
* More talking of information regarding the braces
* Measurements of my teeth (the length, overlap, spacing)
* A mold of my top and bottom teeth using this blue putty mixture 
* Multiple Pictures

This appointment was hardly painful overall, but when they went to take the bottom mold out I guess it had a really good suction, because it getting removed was very uncomfortable. 
Also, in taking a couple of the pictures they inserted a plastic insert that held my mouth open so they could get better pictures, and that also was quite uncomfortable. They did say that when I get them on they will be using another device to keep my mouth open, but that the one they will be using then will be FAR less uncomfortable as it is more flexible! 

The big date has been set! It will take about 2 weeks for the 6MS lab to fabricate all the necessary things for my treatment plan, so Tuesday October 29th is the day! At 10 am! 

So until then I will be trying to get one last taste at all the foods that are not recommended while wearing them.. basically anything that could break a bracket off! 

We did talk a little bit more about the staining of the braces. One question I had was whether or not drinking coffee out of a straw would help with less staining..because I really don't want to give up my coffee!! hah!

The dentist did say that he hasn't had too many complaints regarding staining, and in the situations where there was staining it was usually only the rubber bands, which get changed on a monthly basis.
It was said to drink a lot of water and keep a toothbrush in my purse to do a quick cleaning after drinking/eating.

I will need to stay away from purple soda I guess, which is fine with me. And i'll have to be careful what color of wine I drink. 

In the next 2 weeks before the big day I will be purchasing a few things that I don't want to run out of or think I may need. 
* Ortho Wax (they will give me some initially, but I do not want to run out!)
* Waterpik system (~$50)
* Super floss (floss specifically designed for braces) 
* Comfort Covers (kinda like little flexible tubes cut in half length wise that fit over the braces)
* Spare toothbrush

I was going to ask my dentist if he could somehow get me a copy or email some of the pictures he took, so the next post I will be sure to upload another before picture, as well as one after they are on.. I'm curious to see how unnoticeable these braces really are! 

Until next time!

Consulation!

Okay! So I will be using this blog to document my personal experiences with 6 Month Smiles! 

Today is officially the first day of this journey as I will be going in for a consultation at 10 am!

First things first, I will tell you a little bit about the 6 Month Smiles..
They are somewhat known as Braces for Adults! Most likely because of the duration they stay on is a lot shorter than traditional braces. They are also less noticeable due to using clear brackets instead of the traditional metal brackets. 

The main difference between 6.M.S. and traditional braces is that 6MS does not function to fix a persons bite. (The fixing of the bite and mouth alignment is generally the reason why traditional braces stay on so long!)

The average time to wear the braces is 6 months, but per my dentist, expect 8 months so you don't end up disappointed or wanting to get them off before your teeth are fully ready.

This Friday morning at my consultation Dr. Danahay basically did a quick run through of the whole process, so I will try my best to regurgitate! 

(1) The first appointment (today) was the consultation, which is where I learned all the stuff below (most of which I had already looked into :-))

(2) The second appointment will deal a lot with records, pictures, molds, etc. My date is set for Monday October 14th. Dr. D did say that we could have went ahead and done the 2nd appointment today, but he'd really like to see at least one more week of healing (I got my wisdom teeth out 2 weeks ago and my gums are still a little sore!) The appt is suppose to take around 1 hour and with the information they gather they will be able to formulate a plan! 

(3) The third appointment is the fitting where I will actually get the braces put on. This will consist of a cleaning of my teeth to better help the bonding, the bonding, and in my specific case I will have to have bite guards placed. Bite guards are kinda like little pieces of  cement placed on your back molars so when you bite down, the little cement bumps are the only things making contact between top and bottom teeth. Bite guards are used to help avoid interference between your tops and bottoms. It sounded as if the bite guards will be the hardest part to get used to. However, as my teeth shift and my bite stabilizes, I may be able to have the bite guards filed down so they aren't as noticeable. 

(4-8) After the fitting I will go in once a month to have rubber bands changed and every ~2 months I will have the wires changed out to keep a tight fit and encourage movement!
During these 6+ months of wearing there are quite a few restrictions when it comes to eating/drinking. My dentist will give me a list of "no-no's" so I will share the list when I get it. I have read that due to the light color of the braces (making them less noticeable) that they stain easily, so I am wondering if I will still be able to drink coffee! AH! 

(Take off day!) On this day I will not only get the braces taken off(!!) but I will also be given a clear plastic retainer that I will wear day and night for about 2 weeks until I go back in and get a permanent bonded retainer (placed on the inside of my top and bottom teeth) There was the option to skip the bonded retainer and just use the clear plastic one, but I chose the bonded, so I don't have to worry about remembering to wear it, etc. The clear retainer will be altered to fit on top of the bonded retainer so at night I can still wear both. It was recommended to wear the clear retainer for 6 months after the braces come off. 

I'm hoping to have the braces on by the end of Oct, so hopefully I can have them off by the end of June!
I will be posting pictures of the progress of my teeth! 

So here are a couple pictures I took a couple weeks ago. As you can see I have too much spacing on the tops and crowding on the bottom!