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I had my braces taken off today, which was a total surprise. I’m too tired to post any more details or pictures, but will be sure to blog an update tomorrow. Check back!

I’m not going to post a lot of updates, mainly because I’m getting tired of the whole topic of braces. I’m almost done with my treatment. At my last adjustment on Nov 27th Doctor said I had “two-three-four months” maximum. I can’t wait!!!

Once the braces are off, I will post before and after photos and Panorex’es. I’ve already had an Xray done and am absolutely amazed at the amount of change. Also very happy to see that my smile is returning to what it was about 12-15 years ago - almost perfect!

Next update will be after January 22nd, my 15th adjustment date. I should be getting permanent retainers, which we agreed with the doctor don’t have to be permanent. He does recommend that all his patients wear them forever, but we talked about it and he said that if after 1 or 2 years of wearing them, I want to take them off it’s okay. Some people do it with okay results. After the initial 1-2 year setting period I should be able to get away with it as long as I’m diligent about wearing my Essix (clear) retainer nightly.

I noticed I have a specific achy pattern:
- right after an adjustment, my teeth are achy for about a week
- then I get an occasional achy day but nothing majorly persistent for about 3 weeks
- 2 weeks prior to the adjustment

I’ve been on this 6-week cycle for about 8 months now.

Wow, I didn’t realize that they use pre-made arch wires in specific shapes.

I guess this is just another part where an orthodontist is like an artist, or at least like a plastic surgeon: s/he has to make a decision which arch shape suits the patient best, as it affects the underlying bone structure and in the end, how the face looks.

I’m getting vertical “smoker’s lines” on my top lip. I noticed them just in the past 2 weeks. I think it’s due to 1) drinking all my dark drinks (coffee, tea, red wine) through a straw - that’s some serious puckering I do; 2) force-closing my mouth. Since my bite is pretty open at the moment, I have to make an effort to keep it closed.

Now I’m forcing myself to relax the mouth and keep it open all the time. This forms a yucky film on the brackets and I’m having to wipe and clean them throughout the day, but hopefully the lips will relax a bit.

I’m pretty sure it’s mostly because of drinking through a straw, and I stopped using them. Of course, my ligatures (elastics) will stain much quicker but for the moment I’m not too worried: my next adjustment is in a week!