Well I tell you, never in all my life have I wasted a night worrying like I did the one last night. And it really goes to show you that the right doctor makes all the difference!
Today I saw Dr. S and his various lovely dental assistants or hygienists or whatever you call them. Now first off I'd like to say, and I forgot in my previous post, I HAVE seen this orthodontist before. Ten at the time I had little sway on what my parents did and my mother had discovered her shiny orthodontics coverage just before the company she worked for cut it. So at the age of 10 I met this doctor, once, I couldn't remember anything about him but a mahogany table, a case of teeth models, and that I got to pick the flavour of goop they put in my mouth to cast said model. ( I picked rootbeer)
So, with that as a memory I didn't have much to go on but I had been ten, what if I didn't pick up on the rudeness? Or what if he wanted to strap me into headgear!?
Alas, I cannot regale you with a humorous tale of woe because there wasn't one. I entered, to see the case of teeth models to the right still where I'd left it nine years prior, and the wall to the left having moved over significantly. "We're under renovations! Sorry!" Said a lovely blond lady with perfect teeth behind the counter. She handed me the paperwork on a nifty tooth shaped clipboard and I set to work chipping away at it.
Do you have psoriasis? I will never know what that has to do with orthodontics...I read a very round about document that said they wouldn't give out my personal information and signed away my soul on the dotted line, resisting the urge to write "Please don't brutally maim me." on the line reserved for additional concerns not in the sheet, and then carried on with the torture.
I must say that Dr. S is A LOT more thorough than the CWIP, I followed a lovely ortho-girl - as I will call them from now on - down a spiralled staircase into a room where she took not only my mugshot, but a series of ridiculous pictures where one seriously wonders whether someone will jump out and yell psyche! She took my mugshot, a photo of my face while holding up a name card, I assume so they can remember me even if they don't. Then a series of photos where I bore my crooked smile left and forwards for her and she put plastic cheek retractors in which look sort of like a medieval torture device, feel like an a weird alien contraption and make you look like a dork.
Also, she took a series of x-rays, where I had to put my chin on this, and my forehead on that, stand over here and let her put things that looked like light-bright pegs in my ears to hold my head still. Fun times! We had a laugh though and she was really nice. We then proceeded to play musical rooms, moving upstairs where for the second time in my life I got to pick the flavour of the goop they put in my mouth (Cherry, they'd discontinued rootbeer). If the cheek retractors looked medieval the metal mouth trays looked diabolical. "We're going to be putting big things in a small mouth so bear with me here." Said the lovely ortho-girl, to which I mumbled "That's what she said." Before she filled my mouth with foam. (Hehe!)
After the impressions and photos were taken I moved rooms to meet Dr. S, I was surprised when another Lovely Ortho-Girl came in, looking over my x-rays she said "Wow, those are some LOVELY wisdom teeth." I laughed lightly in an awkward kind of 'you're talking about my teeth way'. My wisdom teeth, apparently, are above all my other teeth, never to emerge. The bottom ones have hope of extraction but with probably never cut either. Small mouth, lots of teeth. Oh my! Either way, I was beginning to be awkward when this lovely lady with perfect teeth said; "This is probably exactly how my x-ray looked before I got braces" Whether this was a lie or not I was instantly at ease, if this lovely girl once had my problems, I still had hope! I tried without success to imagine her with a wonky mouth full of braces in her younger years, much like it is impossible to imagine myself without my wonky mouth.
Then Dr. S entered! He began looking through my mouth wording off what my issues were to the Lovely Ortho-Girl in Dentist speak. "How old were you when you got your braces?" He asked the blonde ortho-girl (so it was not a lie!) "Older than she was anyways...I was 23." More hope! "See? Not too late" As if he had read it off my face. Relaxed by this I said around his fingers. "Yup, I'm not dead yet." To which my new and hilarious Orthodontist replied. "No, which also, you're not allowed to do. If you die your teeth will stop moving and I'll never finish, so you can't. In fact,I'll make you sign papers about it." We laughed and then we talked about the braces.
It's amazing how quickly versed you become in the terminology! I need to have two teeth removed (ouch!) to make space so that the others can straighten out, because of this they need to put in an anchor, which first requires separators. An anchor is, pretty much just what it sounds like, a device that prevents other teeth (the back teeth) from moving, because the natural sway of things make the back teeth move to fill in the space when teeth fall out or are removed. However its the front teeth we want moving, so the anchor goes around the back teeth, over the roof of my mouth on top, and along the back of my teeth on the bottom. A little bothersome he admitted, but you acclimatize quickly.
Before any of that though, you need seperators, Dr. S said that if I was comfortable with it, I could get the top ones in put in before I left, eager to get started on the process I agreed. A separator is a tiny circle of rubber that they put between your teeth (hurts as much as flossing!) to makes space for things like anchors or other orthodontic tools. Despite the tight, something-between-my-teeth feeling and the occasional bit of gum irritation it's not bad at all! You can't floss between those teeth with them but other than that they require no other effort.
Then of course, comes braces, and, once removed a clear plastic retainer that is practically invisible! (Following the same appearance as invis-align)
I haven't mentioned the best part yet! Dr. S quoted me at a year and three quarters! And he said that's with a time buffer! He's not making promises but really? It's nothing! I'm so happy. A year and three quarters to perfect teeth. Wow.
My next appointment is October 20th at 12:00...It's so exciting to get this ball rolling!
~E
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