Wednesday, November 10, 2010

All Fenced in

I got the wires on my braces.  My teeth are all fenced in now!  And I can't say I am enjoying it much.  It doesn't hurt, it's just uncomfortable. Getting the wires on was quite an ordeal!

I got the brackets glued on two weeks prior to getting the wires.   Felt like I had a mouthful of cactus, but I guess my cheeks got used to the abrasive feel of the brackets.  They also stuck little rubber "spacers" between my molars at that time.  I really didn't like the feel of constantly having something stuck between my teeth, but it is what it is.

This trip to the dentist, oh, I suppose I should call him the Orthodontist, but whatever... anyway, this trip I was to get the spacers out and wires put on. Sounded easy enough. I am slowly realizing that nothing is ever easy at the dentist office.  The dental assistant, real job title unknown to me so I made that one up for her, yanked out my rubber spacers.  Oh joy.  She used this fishhook on a stick as her spacer removal tool. My teeth are very tight together and the spacers didn't ever get any wiggle room, so pulling them out was no easy task.  She pulled with all her might and her fishhook on a stick slipped sending the sharp instrument up into the roof of my mouth.  I was stabbed!! Stabbed at the dentist office!   It freaking hurt like crazy!  I flinched and winced and hopped right up out of the chair and said "Oh My God!  I'm bleeding and everything!"  She looked at me like I was over reacting and then told me the spacers didn't move my teeth very much.  Yeah, I understand that.

After she got the rest of the spacers out, without stabbing me, she put metal rings on my back molars.  Wow, that was not pleasant at all!  I'm not sure what she had to do to get them on, but it felt horrible! She used some sort of pinching tool and she pinched the inside of my cheek in her tool.  Seriously?  Is this her first day?  I'm being abused here!  Plus the rings were painful and felt just awful. She told me I would get used to it.  I was ready to just call it quits right then and there, so she did some more adjusting and it felt a lot better. 

I asked her how long she'd been doing this.  She said since 1991.  Well, if this is 20 yrs of experience, I'm sure glad I waited and wasn't her first patient. Can you imagine?

The orthodonist came over and gave the nod of approval for her work.  Apparently, he didn't notice the gaping stab wound on the roof of my mouth.  Ok, now I am ready for wires.  At this point, I decide to just be a pest and request unscented gloves for the rest of my work. I was tired of holding back my gag reflex with those disgusting scented gloves right under my nose. I've suffered enough.  They had to go hunting for some unscented gloves but it was worth it.

Clumsy experienced assistant lady is ready to continue her work.  First, she yanks off a ring.  I bolted up, "what are you doing?  He said they were ok!"  She says she has to put the glue on. Are you freaking kidding me?  I said "so you have to do this twice?  Really?  Twice?"  She again gives me this "you are over reacting" look, but dang, I was just mad.  So, we start all over again, this time with uber disgusting glue.  Once the glue set she says she has to chip off the overflow of glue and that it will wear off over time.  Ewww!  Honestly, I no longer know why I'm doing this!

Finally, time for the wires.  She gets them on without too much trouble but I was pretty concerned when she stuck wire cutters in my mouth.  After the wires were anchored down she added little rubber bands to each bracket and tied the teeth to the wire.  She couldn't engage every tooth because they are just too crooked.  I asked her if it will be this uncomfortable for the duration or just a few days.  She says to get used to it, that's just how it will feel until we are done and I get them off in 2 yrs.  I will always feel like my face is being pulled off.  Great.  I'm just gonna cry now.

Then she adds that I will only be able to eat soft food, and I won't be able to bite with my front teeth.  This is normal and I'll get used to it.  I am now screaming inside and fighting the urge to say really bad words out loud.  The orthodontist never did come and check the glue and wire job so I hope it is done correctly.  My teeth ached like crazy for three days and now they are just fine.  I'm biting and chewing with care, but I'm doing it.  It's really not bad.  My fishhook wound is healed now too, and my pinched cheek.  I'm hoping for a different assistant next time.

Just think, in two years my teeth will line up like chicklet soldiers!

1 comment:

Julie H said...

That is a HILARIOUS picture haha. Did you take it with your webcam haha. Sheesh who needs torture chambers when you can go to the orthodontist??