This is the first time I put a before and after pic side by side to really see the difference. Wow! Its so weird! My face is so much shorter and my teeth and smile are so much WIDER! The picture on the left is not very gummy because over the years, I got really good at keeping it under control. The pic on the right is me smiling as wide as I can and you can't see them at all! I saw Dr. Kunik (ortho) today and got a quite interesting band configuration. I've been really worried that my midlines haven't been lining up. I guess that's the OCD in me. I want them to be spot on. So now I have a really sweet band that goes diagonally across the front. I asked him the question he knew was coming. So...how much longer will I have these babies on? He said he would like to do another adjustment next month and see how things are going. He thinks that I can do one adjustment in September, one in October, and then get them off completely in November!! Yeah! Just in time for holiday parties, Christmas, and New Years Eve!! That would be FANTASTIC. I'm going to wear these stinking bands all day unless I'm eating. No pain, no gain and at this point it means the difference between taking pics at the office Christmas party with a blinding gleam coming from my teeth or to be feeling great with my new smile in a cute party dress. I'm going to call the dentist and see how long he thinks I need to heal in order to have my implant done. I would love to have a day of teeth that includes getting my braces off, having my implant done, and doing any bonding/veneering on my two small front teeth (and whitening at this point). My teeth look so dingy to me, but I can't really do anything about it except keep brushing. Normally, I would bust out the Crest White Strips, but those aren't quite made for braces. Someone should definitely invent whitening for us metal mouths! So, hopefully I only have three months or less left to go.
15 comments:
I'm so happy to hear that you are within reach of being done with all this. It is such a long process and for it to be so close to the end is so rewarding.
Congrats!
It is really helpful to see your before and after for all of us wondering "what will I look like?". And you look amazing, like you but somehow better! It is so cool that your dimples are still there, isn't it?
Are you growing more comfortbale with your new look? I am already starting to think about how I'll handle awkward moments when you run into someone who doesn't recognize you (or maybe they just didn't know you had surgery). Has this happened to you yet?
When my girlfriends have asked me to describe what I'm having done, and then they follow my explanation with a blank look, I tell them to look at your blog b/c you've done such a nice job organizing your before/after shots. :)
Thanks for the update.
Katherine-
Yup, the dimples stuck. I'm glad I those decided to stay. Its still weird sometimes to see myself so different, but I really love it. Since I have a link to my page on MySpace and Facebook, I get a lot of comments from people I went to high school with that tell me how differnt I look. I don't think I'm unrecognizable, just tweeked a little bit...for the better.
The before & after pics are impressive. I'm sure you're pleased with the results! Unlike you, I wasn't brave enough to ask my OD how much longer I'll need my braces on. Maybe next month, I'll ask that big question! :0)
So what implants are you talking about? The veneers?
:0)
M
I had one tooth removed before surgery. I had a cavity that had gone straight down into the root. It could have been fixed, but probably wouldn't have stood up to surgery so they pulled it. I had the implant post done during jaw surgery so that I would be that much closer to being done. The veneers were mentioned to me by my surgeon. Apparently, the teeth on the sides of my two big front teeth are really small due to being squished and crowded while I was growing. Once everything is where its supposed to be, I will more than likely have small gaps that need to either be covered with veneers or bonded. I just don't want teeth that look like Chiclets!
Girl you look awesome! I'm glad you're happy :) You worked hard at your recovery and it seems to have paid off. Congrats.
You look fab!
Rachel,
You look great. Do you have any numbness left? Your recovery has been amazing.
Lori
I still have numbness in my gums. My doc said it will take quite a whie for that to come back. Other than that, I'm pretty full of feeling
Yes, your smile does look much wider, which is just great. You sound full of beans, too. Yay! Here's to getting the hardware off by November!
mylene
www.chinderella.wordpress.com
you look AWESOME!!!!!
you look AWESOME!!!
Great to see your before and after pics. Your smile looks great ... can understand why you're so happy with your progress.
Good luck with things moving smoothly to you having naked teeth in a few months!
I can't believe I haven't commented on how great you look!!? Where the heck have I been? Anyhoo.. YOU LOOK GREAT!!!! =D
Oh my gosh! You look great! I really appreciate your blog. I'm scheduled to have surgery on September 3rd, and I have to make a decision as to whether I want lower and upper jaw surgery or just lower jaw surgery. It's a bit difficult for me to close my lips, and my surgeon says the upper should help that, but he also said that my face is pretty, and he doesn't want to throw off the balance. Ultimately, he put the decision in my hands. If you have a chance, you can check out my photos here: http://s458.photobucket.com/albums/qq310/Baileysrv/
As someone who has gone through both lower and upper, might you have any advice? (if you have a chance to look)
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