10 Weeks-Anna

So, I've survived 10 weeks in total! Honestly, half the time I love the braces, especially when a few teeth feel tender and I know they must be on the move, a quarter of me forgets they're there! The rest of the time I just want to rip them off so I can go out and eat without talking with my lips over my teeth, or doing the lip freeing manoeuvre on my top lip-which gets stuck on the braces when I laugh! I was actually recently asked why I kept doing the lip freeing manoeuvre-I explained my lip gets stuck on the braces, the person replied "oh, I thought you were on drugs!". Charming!! Especially as I had only met this person once before!! I had a bracket stuck back on the day before a holiday 2 weeks ago, woke up the next morning and the one next to it had pinged off-no time for the dentist before the holiday, so had to wait 10 days to have it put on! Horrible feeling!! Not only did I think my tooth (the naughty bottom left canine which needed all that filing!!) wouldn't move (which it's being stubborn about anyway!!) but I was worried it would actually move back! However, I think it just stayed put :(. I'm finding hard to notice much movement now, because they moved so much at the beginning. The easiest way to see what needs to move is my looking at the angles created on the wire from the wonky teeth.  However, my wonky teeth are pretty much straight now-just 2 or three on the bottom right which need to come up-its the only angle visible on the wire now really. The rest is about turning the teeth, so its more difficult to see if they've moved! I had a wire change the other day when I had the bracket re-stuck, it wasn't due to be changed for a week-but he said my teeth were ready-YAY! So I got a thicker, less flexible wire! To me, that means I'm a week ahead in treatment and the teeth will start moving quicker again! The wire is noticeably thicker and more obvious-but hey-I'm over a third of the way there now-so if the thicker wire means the teeth move more, that's fine with me!!! Still have the odd day of the inside of my cheeks being swollen, but I just make sure I wax the odd sharp bit,sleep with the mouth guard on that night and take anti inflammatories and that sorts me right out!! I'm back for a check up at the end of the September,(in 3 weeks time -which will be the half way point!), then the next appointment will be at the end of October for the final wire change!!! Not sure if the next wire is thicker again, or just a new one the same as this one!! Also, the exciting thing about that visit is that the ortho said my bottom teeth should be finished in 4 months and THAT will be the 4 month appointment-fingers crossed this damn tooth moves!! It would be very nice if this last wire change does the job for the top and bottom teeth and it all comes off in October! But we'll see!! Fingers extra crossed for that!! I have taken a few extra pics this week of the teeth that need turning-the bottom left canine and the top left canine plus its neighbour to the left! Want to keep an eye on those in the next few weeks and see how they're doing! Again, Initial photo's left, week 10 on the right!

 Upper Left

 Lower Left