adventures of a typical high school student

Welcome back everyone!

Today I’m going to be talking about something exciting and a little bit more personal: everything about my braces! I just got them off today and I could not be happier.

I got my braces on at the beginning of eighth grade (September 2017); I had known since I was little that I would need them since I had a huge gap between my two front teeth that I hated, but I had to wait a while to get them on because I lost most of my baby teeth pretty late. I was always very insecure about my teeth and my huge gap, so it was difficult waiting around while more and more people around me were getting their teeth straightened to perfection already throughout middle school. My last baby tooth had just fallen out when we went to an orthodontist consultation in the summer, and they told me it was finally time. I actually love my orthodontist’s office- all the people who work there are very kind and there are two amazing official orthodontists that switch off days.

When I first got my braces on, I expected things to move quicker than they obviously were going to. I was still unhappy with how my teeth and gaps looked, and it was inconvenient with the pain after each tightening appointment, food getting stuck, and difficulty brushing. My teeth got a lot yellower as a result which was frustrating as well. My dentist started scheduling appointments every three months instead of six as a pre-caution for gum problems that happen with braces (luckily I didn’t have any). I eventually learned not to notice them, and time flew by. In January 2019, I got four of my brackets removed and re-positioned in addition to two new brackets towards the back of my mouth (I’m not sure what teeth specifically), and that was the only recent time that I felt a lot of pain. At that appointment I got to see what the teeth with the re-positioned brackets looked like without braces, and it was SOO strange.

By that point, I figured my teeth wouldn’t change too much up until I finally got my braces off; my orthodontist said I should get them off by the end of summer. I kept going for my regular appointments every six weeks or so (just band and wire changes), and in May they started having me wear rubber bands. I wore them all day and night at first, until my appointment in July when they told me I only had to wear them at night. Finally, at my appointment in early August, they told me it was time to get them off! We scheduled an appointment a couple weeks out- it was the day of my cheer pictures so I could get them off right beforehand.

When I arrived at my removal appointment, they took my braces off right away- it took all of one minute to peel them off. They then polished my teeth to get the glue off, and took X-rays as well as pictures of my teeth to compare to the ones they took before I got my braces on. I did an impression of my top teeth (not as bad as people say!) so they could make me an Invisalign-like retainer for my top teeth, and they scanned my mouth to make the rest of my retainer that I get to pick up in a week. My orthodontist gave me a card and basket of candy/foods you shouldn’t eat with braces which was really sweet, and I was on my way!

Here’s a picture of my teeth now, after braces (I hated my teeth so much before braces that I don’t have any pictures to compare):

My two front teeth still have somewhat of a gap, but it’s just because of their shape. The Invisalign-like retainer and my other retainer are going to help close it as much as possible, but it’s kind of just my teeth. My gums are also still a little puffy but that will go down, and my teeth are really yellow- I plan to use Crest Whitestrips and whitening toothpaste to fix that. Overall, I’m so happy with how my teeth turned out and so thankful to be done dealing with braces! It was perfect timing for cheer pictures and the beginning of the school year.

I hope this gave you some insight into what it’s like to get braces, live with them, and get them off! I’m happy to answer any questions as always, or take requests for new content.

-Brooke