braces: month 4

4 months since I got them on!

Almost two months since my last entry. I wish I could say that things on the braces front have been going swimmingly, to explain the long silence. Let the highlights of the last 2 months speak for themselves:

• The new brackets on the back molars continue to be a pain in my cheeks.
  • Probably didn’t help that I rode a scooter and the helmet squeezed right on the brackets.
• One of the brackets fell off — actually, I think I knocked it off when I was brushing my teeth. So the wire was sticking into my mouth for over a week while I was traveling abroad.
  • NOTE: My orthodontist told me that I should have contacted them and they could have directed me to an ortho where I was. Apparently there’s an orthodontist’s code that says wherever you are, you should be able to be made comfortable by a local orthodontist.
• My front teeth hit and I started to grind my teeth again. So the buttons are back on.

The good news is that it’s possible that I may get these off earlier than the original one year plan. I’m not counting on it — and what’s most important is that the teeth are in a good place. Nevertheless, I am really looking forward to the end of this experience.