it's been awhile....

WOW....it's been since august since I posted anything on here. Well my upper arch looks pretty straight right now!! I'm in a 18 wire and outside of the inital day I got it put on I have had hardly any need to take ibuprofen! The only BIG thing that has changed is now my jaw has started popping on the right side. From talking to other people who have had them...apparently this is a normal thing and it eventually goes away....well I wish it would go away now. It's not that it hurts....its just annoying. Like for a few days....everytime I woke up in the morning its like I could feel like my jaw was locked and that I couldn't fully open my mouth....weird....and then I would lay there and work myself up to just opening my jaw wide enough so it would pop back into place and then its like...just when you think you fixed it....it does it AGAIN. Eating is just horrible when my jaw is being like that b/c everything you chew makes your jaw pop. On days when its being really annoying i have noticed that I start to get a minor headache. bleh. But the past couple days haven't been too bad.

I'm getting my lower braces placed on November 4 - then I will have both upper and lowers! Excited....b/c that means i'm one step closer to having straight teeth.....but nervous/not excited about how I will look. Hoping that there is enough room on my teeth for me to get clears on the bottom as well b/c I REALLY dont want any metal. But we will see.....I will update again (with pictures) when i get my lowers done.

Wish me luck.

Smooth sailing.

Not too much has changed since I last posted.....I DID notice that my 2 front teeth are actually in a straight line now!!!! YAY! Now if they just turn out a little more then my top arch would be PERFECT - at least from my persepective. I will post pics when I am on here next. I haven't really been as sore this go around as I thought I would be. Just a couple mornings here and there where I wake up and i'm just sore all around.....hardly had to take any ibuprofen. Next appointment isn't till the 27th...hoping my teeth will move more before then. We shall see.

ONE Month!!

So, on month ago today I got my top braces put on! Yay! 17ish or less more to go. Boo. The first month wasnt horribly bad - the farther I got away from when they were intially put on - the better my mouth felt and the more foods I have been able to eat.

And then today, just when all seemed well, I went to the ortho and got my braces tightened. Oh, and I got a larger arch wire.

My first arch wire was a 14 (what exactly that is measuring, im not sure) What I do know is that the larger the numbers get....the bigger and stiffer the wire gets which means more pressure/pain. :( From the time the wire got put on and it was getting tightened into place i was SOOOO sore already! Last time it took a few hours before I noticed anything....this time...I hadn't even left the office and I was already feeling it. Hence the reason I went straight to Target and got a bottle of ibuprofen. :)

It's been about 10 hours since I was at the ortho....and the pressure isn't too bad. Im SURE i will really feel it when I wake up in the morning :(

So....here we go again.

one of many lessons.

Kissing with braces (for the first time, and probably many times after this) = VERY awkward.

2 weeks.

So, today is 2 weeks since I got my uppers put on. Pain really hasn't been all that bad at all. I have had to be significantly more selective about what I eat- making sure that it't not too hard to bite down into. A favorite snack/food desert that I have become a huge fan of is

Yoplait Whips - preferably in Strawberry :)

It's yogurt....but it has a different kind of whipped (hence the name) texture that just makes it SOOO much more appealing that your standard yogurt....and at 50 cents each.....I definitely stock up on these!!

Yesterday I was sitting on the couch....and started messing with my teeth and realized that they are able to rock back and forth a lil bit now - YAY they are moving! I can't wait for my next appointment *July 20* to see if and how much progress I have made....I know its only going to be my first appointment since getting them placed....but I am just interested to know.

So all in all not doing too bad. Still learning to get used to smiling more with them on - it's just a work in progress!

First appearance with braces. Check.

So as previously mentioned, I'm on a dance team - so, we had an appearance on Saturday....and from the time I started getting ready, everytime I opened my mouth I was FILLED with regret about deciding to get these....even when I was there. Normally, I really like to smile....but I tried so hard to not do it. We took a couple pictures while we were there....and I felt a lil better after I saw some of the pics....b/c the braces really are not that noticable in them.

Then again - the picture was taken with an iphone....so that really doesn't say too much for quality....but NONE the less....you can really notice them. This hurdle of mine is not completely cleared...but it's a start....I will have to see how I feel about these things once our season starts in November.

If I could...I so would...

...take some pliers and pull these things off my teeth.

It't not b/c they hurt or anything, I am used to the pressure now...but sometimes I just forget that I have these things on my teeth and I want to try and get whatever is in my mouth out....and then I remember....'oh yeah, i signed on for this.' I feel like I can't quite talk right b/c I can't get my upper lip all the way over my top teeth. Sometimes, I have noticed I make a whistling noise when I talk. And I totally feel like a 14 year old....rockin the braces....I should have gone all out and gotten metal with colored rubber bands!

yeah. right.

Eating has still been a task....just having to select foods which I don't really have to chew into right now is kind of annoying....hopefully my back teeth will start to get a little less sensitive...even though I kind of doubt they will :( I feel SO negative right now. Back to my dinner of mashed potatoes. :)