Poke, poke, poke
I'm one of those masochists who pride themselves on their high pain thresholds and "toughing it out". I went through unmedicated, induced labor with my first child. I got through a cracked rib with rare complaint. I've dealt with intense pain in my jaw and migraines for years without going stark-raving mad.
But I cannot--cannot--deal with those poky little wires on my braces. You know, the ones in the back that rub sores on the insides of your cheeks whenever your braces shift. I was all proud of myself when I first got my braces because I would forgo the wax in order to produce those handy dandy callouses even quicker. In 6 months I have not used wax once. Not once! I know, I sound like one of those moms who think they are superior because they braved natural childbirth. But seriously, I want the callouses. I don't want to rely on wax.
But for the past 2 days the top wire on my right side has been poking me and dragging across my cheek whenever I open my mouth, making a nice tender sore. I'd go right to the OD to get it snipped, but as I said before it's a MAJOR pain in the arse to get in there, and I work all day and can't take too much time off. So I have to deal until Dec 6, when I go back for my regular appointment.
I'm sitting here very, very tempted to get out the wax. It's there, in the bathroom, next to my floss, calling to me, taunting me....
A question for my fellow surgery bloggers
How do you guys get such good, clear pictures of your teeth? I can't figure out how to do that with my camera. I have a digital Canon...something. A 2005 model. As you can see from my pics the lighting is off and the closer I get, the more blurry it is. My husband takes the pics for me, on a close-up setting. What do you guys do?
Also, how do some of you get your x-ray pics?
November 2006--Thoughts
I forgot to add in my last post that I got some springs on my arch wires to space my teeth for surgery. They look funny and they shred my floss. But hell, they're working. I can literally feel them tugging my teeth apart. Weird.
The other day I realized I could bite together properly again. For the past few months my teeth seemed to be hitting each other in an unnatural way, but now they fit together better. I can chew a bit better, though that overbite still makes it impossible to bite straight on. I have to bite everything from the side. On Halloween I tried to eat a package of Swedish Berries candy. I LOVE those. I did manage to chew them, with my very back molars. Yummy. I was very, very careful though. All in all my eating habits haven't changed much since braces. No more gum, hard bread, or nuts, but everything else is fair game. I LOVE to eat!!!
I don't have an ortho appointment this month (Dec. 6 is my next one) so for this month I thought I'd compile a list:
Braces at 30 vs. Braces at 12
Pros:
1. At 30, you don't have to go to school and hear kids call you names like "Braceface" and "Metal Mouth". (But now it may happen with your co-workers at work.)
2. At 30, you are too busy with kids, house cleaning, and work to even remember your braces half the time. ("Where's the Windex? I have to clean this mirror...Oh yeah! I forgot about those metal things in my mouth!")
3. At 30, your braces count as an interesting conversation piece. ("No, they don't pick up satellite signals.")
4. At 30, you appreciate your braces a lot more because it's not your parents mortgaging their house again to pay for them. (Now it's you)
5. At 30, you're mature enough to brush and floss properly and since you still glow under the praise of your orthodontist, there is plenty of opportunity for a good ego-stroking. ("Thanks, I take really good care of them." *insert angelic smile*)
Cons:
1. At 30, you usually have a spouse or significant other, whom you occasionally like to kiss, and braces make this difficult ("Ow! My lip!")
2. At 30, as an adult with braces, you sometimes get mistaken for a teenager. ("I'm old, I'm braced, get over it.")
3. At 30, you worry about the money and time involved with orthodontia. ("Um, how much did you say that was?")
4. At 30, you don't get the pleasure of getting an afternoon off school to go to the orthodontist. Now it's just an inconvenient pain in the ass. ("F%%king traffic!")
5. At 30, in the age of the internet, you have a newfound obsession with one thing: Google. ("Ahhh, how did we manage without it.")
One more thing. If you want a laugh, check out this guy's orthognathic surgery blog. Hilarious! http://www.thefark.com/surgery/
