No Braces

It is official, I no longer wear braces. I have worn braces since around October of 2011 which means I have had them on for around 18 months which is a very long time. The weird thing is that I was so used to wearing them that my teeth now look weird without them. They sort of look naked and as if something is missing. That was actually the first thing I thought when I saw them for the first time after debanding (the process of removing the braces) and I actually thought something was wrong with my teeth. They just looked weird without the braces. Plus my teeth now feel weird that there isn't anything on them anymore besides the wires they put on behind the teeth to hold them in place after the braces are removed. I swear, my tongue has been touching those wires for so long today that I would not be surprised if the shape of the wires could be seen on my actual tongue.

Image Source: http://katesmartfitness.com/i-wish-id-listened-to-good-advice/perfect-teeth/

The actual appointment for the debanding was at 9:40 this morning and so I went to bed with thoroughly brushed teeth and woke up to brush them some more. I was just really excited to get these braces off after such a long time. We arrived early but went in to the dental room right on 9:40 (talk about punctual). After an hour of intense work (and a bit of pain as they cut down some of the teeth) my braces were finally off and an impression for a retainer to be worn at night was made. Everyone had seen my teeth after the debanding besides me and the first I saw it was in the car on the way home. Do you know how annoying it is for everyone to see something on you that you can not see. It actually is going to have to be something to get used to again and I go back next Tuesday to receive my retainer. I just can not wait to be able to have some more freedom with what I can put in my mouth (within reason of course). No longer will I have to worry about bands restricting the movement of my mouth or the pains keeping me up through the night. Finally I can feel comfort in the fact that I no longer need to wear braces. It feels good.

Good dental hygiene is very important, see you tomorrow!