I’ve had my braces on since April. The bottom teeth have metal, traditional wires, and the top teeth have Invisalign. When I first started the process, I wasn’t pregnant. By the time the molds were done, the fittings complete, and the braces were actually ready, I was. I mention this because it has had a great impact on the quality of my teeth and the brace-wearing process.
Apparently when wearing Invisalign you are supposed to take them out every time you eat and then brush your teeth and put them back in. No problem right? Unless you’re eating every half an hour and then throwing up nearly as many times. It was only a couple of months before I stopped wearing those suckers simply because I had better things to worry about it. Then there was the problem with my two front teeth.
The orthodontist had told me early on that as soon as he put the braces on the bottom teeth, I would need to get two superfluous teeth removed. I was actually glad to hear this – one of these teeth has bugged me for as long as I can remember since it sticks out from all the others. I wasn’t going to be sorry to see it go. But again, with the pregnancy, everything was put on hold.
So finally, this week, at 22 weeks along and safely past the 1st trimester and morning sickness, I was ready to have those two trouble teeth pulled. Can I just tell you how terrified I was? I normally need a nice dose of relaxation medication before heading to the dentist even for a cleaning, and this would be the first time that this wasn’t an option.
I gathered all the courage I had and made my way to the oral surgeon’s office. I signed the paperwork and five minutes later found myself sitting in the chair. Ten minutes later, I was on my way home.
That was it? That’s what I was worried about for weeks? The shots (all six of them) hurt more than anything else. I drooled for about two hours and had to change the gauze every 30 minutes, but other than that, it was a relatively painless procedure. Besides, now I have these cool holes in my mouth that I proudly wear as battle scars to show that I did it! I went to the dentist terrified and weak and I emerged victorious! If I can do that, I can do anything.
Labor pains and child birth? Please, that’ll be nothing!
(Yes, that was said completely tongue in cheek, no pun intended.)
What experience have you had that ended up being better than you thought? (Or worse than you thought?)
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“…and all nature of things shall be well.”
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