One Year.

So it's been a year.













(February 2008)
















(February, 2009)


I'm so happy. I'm glad every single day that I did this.

I won't be blogging anymore (I don't think), but please please please feel free to contact me (through a comment on this site) if you come across this blog and have questions or want to know more about my experience.

Thank you again to all of my ortho-blogging buddies for your support, guidance, and advice, and for sharing your lives with me. Best of luck!

NEWS FLASH

I HAVE BEEN DEBRACED!

And I'm thrilled. I went in expecting to only have the bottom ones removed and the orthodontist just took them all off. It was actually pretty fast and only minorly uncomfortable. And now I have gorgeous, straight, perfect, FUNCTIONAL teeth. I got a bottom Hawley retainer. The top Essex (Invisalign) retainer will be shipped to me once it is made. Then I was passed on to the dentist who is handling my bridge work (I am missing two teeth, and am not a candidate for implants). He took impressions so that the bridges (and trays so that I can bleach!) can be made. I'll get the new bridges in December.

I am so happy. It's been a long road and I am so close to the end. If you are reading this, and are considering surgery, or at the scary pre-surgery part, or the upsetting recovery part, please know: it's worth it. It's completely worth it.

This isn't a great picture, but it's the one I've got:

On Campus Update

School's been going fine, not anymore braces-unfriendly than the rest of the world.

Fortunately, that will no longer be a consideration after OCTOBER FOURTH, when my definitely my bottom braces and possibly my top braces will be removed!

I'm thrilled.

A Quickie

Really really quick, because I think an update is neccessary but I am tired and busy!

Implants: no go. I don't have enough space between the adjacent teeth, and the bone is too thin. It looks like I'll have resin-bonded bridges put in when the braces come off

Braces: bottom braces to come off in October, top braces in December. Teeth are no longer being moved. Hallelujah!

School: off to college next Saturday! Not thrilled that I will be starting with braces, but it could be worse. I'd rather have them for the extra three months or so and have it look just right.

This is a new record for me! Shortest post ever!

Helllllllllllllllo Blogosphere!!

Wow. It's kind of nice to say it's been a really long time and not a whole lot has changed. I'm in rubberbands again, gained back all the weight I lost post-op, and things are being fine-tuned in my mouth, but that's about it.

It looks like the braces might come off at the end of August, but probably not until Christmas (the next time I'll be home from school!) The only thing that's really delaying their removal, it seems, is making sure there's enough room for two implants to be placed in. I'm a little confused to the order that everything has to happen in, but my dentist, orthodontist, and periodontist should be chatting and getting back to me on Monday, so. I should have a better idea then. After seeing the periodontist, he sent me for a CT Scan to make sure there's enough bone to do the implants. Because I have been missing the teeth that will be replaced with implants for some time, the bone structure has somewhat degraded. The CT Scan showed that I will need a bone graft in order for implants to be possible. Apparently, that's not a huge deal, though. (Aside story: right before I had the scan, I told the technician that there's a great deal of metal in my face. She just kind of nodded and went on what she was doing. After the scan was done, she came back into the room and said, "Wow, there really is a lot of metal in there. What happened?!")

Oh! By the way. I found a great use for rubberbands. I was sitting on the bus knitting, and I needed an extra stitch marker. Aha!










Now for pictures, eh?

This is from June. The first spontaneous picture of my profile that I really like. Hurray! My mom says that my nose isn't really as big as in the picture, so there you go, Internet. My nose isn't that big.










My friend and I being silly. Oh, and proof that I'm really really tall.

I'm my own slightly-more-attractive-but-otherwise-identical sister

Today I dropped by the history office at my high school to ask a question. I began talking to my teacher from last year. I never had a particularly great relationship with her, but she was closest and could answer my question. After we had talked for a few minutes, she said, "So, you must be Allison's sister!"

*confusion*

"No, I'm Allison..."

"Oh! You look... different! But the same! Your face looks different!"

This is actually the second time in a week that a former history teacher and I have discussed my face. The other time, my sophomore year teacher said my name, and I turned around. "Wow!" she said, "You look great!" At the time, I thought it might be because I've learned how to do my hair and wear mascara since I had her. Maybe not?

Clicking No More?

Sorry to leave you guys in the dark -- the clicking ended pretty much as soon as my orthodontist took me off rubberbands. Now I am blissful again :)

I realized that I can't touch my nose with my tongue anymore! Boo, I want that back!