hi girls! i will be writing a blog entry about my bracing treatment to share my experience with you all. i will keep you girls updated when the blog entry is ready. btw, i was ex Ms Rabbit. was so bad, my mouth was pursed all the time according to my parents.

meanwhile, a pic of my current smile, thanks to David Orthodontics, who costs me a bomb but did a fantastic job.



*dun mind my male tag, it's for Kopitiam purposes *

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Added on April 23, 2008, 10:30 amand NO Listerine for your braces! according to several doctors, Listerine got some sort of content that does harm to your teeth as well as your braces, i suspect is sugar. and i suggest using Oxyfresh, it's not so 'tangy' like Listerine or Oral B, it's light but does wonders.

as for ulcers, don't you gals have dental wax to protect your gum from being scraped by the metal?

This post has been edited by sE_vIxEn: Apr 23 2008, 10:43 AM

i still think Oral-B is the best because Colgate is starting to get a bit too commercial, dunno whether their stuff is good.


for me, i choose to believe in my own doctor. he knows best i can say.

won't scrape till so serious gua? when i am particularly heaty only i will get disturbed by it. or last time when my friend's hand gesture went smack! on my mouth and caused an ulcer.

dun reveal my secret k.

no prob, wish to dig my 'before' pics but i couldn't find any that didn't reveal my ugliness.


can eat one leh, don't so no semangat, it'll be over! just relax. btw, it's a once-in-a-lifetime experience, cherish it! i still have my spare parts with me ya know.

you need more semangat? since i'm pretty free in the office today (and it's my college holidays), i think i might be able to complete my guide to bracing. let you guys know that you are not alone in the pain of going through all this.

those are not my wisdom tooth, those are the fellas that eventually led to my rabbit tooth-dom, that's why need to extract 4 of em to make room for the teeth to be straight to correct my overbite.

haha, thanks to my daddy for sponsoring the money and the doc for doing a great job.

the 4 pieces of metal are attached at the back of your teeth to hold the whole bracing together, it has got to end somewhere right?! that's the ending part supporting the whole thing together.

sE_vIxEn's Guide to Orthodontic (Teeth Bracing) Treatment : All You Need to Know

Hi guys! I'm here to share my bracing experience with you all, and write in down in permanent form before all memories of my bracing experience is lost. I did my bracing at year 2006 and finished it at 2007. Took me 1 and a 1/2 years for the whole duration of the treatment. The doctor used the Damon Bracing System on me and that is what I'll talk about mainly. This guide is purely written based on personal experience so there might be room for error. Therefore, always check with your doctor and leave my guide as a secondary opinion. Now, let's proceed!

The Beginning

This is it. The day you decide whether to have your teeth done or not. This is the point where you need to give up your good food, sacrifice your dad's money and your precious time to fight for that winning smile that you've always wanted. Ever got laughed at because of your rabbit teeth? I did. Actually I wasn't really bothered (at the point where I had my braces, I was 15 - 16 so I couldn't be bothered about my looks) but my parents did. They say it was so bad, my lips look pursed all the time. -__-

Okay, first of all, you need to engage a doctor. For me, I engaged David Orthodontics to do it for me because I got influenced by my brother's girlfriend. Actually my brother had already done bracing eons ago but I was too young to understand my parent's good intention.

Now one thing to note about choosing a doctor: It's very, very, very important. Before bracing, I've seen friends who went for government hospitals to 'take a number' and line up for their turn and end up getting their teeth f***ed up. Sure, the gov hospital saved them from rabbit tooth-dom, but the teeth are still crooked. Why waste your time and go through that pain and end up with null results? It's simply not worth it. Of course, if you have budget limitations, then that's understandable.

When your doctor checks your teeth, bombard him with questions! Ask him everything you want to know. You're the rice bowl for the doc and you have a right to leech the best services out of him. Get to know your teeth condition, how the whole procedure will go so you don't open your mouth and wait for surprise buttshecks to happen.

I have a bracing buddy / classmate who just goes and opens his mouth for the doctor to do anything he wants without knowing his condition. How can? And I especially hate people like these because end up you kena bombarded with questions that are supposed to be directed to a doctor, not someone who has experience. Basically, everyone's treatment is customized to suit your own needs so one will never know what you're going through.

Settling Down with your Choice

So you've had a consultation with your doctor, he should be preparing what you need and what is suitable. In my guide, I'll mainly talk about the Damon Bracing System, which is the one that I opted for (and the main choice of most patients). For your information, here are the available options. Again, this is strictly to my own knowledge, I'm not a pro, merely a girl sharing her experience.

read the full entry here.

This post has been edited by sE_vIxEn: Apr 30 2008, 04:26 PM

haha, sounds the same as me. the yellow rubber damn disgusting hor? but it works like a charm in pulling your braces back. so patience!

can't imagine? you can read about it here, you'll see some pics with the so-called 'rubber band'.

sure, look cute all you want at the age 15 - 18 maybe. and if you land yourself in a nice company when you're older, and you reveal those molars to your clients, your first impression to the client will be what? 'this girl is so kawaii?'. i don't think so. go and get it done! first impressions matters throughout life, you can't stay 'cute' forever. you'll eventually grow out of it somehow.

i think the box thing is available in countries like the US or higher end clinics lah. FYI i got the picture off the Internet. more fancy = more expensive, so just mix and match your band colours!

pink, light blue and light purple makes it super girly!

self-ligating is actually pretty simple. the wires are actually made out of alloy which will turn back into it's original shape irregardless of the way it was bent. for example, if you had vampire teeth, the wires need to bend to the protruding teeth to join the rest of your molars right? so when the wire is bent out of it's original shape, it will slowly and gradually revert back to the shape that it was designed in the first place. thus, pushing your teeth to the right position, hence the 'self-ligation'. which is why during your treatment, the doctor might take several 'sizes' of wires to try out and see which fits you. the larger your jawline is, the bigger the arc of the wires are; similarly if you have a small jawline, the arc will be smaller.

for those who are still studying SPM, look at your science textbook under the section metals and their properties, the metal is titanium alloy or something. i totally forgot the name, do correct me if i'm wrong.

This post has been edited by sE_vIxEn: May 21 2008, 09:43 AM

hi dear, i'm here.

you said that you've been wearing braces for a week. usually the doctor will give you a short period to 'get used to it'. he can't just put in the wires and expect everything to go in place. the patient might experience shock at the sudden movements and discomfort. that's why usually the first month he'll just fix the metals on your teeth and let it move very, very slowly. as you progress, the changes will be fast because you've grown used to it.

it is normal for you to extract your teeth soon, don't worry. is Dr Muhammad taking care of you? you're in good hands dear. everything about bracing is gradual changes as your progress over time.

bracing is a very personalized treatment, guys, please don't compare yourself with others to prevent unnecessary confusion. unless, of course, you feel that your doctor is not up to par.