My Experience

It was the beginning of my high school career when I willingly and wholeheartedly handed over my mouth to my local orthodontist. It all began with a device called a herbst appliance. Two years after having this in my mouth I moved onto bigger and uglier things known as braces. By the time my mouth became mine again, I was a senior in high school and realized the hours of drilling, the loads of money and the embarrassment of having a “metal mouth” were all worth it.

I had braces to straighten my teeth. In order to prepare for the braces my orthodontist pretty much shoved little pieces of metal, known as “spacers,” in between my teeth. Then it was my job to continually wrap elastic bands around the spacers and walk out the door looking like a fool. Having the spacers enabled my teeth to move and space out so that the braces would be able to easily adjust and shift my teeth.

The braces were very easy to deal with once I got used to smiling with my mouth shut, which was frustrating for my mom during family pictures but gave me piece-of-mind. The one and only big decision I had to make concerning the braces was whether or not I would go clear or metal. The clear braces were not invisible though and after much consideration I decided to go “au naturale” and dive right in to a couple years of enduring the clichéd nickname of “metal mouth.” During the two years I had the braces I would go in for quarterly visits to check my progress and tighten the braces. Once they were off I was given a retainer and ordered to wear it every night for the rest of my life. I obeyed this demand for about a year-and-a-half and now occasionally fish it out of my junk draw.

When all was said and done, I felt terrific. It was completely worth it because I can now smile and not feel self-conscience about the way I look. To have that feeling of confidence is worth all the money and time in the world.