Wearing braces for life???

I had a brace on my top jaw. When that was taken off, i had a bar fixed behind my frount teeth. Today, I went back 2 da Orthodonist and she said that the bar will be on there for life!!! I was shocked and cried once i got home. As i felt that because i rejected them to operate on my lower jaw (Overbite of 11mm according to her BIG overbite) she has made me wear the bar (which annoys me when i eat and when i told her she couldn't really care less)

Does any1 else have 2 wear braces or bar for the rest of their life?

Are large overbites dangerous?

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

la fille danse

It doesn't have to be there for life, if you don't want it. It's your right to have it removed whenever you choose. But it might be the best option, if that's what the ortho suggested.

Reply 2

mike_J

yes, ive got one on my bottom set of teeth which i 'have' to wear indefinately. I don't have an overbite, so i dont think its the reason you have to wear one. It's there to keep the teeth inline which is what the orthodontist told me.

Trust me, you'll get used to the bar, you'll forget its even there after a while. Don't worry about it.

Reply 3

Anonymous #1

Yea, i have it on my bottom teeth. It's annoying for about three weeks and then it's a part of you. My boyfriend finds it sexy when we kiss. Really!

All best! :suitc:

Reply 4

Aspect

I don't understand, what's the point of having a brace for life? I'm baffled.

Reply 5

generalebriety

Aspect

I don't understand, what's the point of having a brace for life? I'm baffled.

I was going to ask the same thing. Why wear braces if they're not actually going to change the shape of your teeth? :confused:

Reply 6

Shreerac1

generalebriety

I was going to ask the same thing. Why wear braces if they're not actually going to change the shape of your teeth? :confused:

To stop the shape getting worse.

Reply 7

Dez

I've never heard of anything like this, and I've had more orthodontic treatment than most. Are your teeth just in permanent danger of moving around? I can't see any other reason why you'd have braces on for life.

Reply 8

generalebriety

Shreerac1

To stop the shape getting worse.

Good answer. Guess I know little about teeth.

Reply 9

mike_J

As i said above, it's there (in my case) to keep the teeth aligned. And its not a whole brace like (i think) what people are imagining. It's simply a small bar attached between two teeth, on the back of the teeth. It's a bit like this:
http://www.smoe.org/braces/misc/3x3ret.jpg but doesnt have the metal bits going around the teeth, its just stuck to them with some super duper glue.

Reply 10

Pseudomuse

Braces for life...thats a bit harsh

Reply 11

lazydays

I have it, and you will get used to it REALLY quickly. Mine's being taken off when i stop gowing though, so maybe you can ask for yours to be taken off then too?

Reply 12

arcticsquirrel

well my dad had an overbite but he had an operation and had his jaw reset, it was a painful operation he said and he could not speak for a week or so because his mouth was wired shut to keep his jaw in place. so they might be able to do the same for u.

Reply 13

Dez

If you actually read what the OP wrote, she rejected that operation. To be honest, I don't think it's connected to the wire brace, which is trying to keep her teeth from moving, not to stop her jaw shifting about.

Reply 14

Emmalina

I have amazingly odd teeth - I seem to be growing a whole new set (like a shark) and have extra teeth growing upwards towards my nose and all sorts! Ive been to the orthdontist since I was 2!

I have braces for life - I have a retainer that I have to wear once a month on the top - and the inside wire thing. Its really not that bad!!

Reply 15

Elz

I've had a lot of orthodontic work over the years and I've also had my lower jaw broken and moved forward. It was a dangerous operation and a very painful one at that (I was on morphine for about 4 days afterwards), but it was very much worth it, otherwise the teeth in my lower jaw would've eventually gone up and into the soft palette of my upper jaw.

I wouldn't worry too much about having to wear the metal bar for life. Your teeth will grow and change within the next couple of years so you may very well end up having the bar removed. The ortho was probably just airing on the side of caution and saying that you'd have to wear it for life. :smile:

Reply 16

Angelharpist

Gosh, at least you haven't got traintracks on the front of your teeth for life! Overreacting slightly! :tongue:

I had private Orthodontic work done, and that was four extractions and then traintracks for two, nearly three years. When the braces were removed, I had a removable retainer to be used every night for 6 months, and also had a very small, very thin piece of wire put behind my top AND my bottom teeth. And in all honesty, I really don't care. I spent £3,500 on getting my teeth fixed, and if a teeny piece of wire (that you can't see and can't feel) stops my teeth from moving back, then I'm all for it. I've now got perfect teeth, and I don't want to risk losing them anytime soon.

You said you find it 'annoying' when you eat - I haven't had any problems with food getting caught behind the wire (as the gaps are too small) - just brush your teeth after you finish each meal, like you should have done when you had traintracks and it really shouldn't be an issue.

If it bothers you that much, then get the wires taken off, but it would be a bit unfair on the dentist who's spent so much time and effort giving you fabulous teeth. They don't want all their hard work to go 'down the drain' i.e your teeth moving back within the next few months.

Thinking of you also, do you really want to have to go back and get your teeth fixed AGAIN? It takes up so much time and effort (not to mention money!).

It'll get easier, I promise :smile:

Reply 17

Purple

For life is rather OTT.

Reply 18

Pink Lady

I have a fixed bar at the back of my teeth on the bottom row. I'm 21. Thing is, I had to wait a week in between having braces off and the retainers made, so while my top set of teeth remained straight and I then had to wear a normal plastic retainer for just a year, the bottom row got a a small bit crooked in that week, and my teeth are now just slightly overlapping at the top of most of the teeth, but overall they are still far better than they were before braces.

I was told I'd have the bar until I was 21 or until it fell off, but then surely the teeth would move more due to the sudden lack of support? For my top row (which is still very straight) I had to decrease retention gradually ie every other night. I'm not going to risk bad teeth by taking it off, tbh, cos my bottom row was terrible before, and now it's actually not bad, but just not perfect anymore, and only the top row is visible anyway, and the dentist's concensus is to leave it in indefinitely.

With you, it is the top row so could be due to the overbite, but you never know. Don't worry, better for it to be there than not!

When I graduate and start earning I'm gonna eventually try and have a removable retainer made for my bottom row so I can start reducing the time I spend in retention, but I'm not that fussed about it at the mo', it's just annoying with flossing and getting food caught in it, and it would cost a lot anyway cos I'd have to have it done privately and made within a day or so so my teeth don't move more.

So the moral? Don't worry. People can't see it and it's not that big a deal. Straight teeth are the most important thing. If they move bacteria could trap between them and then you may get rotting teeth.

Also, can you not get the jaw operation still?

Reply 19

34253

Have you properly considered the operation? Perhaps a week of pain is worth not having a brace for ever. It might make eating easier aswell. Perhaps it might even make you more good looking?