Day 64.

Two days have gone by since I have seen the dentist, i have to live through another 12 before my next orthodontic visit.
It's ok though, I haven't been noticing my expander, my jaw pain has eased a lot since I stopped turning the key. The only part that does bug me constantly now is the lifted expander arm (please see previous posts)
It hangs off like a little hook and I manage to get everything caught and stuck.
I have included a few links (ohhh go me!) which hopefully work and link to the YouTube vids that I have seen which show how things work and stuff.

The palate expander in this video is quite differently shaped to mine and has a key, not spanner. It also shows a gap forming between the two front teeth, my expansion has resulted in small gaps between all my molars and a tiny gap between the front upper two at the top, the bottoms of the two teeth are still touching. :/

http://youtu.be/UkOMI8eUNHk


I was complaining before, my Moaning Myrtle alter ego is here....
:)
But she only has a few small complaints.

My two upper front teeth were buffed two days ago at the dentist, these teeth felt quite tender yesterday. I didn't really notice until the afternoon as I was super busy at work, but once I did take note I wasn't keen on even rubbing my tongue over them. Gosh they look great though, well much better than before! I am starting to see them turn into 'normal' teeth, the bottom of the two teeth is starting to straighten and have less ridges, they are now white spot free and are sitting in the right position! I am still over the moon with the results of buffing them, I actually looked at them for longer than a few seconds.

In my last post I mentioned these spots and the dentist prescribing me 'tooth mousse' to use everyday.
Well vanilla isn't as trusty as I believed, I would describe the taste of this as being tolerable, rather than saliva inducing. Which is what it is supposed to do.
I put it on in bed after I have done brushing and flossing etc. I have learnt to use a cotton tip applicator because of the sheer crowding of my teeth, I rub the mousse over all teeth making sure that they are coated with the mousse and then refrain from spitting, swallowing and rinsing for at least 3-5 Minutes. Rinsing shouldn't be done at all. I then can't eat or drink anything for 30 mins so I usually go straight to sleep anyway. The taste is not pleasant, but it's not bad either, so it doesn't worry me too much.
The more saliva produced, the better the product works. So far I think it works ok, either way I have no white spots annoying me again yet, and shouldn't get any if its doing its god properly. He is a video that describes what tooth mousse does.

http://youtu.be/tcZQqheu-ps

When I got home from the dentist I could not stop looking at the two 'new' teeth at the front. Both my husband and I were examining them when we both noticed the crookedness of my smile. :(
My face has changed from the expander. Not drastically, but definitely enough for people close to me to notice. I have a broader face, which is good. The bad part is that my expansion is working better on the left, so the right has catching up to do. My smile looks crooked as a result.
Of course it is temporary, but I makes me nervous for future extractions and treatments. I have read a lot of information online in relation to the changes in facial structure from both upper palate expansion and extractions of the four first premolars. Most information is negative, but a few people stating expansion made them look better.
Removing teeth can alter the face as the canines,incisors and first premolars all provide lip and facial support, when removed the support can be lost and the face can have a sunken in appearance.
We have all seen people with that sunken in look, I now wonder if they have suffered from bad orthodontic work or a dentist who likes to pull teeth rather than heal them....
It all comes down to trusting my excellent orthodontist and dentist. Now I know they are both on the same page, I will have two people to blame if it goes terribly wrong...

Of course I am joking!!! They know a lot more than I do, have explained it and it is the patients choice to go ahead with the treatment....

Reading into it is both beneficial and not so, doubts can form that really are not relevant.

My treatment plan is on track and it is easy to understand. Much more so than what i had always thought would happen. I have always want my canines removed as they stick out the most and push the 2nd incisors back. I now know doing this would cause total loss of lip support, and is very rarely done in practice because of this. The first premolars are the better and safer choice and will leave a much less noticeable gap when they are extracted, with braces the two canines will move down in their place and the two incisors forward to sit in line with the front teeth.

Here is a video that shows the deal, these teeth closely resemble my upper teeth, especially at the front, (without my open bite problem) so it gives me a good idea of what is going to happen.

http://youtu.be/VeyAvem4p2w

I hope the videos work.
I'm sure I will post again soon, hopefully not for the next 12 days though!