Week 123 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Painful, swollen gum

This afternoon after lunch I thought my teeth were feeling great. I felt some slight pain on my molar so I thought the new rubberbands are really working now, working its way to my lower molar. As the day progressed, the pain grew. By nightfall, I was in real pain. Right now I can't bite down completely as I would hit my swollen gum. I used to get swollen gums on my lower left side but after the dentist smoothened out that molar, it wouldn't get swollen anymore. Probably because there wouldn't be any food stuck. This time around it is my right lower gym right next to the last molar. It is even more painful than my past experiences and I don't know what to do. I have already tried flossing (but couldn't as it is too swollen) and I have also rinsed my mouth with salt water.

If I can't sleep later or it is the same or worse tomorrow, I'll definitely take a painkiller.

Week 122 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Still have braces on after 2.3 years

I went to my ortho appointment after 3/4 weeks from my previous visit. I already knew my braces were not ready to be taken off as I could feel that my upper right front tooth was hitting my lower ones a little too soon.

As I approached the patient's seat my orthodontist approached me and asked me to smile to check out my teeth. He said it looked pretty good and that it was crunch time. But, what does that mean? How much time does he have before crunch time is over?

My wires were taken off and teeth were inspected a few more times while I was laying on my chair. I pointed out to him some of my observations and he agreed. He said that the teeth are aligned well upper  and lower but they are not 100% with respect to each other - that we are working with millimeters in difference.

There were some adjustments to my wires which I can feel on my lower back molars and my front upper teeth.

The interesting part of the appointment was that I got what they called Koby hooks. I got two of these on my lower teeth attached to the brackets on the incisors. Not sure how they were attached but I am afraid of moving them and have them knocked off. Why hooks? Because I was asked to wear rubber bands again!!!!! This time they are called the rabbit bands - much thinner and lighter than the impala bands from before. The bands are going from the upper molars to the lower incisors and they are supposed to bring my upper teeth up slightly and my lower back slightly.

Next appointment is in 4 weeks :(. Sounds so far away!

Week 119 with the Damon Braces

Summary: darn braces won't come off!


I just got back from my visit to the orthodontist. Even prior to going, I knew my braces weren't ready to be taken off. I am having a company party event next week and would have liked to have had a nice big smile without my braces. Now, that will not be possible. Heck, all the upcoming Christmas parties will be with my braces still on as my next appointment will be on the 20th of December and it probably takes about a week before the retainers are ready - so I'd be looking for December 27th (not taking into account it is the holiday season which would delay shipping).

During this visit, the ortho made some small adjustments to the same wire to close the small gap I still have between my molars. He also made a small adjustment to my upper front teeth but I can't tell what it was. Another thing he did was to file down the ridges behind my upper front teeth as my lower teeth were hitting into them. After that, my bite felt sooooo much better…

Cheers to the holidays with braces! :(

Week 114 Pictures

Summary: Pictures from week 114.

My next appointment will be in November 28th and I am hoping that will be my second to last appointment. I was supposed to have it next Monday but I am out on vacation for 2 weeks so I had to reschedule :(. Hopefully I'll be done by mid December and will be able to have a good smile for the holidays! I can almost feel it is as good as it will get but I know there are some more small adjustments to make.

Week 112 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Can't wait for my next appointment on Monday

Yesterday was an interesting day. I think after lunch I felt a little poke on my lower left side. Didn't make much of it as I thought it was the hook on the bracket poking me. And so, I continued my day as usual.

Later in the afternoon I was kind of cleaning my teeth from food remains and felt kind of funny when running my tongue over my lower left molar. My first thought was,  "I swallowed another bracket!" and thought about the hook and hoped it didn't hurt my internal organs and etc.

I rushed off to the bathroom and found that the bracket was still there! It did come off but because it had a power chain on it, it was still on the wire just not on the tooth.

Week 111 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Still looks like my front teeth are too far out.


Here are the pictures I just took:

Week 110 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Went to the ortho on Monday and still have my braces on

And so the journey continues...

I went to my regular ortho appointment on Monday and was hoping for good news. However, I already knew my braces weren't ready to come off as there are still small unevenness in my teeth. I feel like my ortho knows I am soooo ready to take them off as he keeps saying we will fix this and that ASAP. lol.

A few things were done. As usual, new powerchains but I also got a few adjustments to my upper wire. He did some twisting and bending to bring a couple of teeth on my upper left side lower to close a gap that was very visible. I should post some pictures soon. I was looking at some older pictures and my teeth and I have come a long way since then. Really excited to seeing the end result.

At the end of the visit he said to come back in 4 weeks. That is when I asked, "Is that going to be my second to last visit?" I was thinking that visits are every 4 weeks and if we were planning to be on target to have them off by the end of the year, that would mean 1 more appointment in November and 1 more in December. Mostly because I would be out of town during Thanksgiving and the last 2 weeks of December. So then, my orthodontist said, well, let's try to see you in 3 weeks and see how it is going but normally it takes about 4 weeks for teeth to move...

Pictures coming soon. I think there are very noticeable differences since my last photo shoot.

Week 105 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Just done with another ortho appointment, unfortunately, not my last.

I went to see my orthodontist on Monday. It was overall a good appointment with many changes.

1. Minor wire adjustments
2. Power chains on upper and lower teeth

The orthodontist also told me that we want to get my braces off ASAP. He knows that by now I should have already had my braces off. I know! It feels like forever now, especially on these last few months. He said that we are trying to have them off by the end of the year.

My next appointment isn't until 5 weeks out. That would be the first week of October. I am assuming I would have another appointment the first week of November and maybe a last appointment the first week of December. This would mean I have about 3 months left.

Week 102 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Lost Bracket

About 2 days ago I noticed that I had a slight pinching on the back of my right side. I didn't really pay much attention to it actually as I knew it was probably just some wire poking me. Later in the day I decided to take a look and found out I was missing the last bracket on my upper molar! I tried hard to remember when it started hurting but I couldn't.  I also don't remember biting anything hard so I am pretty sure I just swallowed it :(. Hopefully, it is out of my system by now.

I called the ortho yesterday and they asked me to come in so I'll be going later today. Hopefully he decides to do more than just replacing the bracket.

Week 101 Pictures

Summary: I have felt only subtle movement in my teeth thus far

Week 101 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Still not done with the Braces

I just got back from my ortho appointment and I was disappointed as I was technically supposed to be done by now. I think it has been almost a year since I got my braces.

A few things happened today. The orthodontist asked me to stand up and smile. I think he was looking at how my teeth actually looked standing up and not lying down. Later he got my wires out to make adjustments:
- Adjustment 1: Twisted inner lower wire to correct the molar as it was too far out.
- Adjustment 2: Made a little stop on the front wire to correct one of the front tooth as it seemed to be a little longer (didn't really notice but you can totally tell from previous pictures).

That was all that was done today. Also, I was told I only need to wear my rubber bands at night.

When I asked him how much longer? He said we wanted to be done by now but that I should hang on and we are looking to be done by the end of the year - hopefully before that. However, I am going to keep my expectations low and think it will be done in December. Hopefully it will be done by November.

Week 98 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Infection

It seems like I have a small infection in my gum. It is located a the lower left side all the way at the back, where I used to have my wisdom teeth. I am not sure what is wrong but I got it soon after my ortho appointment. That means it has been there for over a week!

It started as just being swollen and painful (it has happened before). So I let it be. However, later this week it got a red spot with some bleeding. I flossed it out again and it seems like there was food stuck :S.

I have my cleaning this Friday so hopefully they'll let me know how bad it is. On the bright side, it hurts less than last week so I think it is getting better.

Week 96 Pictures

Here the the pictures I took a couple of days ago (after my ortho appointment).

Week 96 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Feeling some "good" pain :D

I had my ortho appointment on Monday and I must say it was great. I am not sure why, but this time around I was there for 45 minutes instead of my usual 20 minutes. This is what happened...

As usual, I arrived and checked in. Before I could take a seat in the waiting area the nurse calls me over and I am seated in one of the doctor's patient chairs. Before taking my seat I saw one of my orthodontist looking at the computer and instructing the nurse to do something. So, shortly after I sat down, the nurse went ahead and removed my upper wires. Later, I had to wait for a few minutes for the orthodontist to come and check my progress.

The orthodontist took a look and asked me to open and close my mouth a few times to see how the teeth were aligning. He said the gap looked good - it looked like it was closing well but that we still needed to work on opening up the upper left side. He also decided to have the lower wires removed because he thought that the way I was wearing my rubber bands were preventing my teeth from opening up so here comes another experiment!!!!!

My lower wires were taken off and he worked on new wires (without the hooks). He said the new wire is stronger. He shaped the wire and did some twisting to it and also made it a little narrower, I guess to narrow my teeth on the bottom. With regards to the upper wires, I am not sure he did much adjusting to it. Afterward, it took forever for the nurse to place the lower wires. She had trouble aligning it and kept putting it in and out....

Once both my wires were in I was told we would be putting a "button" on my molar. I wasn't sure where but the nurse explained it would be in the inner part (I'll post the pictures later). So now I have a "button" on my 1st molar on the upper left side and I wear a new rubberband that goes from the button to the 2nd molar on the lower left side. This is supposed to help push out the upper teeth. So far, it is working but hasn't moved far out enough.

Overall, it is great!

Week 94 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Braces == Patience

I am currently growing very impatient with my braces. At this rate I don't see myself losing my braces by September :(. Why do I say this? Because I don't really see any movement going on. I don't feel anything anymore after wearing my rubberbands - it just seems like my teeth are very unwilling to move.

My next ortho appointment is in about 2 weeks. I really can't wait for them to do some more tweaking!

Week 93 Pictures Pre-Ortho Visit

Here are the pictures from the day before my ortho appointment.

Week 93 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Least exciting appointment ever!

Sorry I have not been updating my blog as often as I would have like. Work has been keeping me real busy lately. It has been 5 weeks since I last wrote!

My ortho appoinment was this past Tuesday and I did take some before and after pictures which I will post over the weekend.

On Tuesday I was hoping for some really good news but I already knew I wouldn't be getting any. When my orthodontist saw me, I told him I think the gap has opened up again (and it did). I have been instructed to wearing the elastic bands at night and I think that might have been the problem. He took a look and asked me to open and close my mouth multiple times. I could tell he was trying to decide what to experiment next. Next thing I hear is him telling the nurse to change some elastic bands.

The nurse comes over and replaces all my current rubber bands and on the upper left side (where the gap is) she puts in 2! I was disappointed this time because my wires weren't even removed! It feels like there was a set back :(. I spoke with the orthodontist and he said he will try to close the gap again first. He is trying to figure out why it isn't closing and it could be because the last molar doesn't want to move so when the rubber band was stretched all the way back, it allowed the gap to grow since the molar didn't move. So, this time around the rubber band on the upper left didn't go all the way back to the last molar, but instead to the 2nd last molar.

My next appointment is in 4 weeks (which I like). I am guessing it is going to take at least 4 more months before I get my braces off.... can't wait!!!!!!!!!!

Week 88 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Just pictures

Here are some pictures the night after my ortho appointment. I am not sure if there would be much difference but I'll have to take a look at my previous picture posting and see how they look.

Week 88 My ortho visit

Summary: Additional elastics only at night

I went to the orthodontist this morning and it all seems to be going very well. I was complimented that I was very good in wearing my elastics and that it is paying off. He said I should only wear them at night from now on.

Overall, he didn't do much today and it was another one of those quick visits. The ortho took out my wires and trimmed on of them. For the lower wires he kind of did a step on the wire to even out my teeth. For the upper wire he pretty much just made it wider. He said my right side is perfect, but the left side is still crowded even though we closed up the gap so that is what he is working on now. I didn't ask for an estimate completion date but I think it should be within the next 3 months.

My next appointment will be in 6 weeks and hopefully by then my teeth will look much better. As of now, I feel a little sore but not as bad as other times. It might change as the day goes by.

Week 83 with the Damon Braces

Summary: My gums keep getting swollen

For some reason my lower left gum (right behind my last molar) keeps getting swollen every now and then. It sucks because I try to keep it clean but every time I poke it or use a floss it ends up getting swollen. It might be because with the rubber bands, the molar is being pushed too closely to the gum and the bracket and wire is poking the gum.

I am going to leave it alone for a few days. That usually helps but it does nothing good for my breath!

Week 82 with the Damon Braces

Summary: It's been a while since I've experienced any tooth pain but it is back!

I must say that I was pretty disappointed after my appointment with the orthodontist yesterday. As the day went by, it all changed. By lunch time, my teeth were sore. Who would have thought that a slight change in a rubber band would make such a difference?

By night time, of my upper left teeth were sore. I can tell my back molar has moved too as my bite is off and I can't really bite down completely anymore. It is the first time I have experienced so many teeth sore all at the same time in a while - 6 teeth in total. The weirdest part is that if I bite on the opposite side, I can feel some pain on the other side. I guess it is so tight right now that any minor pull or pull can be felt.

This morning I woke up without much improvement so I am guessing this will last until tomorrow. My only fear now is that my front teeth will try to shift towards the left which would be counter productive.

Week 82 Ortho Visit

Summary: Upper left fixed elastic was pulled back to the last molar

I spent at total of 15 minutes at the ortho office. That includes 2 minutes wait time prior to the appointment and 3 minutes waiting for the receptionist to make my new appointment.

Nothing really happened. I got in and got my fixed rubber bands replaced by the assistant. These are the ones that go from the hooks to the molars. The orthodontist took a look and said the gap was closing really well but asked me to keep putting on my cross rubber bands. He then told the assistant to change the upper fixed rubber band to go to the last molar to close the gap that was being created. And now, it hurts! It might be a day for soup again.

I also chatted a little bit with him afterward and asked when does he think I'd have my braces off. He said it was probably going to be towards the end of summer. He said the gaps will be closed by the next 1 or 2 appointment (6-12 weeks) but after that we'd have to work on aligning the upper teeth with the lower ones since they need to be pushed out.

sigh... I guess I still have 6 more months left :(

Week 82 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Slowly but surely

It has been three weeks since I last wrote and a few things have happened. I have been pretty busy so I haven't had a chance to write any updates but here they are:

1) Mouthwash: I got myself a mouthwash, recommended by my heigenist, ACT. I must say that after I used it I was pleasantly surprised it did not numb my tongue like Listerine. This means that I would not have the urge to rinse my tongue right after using my mouthwash. So far, I think it is ok. I actually don't have that many problem so I can't tell the difference but I'll know on my next visit to the dentist and they say my cavities are gone!

2) Rubberbands: Just a few days ago I did something I probably shouldn't have. So, I was feeling a bit upset as I felt that there wasn't much progress on my teeth since my last ortho visit. I felt like the gap between my teeth (on my upper left side - see pictures) wasn't closing up. I then decided to play Dr. on myself. I added an extra rubberband on the top - hooking my molar to the upper metalic hook and slept on that for 8 hours. The next morning I didn't really feel much of anything. No pain, no discomfort. I then figured I need more pulling power so after brushing my teeth I replaced that rubber band with a new one and added an extra one that goes across from the molar to the lower hook. In the end I had 2 extra rubberbands and that did some magic. I left that on for about 8 hours, replacing it during lunch time. I think it really did something but I took it off because I was under if it would mess up my other teeth.

3) Time! I think it is almost time to get my braces off but I am not keeping my hopes up until I see that gap closed. They originally gave me an estimate of 22-24 months which translates to 95-104 weeks. Which means I have 7-22 weeks left. I doubt they will be off in 7 weeks but let's hope they are off in less than 22 weeks but I do want them off before June!!!!

My next ortho appointment is tomorrow!

Progress Pictures:

Week 79 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Minimal change but I have a toothache

Yesterday was a really weird day. I had to replace my rubberbands because they kept snapping from stretching my jaw. I am not sure if I just opened my mouth wider than normal or the bands I picked were defective.

I have also started to pick up a bad habit of trying to loosen my teeth manually (in hopes of speeding up the process). I have not heard anybody else doing this but I am really wanting to get my braces off as soon as possible and though maybe if I loosened my teeth, give them a little nudge, they will move faster :D. Definitely makes sense I know if the teeth move too fast, it is bad for your gums so try to avoid doing this if you can.

Lastly, today I have been experiencing some slight toothache on my molar - the one with a rubber band attached. Hopefully it is due to imminent movement and not a cavity.

I'll be taking pictures this weekend as I don't feel much as changed but maybe a picture will tell me otherwise.

Week 76 my Ortho visit

Summary: The least exciting orthodontist visit 


I showed up on a Monday at 9am - the new usual time for my appointment. After checking in with the front desk I went ahead and sat on the chair. The orthodontist made a quick check and saw progress - which was pretty obvious as you can see from my pictures.

He said everything looked really good and asked me, "How often are your wearing your rubber bands?" So I said, "All the time. I change them after lunch and after dinner." Although in reality I also change them before bed and after getting up in the morning because I take them off when I brush my teeth. Anyways, he said I have been wearing it really well and I will only have to wear it on the left side (the one with the gap in the upper left side).

The assistant then took off the wires and let me brush my teeth. I was really glad I did. My breath stank!!!!! It felt great to be able to brush my teeth although I knew it wouldn't take long for there to be residues in my brackets again.

I got back from brushing my teeth and the orthodontist adjusted one of my wires. I think they were the lower one but I am not 100% sure. However, I then realized, they actually keep reusing the wire. I guess when he said a while back that these are the last wires I will use, he really meant it. LOL.

My wires were put back on and 4 non-changeable elastics were put in place (same as last time). Also, my power chain was taken out as it already closed the gap with the front teeth.

That was it! In summary, I my lower wire was slightly adjusted, my power chain was taken off and I was asked to wear only one rubber band.

There was almost no pain later in the day. My molars were a bit sore but that lasted one night. I think the gap is closing though and I didn't really bring my concern about my front teeth being too far out. Next appointment will be on March 7th.

Week 76 with the Damon Braces

Summary: Progress slowed down in the last week, but I still wake up with slight tightness in my teeth :D.

It has been a great 6 weeks, I'd say. As usual, the first week is where most of the changes can be seen. The biggest change this time was the gap closing up. There is still maybe an eighth of an inch left to close up but hopefully the ortho will give me a stronger rubber band to pull my teeth in.

Tomorrow is my ortho appointment #XX. I am sure he will say everything is looking good (expected) but I am hoping he will say, "We are ahead of schedule!" which I highly doubt will happen.

There are a few concerns I still have though:
1) Upper left teeth still need to come out more
2) Lower teeth are not level
3) Upper 2 front teeth seem to be too far out

Here are my latest pictures:

Week 73 with the Damon Braces Part 2

Summary: Teeth Cleaning

I had my teeth cleaning a couple of days ago and it was definitely bloody... again.

2.5 more weeks until my next ortho appointment. I see good progress so far. I'll post pictures in a week or two.

Week 73 with the Damon Braces

Summary: My gap is getting smaller :D


I got a reminder call and just remembered I have my cleaning appointment tomorrow! It is going to be bad, I can tell. I have too many rubberbands and I also didn't follow the instructions of massaging my gums


Here are pictures I took today: