Friday Question #160
Did you have braces growing up (or as an adult)? Did you hate them or tolerate them? Were you happy with the results when they were taken off?
Braces were in my destiny – I had a severe under bite and a huge gap between my two front teeth.
Yikes! I think this photo below is actually from the day I got them put on in summer of 1999, before my sophomore year in high school –
I wore the braces until the summer of 2001 – the summer before my senior year.
(I thought it was really funny when I wore green braces to play Sneezy in the community playhouse production of Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs – that is my sister on the left – I think she helped out with costumes).
I tolerated them. I never had much pain that I recall. It was annoying to clean stuff out of them though. I still ate all the stuff I wasn’t supposed to eat.
I was really happy when I got them off though. I loved my smile (still do!). It totally makes wearing the stupid things for almost two years worth it.
(This is the summer (one year) after I got them off, in Spain, with my dad).
It seems like ALL kids get braces these days. I don’t remember it being like that. Okay, sure, me and my two younger siblings had them, but I swear, a lot more kids have them than used to, and at a much younger age! I should let Steven tell his braces story, maybe in the comments…
Themocracy
I never had to have braces but my brother did. It was rough for him because his teeth were actually straighter than mine but after he lost one of his “canine” teeth, his other teeth crowded the gap and it wouldn’t come down so they had to put braces to pull his teeth apart, then cut his gum and put a brace on that tooth to pull it down (sorry for the graphic mental image).
I had them! I also had the one’s that wrapped around the teeth! So a double whammy!
DID I have braces?? Yes… for five years!!! And not because my teeth were so terrible, either — they weren’t — but because my orthodontist was / is a moron. There was one tooth that just wouldn’t do what it was “supposed” to, so eventually the braces just came off anyway. Fast forward a couple of years to when I decided that since I spent so many years in braces, my teeth ought to be perfect, and so I went back to the orthodontist… yeah, turns out the problem isn’t with the tooth, it’s the jaw. So if I want to fix it, I can have TMJ surgery. No, thanks.
And I’m still mad that I had to spend so many years in those things. I HATED them.
<3 <3
I never had them, and neither did my sister. But John did, and it’s looking like at least 3/4 of my kids will (jury’s still out on Julia – I lovve perfect little baby teeth). Not sure how well you can see them, but check out Jack’s teeth in my last post. We’ve been calling him snaggletooth! Yes, we are mean…
I had metal in my mouth from third grade until 9th grade (I think). Oh wait…I still have metal in my mouth to this day! Crazy.
I had a problem with my teeth where my baby teeth would not come out and my adult teeth were growing in over them. The baby teeth had to be pulled but it made a lot of my adult teeth stick out. Apparently there was some problem with my jaw too but I’m still not clear on what it was.
I was very lucky to only have two years in braces (with rubber bands). I hated them, they cut my mouth, and getting them adjusted was hell. The rubber bands had to be changed twice a day (although that was kind of fun). But as an adult with a pretty smile I am SO happy I went through it!!
Oh yeah. I had a series of metal implements in my mouth. First I had a retainer that had to be adjusted with a key every week. Then I had what they called a “lip bumper” on my bottom teeth. Then it was braces on my top front four teeth to close the huge gap in the middle. Then they added braces on the rest of my teeth. All told, I had braces for 5 years (5th grade to end of freshman year of high school) and the other stuff for a year or two before that. Plus getting some molars pulled when I was 8. It worked, though. My front teeth are super straight!
I’ll have to show you pictures some day. We can also laugh at my horrible glasses 🙂
Yessssssssss… I must see the pics 🙂
My brother and I never had them, but my niece has them at 8! 8! To me, that just seems so stinkin’ young!
I never had braces growing up, though I do have a gap between my front teeth that I hate. I’m hoping to one day do Invisalign. I can’t imagine all of that metal in my mouth as an adult.
Younger children having braces is a terrible waste of time and money. Not only are they not finished losing teeth, but their bones aren’t done growing!
Luckily I never needed braces. My brother didn’t either, though he endured his fair share of teeth troubles- the bottoms of his two front teeth were knocked out with a baseball bat (he was playing catcher without a mask and the person swinging let the bat go) so he had issues for years and years. Teeth issues are not fun!
I had braces on my top teeth at 15yrs.old. The orthodontist had icky fingers that tasted like the cigars he smoked(before the rubber glove requirements). I was supposed to wear them for a year and a half. He took them off after a year and ended up having to put them back on. He was a loser. Not many choices for ortho’s in 1969. Yikes! I’m OLD. 😉
i had braces but only for like two years at most and I was 14 i think…pretty much everyone had them so I thought it was cool…then again I’m a total dork
I got them pretty young. My parents knew I needed braces the day I was born! I had a pretty majoyr over bite. The good thing about getting them when you’re yonger is that you get the whole ordeal overwith.
I got braces when I was 13 and wore them for over 2 years. I had a big gap between my two front teeth. I’m so grateful to my parents for getting them for me now even though back then I was pretty mortified that I had all this hardware in my mouth. I don’t think I ate a strawberry for 2 years! The worst part for me was the head gear I was supposed to wear at night. It hurt (because I hardly wore it) and in the middle of the night while asleep I would take it off and throw it across the room. I’d find it there in the morning. Oops.
Ugh, headgear! I didn’t have any, but after I got the braces off, I would always find my night time retainers in the bed.
Yep, I had the braces AND the headgear. Fortunately it’s kind of a blur. I remember not being able to eat apples. And now my teeth are crooked. C’est la vie.
Also, let me say how very cute that top picture is, as well as your beautiful bridal portrait.
ohhh yeah. got braces in 8th grade, had them on through 11th grade. SO HOT. i was another one with big ol’ glasses at the same time too, and i had the headgear at night as well… i was such a catch back in highschool 😉
Loook at baby kim!!! So fun.
Yeah, I had braces. I’m really glad I did – with teeth as big as mine, you gotta make sure they look SOMEWHAT straight.
That first pic is pretty cool. Funny smile.
I never had braces. Instead, my mom took me to the dentist over the years and started early and they would catch my perm teeth growing in over my baby teeth and pull the baby teeth, giving room to the others. Made my perm teeth fit right into place.
Realized I never put my LONG answer into your comments:
Braces as a kid and as an adult (plus, a tooth pulled to make them fit!) this grew into a blog post…
http://GarySaid.com/did-you-have-braces-growing-up/