Today I had my ortho checkup - a 10 minute affair where the orthodontist checked my bite, the integrity of the bands, carriere' and lingual arch and grinned. I asked if he was going to do a happy dance. He admitted he could only offer a happy face. Although moment later he stood and wiggled a little bit and his team applauded kindly. He was pleased. I was too.
I admitted to him that my adjustment wasn't an easy thing. I told him that in those first 2 weeks I had to constantly reason with myself to wait until my first 2 week appointment to ask him to remove them. By the first appointment I reluctantly thought that I was adjusting - and thought I could make it until the next appointment. And then the next.
Today, my lingual arch and carriere' have been on my teeth total of 10 weeks. Today he said that the next appointment I would receive my braces. The real deal. Ceramic. Clearish. Wires. The carriere' will be removed (yay! my least favorite part) and the lingual arch will remain for a while. It's ok. Hardly anyone else notices my lisp - especially if I talk slowly. :)
I asked when the next appointment was - he said 6-8 weeks. I offered 6 weeks with a question in my voice. He agreed. And so, in 6 more weeks - I return to his office for a 2 hours extravaganza. At the end of the 2 hours I expect to hear applause and see balloons drop. I will walk out of there with the last segment of my journey in front of me: Adjusting to braces as an adult. A 58 year old adult.
Can I make it 6 more weeks? You betcha! Can I make it on the rest of my journey - yes.
The adjustment has been substantial. The annoyance level enough to remind me regularly that I have stuff in my mouth. (I have yet to forget it is there. I suspect this is because I'm an adult who doesn't even tolerate tags on the back of my shirts.)
And yes, thank you for asking. I'm down 10 pounds today. This isn't quite the weight loss plan I had dreamed about.
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