The Brace Faced Kiwi

Well, I finally got my treatment plan... To cut a long story short, there's nothing major that needs to be corrected other than the crowding!

At this stage the ortho is sticking with 2 years (but I live in hope!) and is trying to talk me into a full metal mouth. I'm weighing up the possibilities still, but I think I'd rather have them on a little longer and have them be slightly less visible. $200NZD difference in price isn't enough to sway me one way or the other, and I think I'll be giving in to my vanity on this one.

No date set yet, as I do need to have all four 2nd premolars removed, but I have a 'fitness' check at the dentist next week anyway so I'll be arranging for the extractions then. Once I've got that appointment set, I can give the ortho a call and set my b-day for 2 weeks later. Woohoo!!! So now I just have to hope I can get in for the extractions in the next 3-4 weeks, and I'll have braces before Christmas :)

Now for the most important part - the cost! If I choose to have all metal, then the cost will be $6400 NZD. The cost of ceramic braces will be $6600 NZD, so as you can see there's very little difference in price. I have two payment options: 1) Pay up front and get a 10% discount or 2) 12 months interest free Time Payment, which works out to $550 a month.

I'm in a tug of war at the moment over the cost! It's coming up Christmas, and I'm also taking my parents to the Gold Coast for 3 weeks in May next year which is going to cost around $6k. I've been saving $500 a month towards this, so if I choose time payment, I have to stop my holiday savings. Essentially I'll have to look into some form of finance, as no way in heck am I breaking into my special savings pot (must... buy...house... must... not... touch... savings...)!

Anyway. I had a chat to my bank today, and I'm just waiting to hear back. Fingers crossed for me! I'm on a roll now, and I really don't want to be held back by cost :(

The first step towards your new smile is getting your dental records done as these records are what the Orthodontist will use to figure out your treatment plan.

Below is a step by step of my visit to the ortho get my records done:

Step 1: X-rays
As soon I walked in I was taken to get x-rays and first up was the panoramic x-ray. If you've already had one done at your dentist, you can just have that record sent over but in my case, I'd had my wisdom teeth removed and my teeth had already moved a bit so I needed a new one.

If you've never had a panoramic x-ray, it can be a bit weird feeling. Basically, you stand under a giant x-ray machine, stick your neck out a bit and bite onto the bite pad, grinning like an idiot! The machine will rotate around your head and once it's complete - that's it.

Next was a full head x-ray. Same principle, but this time you stand under a different machine which lines up with your ears (it can feel a little weird having the things sticking in your ears). A quick flash and it's done.

Step 2: Photos
Next I had photos taken of my face smiling, normal and then side on. The best was yet to come however! Once this was done (thank heavens I wore makeup BTW), they took close ups of my arches. To do this, they put in a couple of plastic expanders which you have to hold apart so they can get a good look at your teeth. I'm sure you've already seen these - those things that pull your lips apart and give you a hideous toothy and gummy grin? Mildly uncomfortable, but the worst part was the disinfectant taste afterwards.

Next, they took a large, hour shaped mirror and placed this in my mouth. Again, I held this while they took photos of my upper and lower arch. Other than being a little annoying, there was no discomfort at all.

Step 3: Moulds
This is the part I was dreading as I'd been told all sorts of horror stories about not being able to breath, gagging and what not. This was absolutely not the case! Basically all they do is fill a dental tray with flavoured gum, stick it over your teeth until they set, then repeat it on the other arch. It takes about 30 seconds for the gum to set, and that's all there is to it! Just remember to breathe out your nose :)

And there you have it, dental records complete! The whole process took about 20 minutes and then I was out the door.

The records take about a week to come back, and I'm getting my results tomorrow. I'll be back with another update once I've got that.

Hello and welcome! My name's Angela, I'm 31 years old and I'm about to start my journey to fix my smile!

I've searched all over the web for information about adult braces, and have come across some great websites with stories from a lot of inspiring people, but none of them are adult New Zealanders. I've decided to keep a track of my own progress not only for my own benefit, but to give other kiwis an idea of how things work in NZ. I don't discount those other peoples stories though, so please check them out! If you're thinking about getting braces, these stories really are inspirational and may give you the push you need.

About me:

To give you some background, my teeth have been slightly wonky my whole life. My parents were referred to an orthodontist when I was in my early teens and they suggested I get braces, however at that point it would have been too much of a financial struggle for them, and while they would have found the money if I wanted them, they never really bothered me so I decided against them. I got through the next few years very happily, making sure I tilted my head just right in photos so that the wonky tooth wouldn't show, and this served me well for years.

Unfortunately for me, my wisdom teeth started coming through about 8 years ago and because I didn't get them out, my wonky tooth turned into wonky teeth and the next thing I knew, my smile turned into the tangled mess it is today. About 6 years ago a friend of mine got braces. While his teeth looked great when they came off, he was in so much agony from the rubbing and movement, I was absolutely put off.

I've suffered from a terrible fear of dentists since I was around 11, the result of a school dental nurse who gave me fillings and pulled teeth without anesthetic (!?!?!) so while I've often thought of getting braces over the last 5 years, it really didn't take much to make me too terrified to even pick up the phone, and his experience was enough to do it!

Earlier this year I realised that if I didn't do something about my teeth now, I'd end up losing them down the line, as while I'm quite obsessive about dental hygiene (so that I don't need to go the dentist so much!) my upper and lower canines are now so turned in I find them really hard to brush properly. Also in the last couple of years my front teeth have started to cross, making it harder for me to hide the problem!

About 2 years ago, I was reading Fashion Q and saw an ad for a new product called Invisalign and became intrigued. In fact I went on about it so much that I inspired someone at work to go get them! Naturally however I became scared again, and for the third time in as many years, decided to put it off.

So the journey essentially started in February when I decided that I had to get over my phobia and do something about these darned teeth! First, I found a new dentist who specialises in anxious patients like myself and explained to her what my end goal was. The day after my dental check up, I had an appointment at an orthodontist to discuss the possibility of Invisalign. After meeting with the ortho, I started to get over my fears a little bit. He quoted me $8000 NZD for 2 years treatment, which would include a palate expander, then Invisalign, and finally up to 3 months braces to perfect the smile. This seemed all too good to be true, and I became extremely excited, so back to the dentist I went to get my current smile tidied up before I started treatment.

I had my amalgam fillings removed and replaced with composite (go me!), and then *gulp* finally had my wisdom teeth out! Naturally I happened to have a pretty bad set of wisdoms, with two of them right on nerves and one touching my sinus - but I got through it (go me again!!). While I was talking to my oral surgeon, I happened to mention to him that I was having this done so that I could eventually get braces. I repeated the orthodontists proposed treatment plan, which he listened to with great interest. After I finished, the OS asked me whether the ortho had advised me that I would need surgery in order to have a palate expander. Unfortunately he had not. The OS also advised me that $8000NZD seemed ridiculously expensive and he suggested I speak to another ortho for a second opinion. He gave me a stack of business cards he had and sent me out the door.

Three weeks ago I finally had my first appointment at second the ortho where he gave me a general idea of what to expect. The very first thing he said to me was.. "Well, unfortunately I don't feel you're a candidate for Invisalign. While you fit the description of someone who could be treated with it, I've done it too many times now, I can just tell straight away that they would not work well enough and you would not be happy with the results". His straightforward comments really gave me a lot of trust in him, especially as the Invisalign is the most expensive option. Instead, I'm going to be fitted with a combination of ceramic and metal braces.

Last Tuesday I had my records done and tomorrow I go back again to get my treatment plan! There's just one catch (and I knew this would happen) - it's looking pretty likely that I'll need to have all four second bicuspids out... I've worked through a lot of my dentist issues, so I guess this will be a good test of how far I've come.

So that's my story so far! Tomorrow I'll check back in with the treatment plan I'm given.

Check out my current smile below:

Normal Smile:
Huge Grin:


Top Arch:

Bottom Arch: