Hello everyone! 😀
It was almost exactly a year ago, when I made the rather momentous decision of getting braces done… at the ripe old age of 24!
I’ve always had slightly crooked teeth, but never really entertained the thought of having braces done, due to the below reasons:
1. Braces are EXPENSIVE!
2. Horror stories about how painful they are D:
3. I have to look weird with metal thingies in my mouth for 1-2 years
4. My teeth were “acceptable” and they weren’t sooo crooked for braces to be necessary
And so, I’ve always thought to myself, my teeth are OKAY lah, don’t need to do braces, a little bit crooked never mind, and all that. Blah blah blah. You can read more about my reasons for getting the braces done in my blog post here.
Here’s a few pictures of how I looked pre-braces:
I honestly thought my smile wasn’t all too bad, but you’d notice the front teeth sticking out, and also how one side of my smile looks more “dented” in due to the crookedness. Though the real horrible part’s actually my bottom teeth, hahaha. Which can’t be seen when I smile, but you will see it when I speak (Check out the video at the end of my post!)
Finally, in November 2011, I bit the bullet (so as to speak) and got those braces on!!!
November 2011
I remember how strange the braces felt in my mouth when I first got them! I couldn’t shut my lips properly together and all that. Hahaha. And my bottom row of teeth were really terribly crooked! So crooked that one tooth couldn’t even be attached to the archwire.
December 2011
Thankfully for me, my teeth seemed to be rather co-operative and I could see improvement in just the first month alone! See how the three bottom teeth are starting to straighten out? And I had a coiled spring put in as well to make space so that that one particular snaggly tooth could come out!
January 2012
2nd month: I spent my CNY in braces, but it didn’t stop me from demolishing the bakwa and CNY goodies at all! Even better progress on the lower teeth. They’re almost all straight save for that one tooth!
February 2012
3rd month: Had a power chain (those joined rubber bands) put on my lower teeth to help shift my crooked tooth out! I remember it was pretty sore at first, but it didn’t really deter me from eating hahaha unfortunately.
March 2012
4th month: AMAZING PROGRESS with the bottom row!! That crooked tooth finally had space to move forward and I felt so happy for it!
A comparison from Month 1, 2, 3 and 4. You can see how much straighter both the top and bottom rows are in just 4 months alone!
April 2012
5th month: By this point of time, everything was looking really good, haha. I thought that my teeth looked really straight already!
May 2012
6th month: Look at how all those teeth have shifted into place!
June 2012
7th month: Still had those powerchains on my bottom row in order to close up the gaps and allow the bottom teeth to form up neatly. The top row also straightened out a lot, with the bunny teeth gone!
July 2012
8th month: Finally got those powerchains off!!! My favourite color for rubber bands: lilac!
August 2012
9th month: My teeth were looking extremely straight by then already, but I think the upper row of teeth were jutting out slightly and looking a little strange!
September 2012
10th month: Got rubber bands which were supposed to shift my bite closer (upper row of teeth inwards, and bottom row of teeth outwards!) These had to be worn all the time! Very annoying when they snap in your mouth (happened to me a few times when I was yawning or eating hahahaha)
October 2012
11th month: ALMOST PERFECT TEETH ALREADY! Please do not choose purple rubber bands like I did, they ended up looking like black in the end 🙁
November 2012
SAY YAY TO A PERFECT SMILE!!!!!!
Off with those braces in record time, and Dr Cheng was really really pleased with the results too!!! *grins widely* This one year has passed by much faster than I hoped for, and I’m still amazed by how quickly braces have worked their magic on me!
Other than giving me incredibly straight teeth (so straight until I am not used to them, haha), the braces have also altered my face shape a little I think, as I used to have a more protruding chin/jaw, which is less prominent now. I am SO glad I made the decision to get braces done! 🙂
So… yes. Before I put on the braces a year ago, I actually recorded a video of myself, to document the “before” and “after” lol. I suppose I ought to do another video now, but I don’t have the time so if you really want to compare, you can always look at my nice straight teeth in the Darlie video that I posted earlier. Hahahaha.
Please pardon me if I sound retarded. It was my first time recording a Vlog and I was feeling supremely embarrassed about it. Plus I’m quite self-conscious about the way I talk too (due to my lisp). I’m sorry if you can’t understand what I’m saying! But well I’ve decided to just post up this video regardless since I’m here blogging about the whole braces thing :S
And lastly… a before and after!
(Ok, I look really chubby in the before picture. But no, I didn’t really lose weight from putting on braces like I wanted to, HAHAHA. My face did get sharper though!)
I’m probably one of the luckier ones, because the process of my braces was relatively pain-free and easy for me! I didn’t go on a liquid diet, or have much issues eating other than getting the occasional ulcer, or annoying bits of food stuck in my teeth. The only discomfort for me was very bearable sore-ness after monthly tightening appointments, lol. All my friends attribute it to my super high pain tolerance, but on a scale of 1/10, I rate braces around… 4-5 at most? Hahaha.
Can’t believe it only took slightly longer than 12 months.. I really think that Dr Cheng is some kind of 神医! O_O He is extremely efficient and professional! Highly recommended, if you’re considering getting traditional metal/ceramic braces done.
For those inquiring, I did my braces at Dr Alfred Cheng, which is at Mt Elizabeth Medical Centre. It costs $3.8K for metal, and $4.5K for ceramic, exclusive of GST.
The contact details and address and all that can be found on their website:
http://www.orthodontics.com.sg/
Of course, it’s not the end of my “braces journey” for me, because I now have to wear retainers nightly in order to keep my teeth straight! But I find it a small price to pay for the beauty of a perfect smile. Yes, you can call me vain 😀
If you’re considering getting braces done.. I say, go for it! A few thousand dollars and 1-2 years of potential awkward smiles is a small price to pay for a set of perfect teeth. It’s a life-long investment, and will definitely change your smile for the better 😀 You won’t regret it for sure!
xoxo