Braces!

[pixiedustaholic]

He got the acrylics, and they don't show up much (they were a bit more than regular braces, but well worth it).
.

Glad to hear this...I bit the bullet and paid extra for them since DD12 has to have a full set for 2 years.

She is getting them tomorrow and is NOT excited. When she went for her 1st consult in 4th grade and found out ahe would eventually need them, she was super excited. Our awesome orthodontist kept a check on her every 6th months until she was ready and tomorrow is the big day. Hers will be a little complicated as she is missing two permanent teeth in the front(beside the 2 middle ones on top.) She will actually have to have "false" ones attached to the wire on top. Then her retainer will have the falsies until she is between 16 and 18 and then will get implants. She is sooooo concerned about this b/c she will have to take her retainer out to eat and is worried about how she will do this at school b/c we all know that would be hard on any teen for other kids to know they're false. I keep trying to reassure her and tell her she still has at least 2 years until she even needs to think about it.

She doesn't even want the braces now but we need to do it while DH has insurance. These days you never know how long that will last. They reimburse up to $2500 so that will help. Her braces/treatment/retainer $5695. Implants will be seperate...at least $5000...just sooo thankful it's only teeth and not some other condition that we can't fix. We are blessed that they have good health.

DS8 just got his uppers off after correcting a crossbite. (top teeth went behind bottom.) He could have broken his top front teeth off while playing or biting down wrong. Only took about 8 weeks and $800. Well worth it!

 

[pixiedustaholic]

He got the acrylics, and they don't show up much (they were a bit more than regular braces, but well worth it).
.

Glad to hear this...I bit the bullet and paid extra for them since DD12 has to have a full set for 2 years.

She is getting them tomorrow and is NOT excited. When she went for her 1st consult in 4th grade and found out ahe would eventually need them, she was super excited. Our awesome orthodontist kept a check on her every 6th months until she was ready and tomorrow is the big day. Hers will be a little complicated as she is missing two permanent teeth in the front(beside the 2 middle ones on top.) She will actually have to have "false" ones attached to the wire on top. Then her retainer will have the falsies until she is between 16 and 18 and then will get implants. She is sooooo concerned about this b/c she will have to take her retainer out to eat and is worried about how she will do this at school b/c we all know that would be hard on any teen for other kids to know they're false. I keep trying to reassure her and tell her she still has at least 2 years until she even needs to think about it.

She doesn't even want the braces now but we need to do it while DH has insurance. These days you never know how long that will last. They reimburse up to $2500 so that will help. Her braces/treatment/retainer $5695. Implants will be seperate...at least $5000...just sooo thankful it's only teeth and not some other condition that we can't fix. We are blessed that they have good health.

DS8 just got his uppers off after correcting a crossbite. (top teeth went behind bottom.) He could have broken his top front teeth off while playing or biting down wrong. Only took about 8 weeks and $800. Well worth it!

 

[disynut]

Oh, I'm right there with you. We just got back from DS 9's first checkup on his palette expander. That was $450 right at first and the next $550 split up over the next 10 months. That's just the first step. Next we do braces on his upper top four teeth---don't remember how much that's gonna be---I've blocked it from my memory . Then he said we'd see about a full set when he's about 12 or 13. My ds has my husband's large teeth and my small mouth---his teeth are in bad shape, poor guy. But ds has handled it really well, and our orthodontist is GREAT!

 

[pixiedustaholic]

Our ds had braces put on the end of '08. He's missing two teeth on either side of the front of his mouth so once the braces come off, he'll either have to wear bridges or get implants. So the braces were definitely a necessity to get things lined up where they need to be. .

Looks like we are in the same boat.

 

[WLfamily]

Our ds had braces put on the end of '08. He's missing two teeth on either side of the front of his mouth so once the braces come off, he'll either have to wear bridges or get implants. So the braces were definitely a necessity to get things lined up where they need to be. We have no dental insurance at all, but what can you do?

My brother should've had braces as a kid, but my parents didn't want to pay for them and now he's almost 40 with endless bite/jaw problems (he's paying for braces for both of his kids right now or he'd get his own). Dh and I decided no matter what it cost we weren't doing that to our son.

My son is missing two teeth in the bottom sides also. He has been in braces for going on four years now. We have paid over $5,000 because we have no orthodontic insurance at all. We are now in the process of closing all the gaps from the two missing teeth and he should be out of them in 8 to 12 more months. At first we thought we were going to have to go with implants also, but a new thing has come out they call TADS. They put a titanium screw into the bone and attach a wire from that screw to the back molars to pull the molars forward. The front teeth are not strong enough themselves to pull the molars forward but the screw is. It is not a painful process, he has already had them put in. This will take care of any gaps and no bridges or implants will be nessecary in his future. You may want to inquire with your orthodontist about this new procedure.

 

[LIBLULA]

My DD9 finished her 1st set last October--she got them to fix her bite. She's had her retainer for almost 6 months. She'll start phase 2 when she loses the rest of her baby teeth. Our grand total for phase 1&2 is about $7500. Our dental insurance covers only $1000. It has been well worth it-- her bite is fixed and her teeth look beautiful!!!!

 

[natenapril]

Glad to hear this...I bit the bullet and paid extra for them since DD12 has to have a full set for 2 years.

!

Our ortho told us that the acrylics hold in odor and stains so we declined them. May be something you need to ask about.

 

[Belle5]

Bad teeth in our family!

DS 1 braces
DS 2 braces
DS 3 phase one and phase two
DS 4 phase one and phase two
DS 5--has front teeth overlapping--not going to get out of that one...he's 11
DS 6--still has baby teeth...but what are the odds???

 

[HugsForEeyore]

I would say the cosmetic benefits alone justify braces everytime. Every kid needs great teeth, as perfection is the accepted norm. When they get older, they must have that winning smile to succeed in professional interviews. Just how the game of life is played. I had to spend my entire savings as an adult to get braces (plus surgery too) and fix my teeth, since my parents refused to do it when I was a kid. I got nowhere in my career when I had badly crooked teeth. After braces, I had no problem getting jobs and being promoted. People just treat you better when you look good and have the asset of a great smile. That's how the world works.

I'm glad to read these posts and see parents going all out to make sure their kids have the necessary great smile we all need today.

I'm glad I never see posts from parents who are refusing their kids braces and bragging about it (like mine did). It's an incredible disservice to a kid to leave them with a noticably poor smile.

 

[mamalle]

I agree- my parents could of afforded braces for me and didnt pursue it and I wish they had. Im now 40 and looking at shifting of my teeth due to age. My bite is off and my overbite is 100%. My quote was close to $7000 yesterday but luckily with discounts I get $1000 off of that. Plus my $2500 for from insurance.. so dd starts next week and hopefully by the end of april I will have them also..

 

[vzjsp5]

I appreciate all these suggestions. I just found out that my DS10 has to get braces because he sucked his thumb until he was like 4. His top teeth are horribly out of alignment and looking at him from the front you can see an oval where he fit his thumb through.

Needless to say that he is NOT happy about this one bit. I'm amazed at the cost of them. Luckily my husband has good insurance and I believe they cover like 50% of orthodonia otherwise we'll be giving up many extras.

 

[HeyIt'sMe]

My DD is so excited for her braces - - she was upset that she has to wait until April 21 to have the top ones put on! She is excited because now the rubberbands they put around the brackets are just for decorative purposes (they used to be required to hold the wires) and you can pick different colors. She is really into 'Twilight' right now so she wants to go with black and red bands! But, you can switch out the colors easily at each visit.

She goes back next week for all the x-rays, pictures, and molds (which will cost $280). We didn't have time to do that yesterday because she had a dentist appointment after the ortho appointment. It was a big dental day yesterday!

 

[tink2]

My father in law is our dentist. Last summer he insisted that our dd9 needed braces immediately. I went to two orthodontists and both said yes, she will need braces, but not right now- in the future. FIL was surprised- and we were happy! I did get the second opinion to make sure (and make FIL happy) and their projected treatments were both the same (full braces on top and bottom). Unfortunately, dd's mouth is like mine and very crowded. DS7's teeth look to have more room- let's hope!

 

[Our 2 Princesses]

Our dd13 gets her top braces in two weeks. Then she'll get her bottom ones in 6-8 mos with an appliance called a jasper-jumper. Anyone's dc have that?

 

[elf]

I wrote in a few weeks ago. Our dd's 11 needs braces and it's costing $6700. Total from beginning to end. He's including the semi perm retainer thingie after the braces come off in 2 years. We had to wait a month and 1/2 before we got installation appt.

They need to bring out her bottom jaw due to a overbite. She was excited at first but now not so.

 

[Inigo]

I'm glad to hear I'm not the only one with a child who WANTED braces. We went to the ortho for a consultation, and he told her he could start once she lost her last baby tooth, which he expected to be in about 4-5 months. She started working that tooth, and by the time we left the office 45 minutes later, the tooth was out. She held the tooth up, and said, "Here you go."

 

[natenapril]

They need to bring out her bottom jaw due to a overbite. She was excited at first but now not so.

This was my DD11 problem too. She has her top ones on now and then in a few months they will put them on.

 

[pixiedustaholic]

Our ortho told us that the acrylics hold in odor and stains so we declined them. May be something you need to ask about.

I did ask and thay said the older ones did stain, etc. but these are the latest ...I can't remember what exactly she said they are made of ...maybe not acrylic. They are clear. DD got them today and they look great. You wouldn't even notice the brackets are there if there wasn't a wire. They ended up not being able to put the bottom ones on yet until they pull the top ones forward. Otherwise she would end up knocking them loose when she chews.

 

[pixiedustaholic]

I would say the cosmetic benefits alone justify braces everytime. Every kid needs great teeth,

I'm glad to read these posts and see parents going all out to make sure their kids have the necessary great smile we all need today.

I'm glad I never see posts from parents who are refusing their kids braces and bragging about it (like mine did). It's an incredible disservice to a kid to leave them with a noticably poor smile.

I agree and I would have gotten a second job if I had to b/c self esteem is crucial throughout life but especially in children, tweens and teens.

 

[pixiedustaholic]

I would like to add before the flames come out that I do realize that braces aren't always an option financially and I completely understand those situations. I just don't get not getting them when it is possible.