Budget Buster! DD might need braces...lots of questions!!!

[kkmcan]

My dd is 1 and 1/2 years into her braces and we just finished paying hers off. The total was $5800. $1500 down, $1000 from our insurance and $175 month for 18 months. Made the last payment July 1st.

DS11 just got his braces on yesterday and for his we got a $449 break for a sibling discount. For his we did $751 down, $1000 from insurance and $150 month for 2 years. We could have done some more of down payment and less monthly or some other version. They were willing to work with us, I guess since we paid on time and had a good credit history with them.

My kids absolutely had to have braces. They were both cases of overcrowding and ds was classified as severe crowding. The poor kid had 4 adult teeth removed 3 weeks ago just to make some room for the incoming. He had no space for 2 teeth coming in side by side. NOw he's got 1 space for 2 teeth that they will try to manipulate to squeeze those teeth in. I had the same thing as a kid so he got it from me.

 

[coastiewifern]

I disagree that braces are just cosmetic. Although it is something that could be put off until they are adults working and can get them for themselves. My mother needed braces as a child and never got them. Then as an adult she was putting braces on her kids and with her law career she just felt uncomfortable having braces as an adult. She just turned 60 and now has some big dental/gum problems that the dentist told her wouldn't probably be there if she had braces when she was younger.

 

[traces7]

Same here. I had badly crooked teeth with dracula fangs. Even worse for me, I had parents who had the money but refused braces for me. They simply weren't going to pay or bother with it, period. They never once saw it as their responsibility as parents. I was told it was my problem and I had to learn to deal with the teasing better, and not let it bother me so much. Also never had a date in school, no surprise.

I absolultely know that my crooked teeth hampered my ability to sell myself in job interviews. I couldn't complete with my peers who all looked good and had great smiles already. In professional job settings, you actually don't see hardly any younger people with badly crooked teeth anymore - to get those good jobs with benefits, you need that winning smile just to enter the door.

And sadly, like it or not, teeth are a class and status issue. Crooked teeth says "low class" to the world and you can't hide it. I became acutely aware of how my teeth made people treat me as "inferior" and "not as good as them" and shut doors to opportunities. I was very angry at my parents for a long time for leaving me looking like that, unable to enter the world of professional-level jobs. I was embarrassed and humiliated by my poor smile, and there were no quick easy fixes to straightening my teeth so I could look like everyone else.

Eventually as an adult, I knew I had no choice but to finally get braces. I had to go into debt (almost $10,000, since I didn't have a good job with insurance) to pay for surgery and 3 and a half years of braces just so I could get a real job (I was a nanny for many years, only thing I could get). Best thing I ever did - fixing my teeth changed my entire appearance and people treated me 1000% better. And I finally landed a decent job.

A kid with noticably bad teeth will be at a disadvantage in so many ways in life, in our appearance-obsessed society, I can't emphasize that enough!! Almost every parent I knew found a way to pay and straighten their kid's teeth so their child can compete and suceed later in life.

Your story brought tears to my eyes. I definitely do not want my DD to go through that! I think even if one of us has to get a 2nd job we'll do it. We'll see what we hear from the consultations and go from there. I'm glad you were able to get your braces on your own.

 

[nsmith]

we took both DD and DS to the graduate ortho. clinic at the University of Pennsylvania, we save over $2500 on each child.

 

[HugsForEeyore]

Your story brought tears to my eyes. I definitely do not want my DD to go through that! I think even if one of us has to get a 2nd job we'll do it. We'll see what we hear from the consultations and go from there. I'm glad you were able to get your braces on your own.

I feel I should add that my case was quite severe which is why I am so passionate on this issue - I sure hope your DD's case is far more mild than what I went through! I forget the technical terms - my main problem was dracula fangs in their own rows, in front of the rest of my teeth, pointing out at 45 degree angles. There wasn't even a gap for my "fangs" to be pulled into, since the teeth behind them overlapped so much. I couldn't even open my mouth properly over the protruding canines (aka fangs), and smiling was out of the question. I would always get little kids asking me what's wrong with my mouth, since it was pretty obvious how messed up it was.

I been out of braces for 5 years now, and I still look in the mirror and love what I see. And I still wear my retainers almost every night!!! I am wearing them forever lol.

A nice smile is so important to every child - you'll find a way to help your DD!