Thursday, August 25, 2005

the dentist..

Both of my daughters had an appointment with their dentist for their six month cleaning and the had wonderful reports . No cavaties and they have been brushing well . My 10 yr old ,Bethany , was finished first so after my 13 yr old , Chesney, was done the dentist asked to see me . The dentist told me that Bethany still had some baby teeth that needed to come out and most of them were loose or getting that way and he told me to have her work them so that they come on out and the others will come in . Then he told me that Bethany was going to have to have braces , which was really no big surprise to me anyway . As we were getting in the van to leave Bethany started crying and she wasn't just sniffling she was sobbing horribly . I became worried thinking that she had hurt herself so I turned and asked her what was wrong , all she could say was "braces" and then she cried harder.

She was finally able to tell me that she was scared of the braces hurting . I had braces for two years and they have only been off for about 5 years now so I thought that maybe I could give her a little comfort there . Over lunch she and I discussed the whole process from beginning to end and I think her mind is a little more at ease . Bethany is somewhat self-conscience and nothing that we have done has helped this and that is another problem with the braces ,so I told her that if she wanted she could get the clear braces and she said "can I still get the different colored bands on the clear" I told her I didn't know but I would assume that she could . I told her not to worry because it will be close to a year before she gets the braces anyway . If any of you have any tips to help her feel better about getting the braces I would appreciate it if you would tell me .

The only thing that I knew to do was show her before and after pics of my teeth and let her see the difference . All of my kids have loved my teeth since my braces were removed . They say "Mom your teeth are so pretty and straight and white " . What they don't know is that after my braces were removed I had my teeth professionally whitened. When they took my braces off I couldn't get use to seeing them without the braces so that is why I had them whitened . When the time comes and she gets the braces she will see that it will all be worth it in the end .

8 comments:

Bsoholic said...

You did just what I would of told you, show her your before and after. I had braces for a couple of years as a young lad, and of course I was self conscience about them, but imagine the self conscienceness I would have now if I never had them. I even had an over-bite so at night I would have to wear the headgear, that was uncomfortable, but at least it was only when I slept.

Stephanie said...

What a good moomy you are! You did the best thing for your little girl! You told her the truth and showed her real results. Kids are difficult - my 7 year old is just getting glasses and I'm a nervous wreck ( I was the same age when I got mine - I felt so ugly)! I worry about her and struggle to find the right things to say to her. You did a great job here! HUGS!!!!!

Stephanie said...

You know I meant mommy - I'm too tired to delete and start over!

Breazy said...

Thanks Patten ! Do you still have to wear your retainers?

Snavy .. Thank you and if you ever misspell something on here just leave it because I will know what you are talking about because I am typo queen ! LOL! Tell your daughter that alot of girls like glasses because it adds that little something to their faces . November will make a year that I have had my glasses and I have to wear them everyday , all the time . I had even asked about contacts buy my eye doctor told me that alot of women prefer the glasses because it seems to hide things or make them look better . I hope you daughter does ok with hers !

Skunkfeathers said...

Finally I get over hyar, and return an inaugural visit with same.

Braces...ack. I didn't have them until adulthood: a dentist insisting I had TMJ, and braces (along with surgically breaking/realigning my jaw) were the only correction available.

I did 'em for three and a half years (mid-late 20s). They apparently corrected the problem without the surgically broken jaw (I had coworkers who all too willingly volunteered to do that for me, but I digress). There were moments of discomfort, to be sure; then, there were the more ludicrous moments, like when one of the rubber bands I had to use for adjustments would go shooting out of my mouth at someone during conversation ;)

Braces are all the better, and easier, for the young. Your little one will be in and out of them in no time, and with less discomfort than she thinks.

Bsoholic said...

No I don't have to wear a retainer, not for a long time, but my bottom row of teeth have a permnament retainer on the inside. It's just become a part of my teeth as far as I'm conscerned. No one see's it obviously because it's on the inside.

Glasses - I started wearing glasses around 5th grade (whatever age that is) and started wearing contacts around 8th grade. I wear contacts always now, and if glasses weren't so damn expensive I'd switch out, contacts one day, glasses the other. I don't own a pair of glasses anymore though, mine old azz ones broke, and the prescription had changed much anyways. My eyesight gets worse every time I visit the eye doc, and I have an slight astigmatism.

Breazy said...

Skunkfeathers.. thanks for visiting . Yeah TMJ is why I had to have braces as well .

Patten ... my cousin has a permanent retainer on the inside of her bottom teeth too . I have the clear thin mouthpiece like retainers and if I want my teeth to stay straight I have to wear them the rest of my life .

Heather .. hey girl ! It is good to see you here . I am hoping that the before and after pics of me helped her see that it is worth it all . Since having braces I am no longer embarassed to smile and show my teeth !

Anonymous said...

That's a great story. Waiting for more. » » »

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