posted
I'm sure plenty of you guys have had braces. Have any of you had your teeth expanded first?
I had my jaw expanded for a year before I could get my braces put on, and after the braces came off, I naturally had a retainer. I also have a bonded retainer on my lower teeth. It's like a metal bar glued to the back of my teeth. Used to be, I had to be really careful with what I ate, since if it came unglued, my teeth would immediately crowd again, and when they reattached it, they would have to wrap rubber bands around my teeth and tie them to the bar to force them back into place. Which is so not fun.
My orthodontist told me that the bar would come out when I had my wisdom teeth removed.
Well, I never was able to stop wearing my upper retainer completely, either. Every once in a while, I'd have to wear it for a few nights because I felt like my teeth were shifting.
Now, one of the assistants at my new dentist's office said that wisdom teeth making teeth shift was a myth. But since I've had them out, I tried once to put in my top retainer, and it feels too small. It feels like it's pulling my teeth in, not pushing them out. And my bottom teeth feel tingly, like they want to move as well. Is that possible, or is it a myth like she said? Do you think I can finally get the bar removed? Have any of you gone through this? How did it work?
posted
I don't know about having wisdom teeth removed. But I can tell you this: I had braces. My teeth came out straight. I had retainers, until the orthodontist determined it was time to remove them. My teeth stayed straight until sometime after I was married. Now the bottom ones are VERY crooked and the front ones are moving back into an overbite. The only reason I can think of for my straight teeth to re-crookedize is that my wisdom teeth have come in and shoved them out of alignment.
So if it really is a "myth", then there's something else that causes adults' teeth to move and ruin thousands of dollars worth of orthodontia - I don't see any candidate more likely than new teeth crowding the old ones out of place!
So, yeah, I would hope that once your wisdom teeth are out, you would not need to worry anymore.
Posts: 1522 | Registered: Nov 2005
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posted
I still have my lower retainer. It must be about 9 years since I had my braces removed and about 4 years since I had my wisdom teeth taken out (they were growing in twisted and sideways!) It hasn't come unglued yet and seems to be doing a great job keeping my front bottom teeth straight with minimal to no annoyance. Though my boyfriend thinks its weird.
I've pretty much stopped growing but I know people who are still getting taller in their 20s. Maybe that changes the size of the jaw? Or perhaps you grind your teeth sometimes and that's throwing things out of wack? Could simple use cause teeth to shift?
Posts: 1733 | Registered: Apr 2005
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posted
There used to be a gap between my two top middle incisors. When I was a teenager, the gap closed up, and now those two teeth overlap a little bit. If my wisdom teeth didn't push them together, then I really have no idea what did.
Posts: 9945 | Registered: Sep 2002
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posted
I am still growing; my family generally grows until 26ish.
The dentist did say that having the teeth removed would change my bite. I just think it's weird that it's changed it this much...and actually for the better.
posted
My teeth shifted a few years after my orthodontist told me I could stop wearing my retainer, and I never had wisdom teeth. So there are apparently other factors.
Posts: 87 | Registered: Apr 2006
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posted
How come when I read this thread I picture Steve Martin in a destist's smock singing that wonderful tune "Be a dentist" from Little Shop of Horrors.
Posts: 11895 | Registered: Apr 2002
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