Braces Journal

Some background...
Well, finally a dream come true -- thanks to my girlfriend (thank you honey - I love you :)
I've had crowded/crooked teeth for a very long time. Always self-conscious about smiling and showing my teeth. In fact, it has caused me lots of stress at times.

I've been self-conscious about my teeth since highschool. I recall the moment that my self-consciousness began.....my cousin made a comment one day between classes "you have very crooked teeth.." He meant no harm by it -- but regardless, from that moment onward I would always smile as much as possible WITHOUT showing my teeth.

Fast forward to March 2008 ---- when I met my current girlfriend.
She is a dental assistant -- and one of the first things she took notice, of course, was that my teeth needed work. I took very poor care of my teeth prior to meeting her. Flossing was foreign to me -- and brushing happened maybe once every 2 - 3 days. Disgusting, I know, but that is the honest truth.

I must have been depressed or something. Anyways, one of the first issues she helped me with was that I had 4 wisdom teeth that NEEDED to be removed. And so we scheduled the removal with an oral surgeon in August of 2008. Then going forward we made regular visits to my dentist. I've had several cleanings as well -- and currently follow a VERY good clearning routine: Water Pik - flossng - power brush using my OralB Triumph.

I have been lucky ---hugely lucky with my teeth that they were not in any worse condition then they were ---- and that my gums were relatively healthy concidering my poor track record of oral health prior to meeting my girlfriend.

My decision to get braces was the natural progression. Originally I was hoping to get them in January 2009 --- but do to financial reasons we had to put that off until September 3, 2009.

So, here I am -- 2 weeks into having my Damon Braces -- and I love it.
I have not noticed any movement --- but I'm patient --- and realize that this is a slow process. I expect to have my braces on between 20 - 30 months. 
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Here some updated mouth pics. I'm getting a bit better at focusing on my teeth. My girlfriend pointed out that I should be using the macro setting on the camera -- silly me - lol.

Gives you a better idea of how messed up my teeth really are!