BRACES ARE OFF! February 18 2016

This is it! They're off! After 17 months... here we go! 

This was the first proper photo I took for social media. Since this photo I've had some bonding done to correct the small gaps between my top lateral incisors and top front teeth (you can kind of see one of the gaps in the left photo). 

Another great thing about having them off is that I no longer stress how my ID photos look!

I have a permanent wire retainer behind my bottom teeth. In the time between my braces coming off and the bonding being done on two of my top teeth, I had a clear plastic vacuum-formed retainer that I wore 24/7, except when eating/drinking/brushing. Once the bonding was done I was able to get a permanent wire retainer behind my top teeth as well, and now I only have to wear the vacuum-formed retainer overnight most nights of the week for 6 months, and then occasionally (1-2 nights a week) for the rest of my life. VERY small price to pay for beautiful teeth!

So, this is it. Thank you for letting me share my journey with you and I hope that it has been inspirational. 

<3

February 2016 - 17 months: FINAL MONTH WITH BRACES!

17 months. That was all it took to get my teeth from looking so terrible to so beautiful. This photo was taken the night before my braces came off...

My first day with braces vs my last day with braces. Unbelievable. Like I actually do not believe it. 

Next post will be braces-free!

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January 2016 - 16 months

Little did I know... January 2016 would be my last month with braces! This photo was taken after my last tightening...

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December progress (15 months)

I have been so busy - this is the first chance I've had to be able to go back through all of my deliberate progress shots and selfies to upload some. My blog is almost finished!

So, here is a progress shot from December 2015:

Not the best photo but the swelling has completely gone now. 
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November progress (14 months)

All right! It's taken me a good couple of hours but I am finally back on track with these updates! It's mid-December now, but there is such little change from month to month that I'll post a couple of November shots, including one without my teeth showing so you can see how my jaws fit together now.

This first photo is a classic comparison shot, definitely the most impressive one to date! I cannot believe that my mouth looked like that 14 months ago. I cannot believe it at all. 

And check it out, no swelling! No underbite! Normal face!

Like I said earlier, it's mid-December now. My orthodontist thinks that I could get my braces off late January - March at the latest. I'm not getting my hopes up because I know that orthodontists are infamous for leaving braces on months after they said they'd take them off, and as long as my teeth are beautiful by the end I am happy.

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Progress during October (13 Months!)

Here, have some progress shots for the month of October, 13 months since my braces were put on:

Nothing new to report, recovered from surgery fully and just excited that every day is a day closer to getting them off! 

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ONE YEAR! (September 2015)

In September 2015 I finally hit the one year mark of braces. I say 'finally' but I don't really mean it - it has actually gone so fast! Maybe because the progress was so fast, so much faster than I thought it would be, and I became so happy with my appearance that having braces barely bothered me. In saying that, I'd much rather not have them, of course, and cannot wait to get them off!

I'm so happy with my teeth now! I can still see lots of tiny imperfections if I choose to really scrutinise them but they don't bother me, I'm happy that my teeth close together and are almost perfectly straight! The above photo was taken one month after surgery. 

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