The beginning of my journey.

I should have started this blog two days ago. That was the day my treatment started. But it's better late than never right? Here's my story and the beginning of my braces journey (warning it's a long read):

I'm a 21 years old female entering my last year of my undergraduate studies. What a great time to get braces eh? So, what was my motivation for getting braces? Lack of confidence? Self-consciousness? Boys? The answer is none of the above. I never gave the idea of having braces a chance when I was younger. Though they may have crossed my mind in my teen years when I felt awkward smiling with my teeth. On the other hand, my parents are immigrants from Vietnam, a country where getting food on the plate was more important than cosmetic surgery for your teeth or heck even oral hygiene. Hence, I cannot blame them for not getting me braced up when I was younger.

It was only about a month ago that I did some serious (I was bored) research on ways to fix a gummy smile -- my smile is gummier than a gummy bear. That lead me on the path to finding out that I had a small upper jaw and that the effects included breathing problems (I'm a mad mouth breather!). In normal individuals your upper jaw should be above and slightly forward of your lower jaw. So I decided to visit a few orthodontists to get some opinions about my small jaw and whether I needed braces to fix it (even though I knew the answer was yes).

I went to two. Though the first one was nice, I decided not to go with him because he was just a general dentist who also did braces on the side. In the end, I opted for a real orthodontist near my house. He told me I had a class III underbite. And to my surprise one of my front tooth has been chipping away as it is shorter than the other one due my front teeth sitting right on top of my bottom incisors. And to make matters worst, it would take two years to fix and two extractions along the way. However, in the end I decided to get braces because it would only be a few years compared to the REST OF MY LIFE. I kept telling myself what a friend of mine told me when I asked her about her experiences with braces, "It's all so worth it (in the end)!"

As you can see when I smile, there is two small black gaps on either side of my mouth, which is an indication of a small underdeveloped upper jaw. Not to mention, my two bottom canines are severely rotated.