Yesterday I had Invisalign braces put on! Yep, 65 years old and getting braces!!
Did you know your teeth continue to move all of your life? In my family, it seems like you either needed glasses or braces. I was glasses. But with all the movement (and teeth grinding!??), it was getting harder and harder to floss. My bite had changed. So I am changing all of that. I read somewhere that 40% of ortho patients are over 40! With continued longevity, I am very interested in keeping these teeth in good shape until I don’t need them any more.
Several other things that continue to grow or change as we age. Feet! With age, feet change in shape… they will flatten out and elongate. It’s estimated that many people over the age of 40 can gain half a shoe size every 10 years. (So, have your feet measured often and don’t get hung-up on the size on the shoe box but the actual fit of the shoe).
And then we move on to noses and ears. Bones stop growing after puberty and muscle and fat cells also stop dividing. But cartilage - that’s the plastic-like stuff in ears and noses - cartilage continues to grow until the day you die. Not only does cartilage grow, but the earlobes elongate from gravity. And that makes ears look even larger.
So it’s really true. Older people do have larger noses and ears. Bad news for me as I started out with a large, long nose. That might just be the ONLY plastic surgery I could be interested in ...
Back to the braces. What an interesting concept (invented by some Stanford kids). The company makes a new set of clear, plastic coverings that you step up to every two weeks! Depending on how much movement needs to be done, you can be wearing these for up to three years. My dentist is confident that mine will be just a year.
Yesterday they put porcelain "warts" on about 12 teeth so that the plastic things have something to snap onto. So it kinda makes me WANT to wear the braces for that smooth tongue feel. These will sure help me cut down on snacking. You can only drink water with them in. After you take them out for eating, you need to brush your teeth and brush the braces with water and a kids soft toothbrush. My car is now equipped as is my purse. And of course the Gramma pad.
Wish me luck!
I've taken to wearing my bite plate again, which looks a lot like those braces, because I'm waking up with difficultly opening up my mouth and my jaw is snapping all the time. I've talked to my dentist about this before but next time I need to get more forceful so he'll send me to a specialist.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with the braces, hope they give you the results you want. There's always something isn't there.
You should wear your night guard ... it will keep at least those teeth in place .. as well as help with your jaw snapping.
DeleteI didn't realize this until I notice my own perfect straight bottom teeth were turning. I complained to the dentist that maybe the caps I had put on were to large and causing my teeth to become crooked and she informed me that as we age, our jaw line gets smaller and thus the moving of my teeth. I almost cried because I have always had beautiful straight teeth and a nice smile. and my nose is getting wider, which is not good as it always wider than it should have been!! DANNGIT! Everything is falling down or getting crooked or..................................CRAP!!
ReplyDeleteAsk your dentist about night guards (tell her you wake up with head/jaw ache and you think you are grinding your teeth). At least that would keep your teeth in the position they are in.
DeleteMoving teeth is a constant low level pain ... hopefully I'll adjust. Right now it makes me a little crabby!
Good for you! I hid crooked teeth for 46 years and then I got braces. I was so thrilled whenever they were straight. I wore my retainer faithfully for almost 30 years, then my teeth began moving anyway and before long, the retainers wouldn't fit onto my teeth. There was a feeling that my teeth were being pushed or pulled. My dentist thinks they are too far gone for invisalign braces. Now if I don't wear my mouth guard at night (which I hate!) the teeth bother my sleep. I'm 76, but straight teeth still matter to me.
ReplyDeleteRetainer didn't lock them in place???? YIKES. That would tick me off ...
DeleteCheck about invisalign ... they used to only be able to do slight corrections ... but now they can fix anything
This surely does seem like an improvement over the type braces worn years ago. I was surprised years ago to learn teeth "drifted" and would continue to do so. I had thought they were fixed in place. Reminds me that I need to start wearing my mouth guard again as think they've been moving.
ReplyDeleteWow. After hearing from Lil Red Hen and now you, I better commit to wearing retainers EVERY night! Or all of this is for naught!
DeleteMy teeth must be moving!! It is now a little easier to take these out before eating. Just 51 more weeks ....
My DIL had Invisalign braces when she was in her thirties. I could hardly tell. You are smart to take good care of your teeth. They can affect other parts of our bodies... like the heart.
ReplyDeleteThere are so many benefits to clear aligners that make them superior to conventional braces. That's great that you have decided to continue to take care of your teeth. Thank you for sharing this information on natural dentistry, because I had no idea that people had their aligners adjusted every two weeks to slowly move their teeth.
ReplyDelete