I just listened to an 8 minute long radio recording with Dr. William Hang who has lately become my guru. He is one of the few orthodontists out there who try to solve the cause behind crooked teeth by fixing the jaws first. I have to say I am completely taken by this interview! This is the first time I hear Dr. Hang talk and it is almost as if he has read all the different thoughts I’ve had for 17 years (that is, ever since I had my braces removed).
Dr. Hang explains how he “converted” from extraction/retraction orthodontics to what he does today (mainly expansion of jaws and bringing them forward). Even Dr. Hang was once “on of those who recommended that you had teeth pulled”. But today he doesn’t even want to look at these people, it makes him shudder. He didn’t realize back then how bad it really was and how much damage that kind of treatment can do.
In the middle of the transition he still had a couple of patients who were undergoing traditional treatment and of course he had to finish what he started. He tells us how his pulse started to accelerate as he saw their names on the schedule. He almost had anxiety attacks and it was all very difficult for him. I am so impressed that he had the courage to break lose, that he was so far ahead of the others and that he later on had the strength to admit to himself and the public that this was wrong.
He also talks about women he met who had teeth pulled and braces and who look back at the result and say, “I don’t like this, not even a little bit!” One of them even said, “My life was over at 13. When I had my braces removed and saw myself, my life was over.”
This almost brought tears to my eyes. For 17 years I thought I was crazy! I have never liked how my mouth turned out or felt and I have hated what the orthodontic treatment did to my face. But I have never heard of anybody who feels the same way. My experience was very vague and I didn’t understand what was wrong, I couldn’t explain it. This is what it must feel like to suffer from a disease that doesn’t have a name yet and is suddenly recognized one day. An awakening, an aha moment. It is an incredible relief!
Visar inlägg med etikett jaws. Visa alla inlägg
Visar inlägg med etikett jaws. Visa alla inlägg
måndag 17 oktober 2011
lördag 20 augusti 2011
Teeth that are shifting
I've come across many forums where people complain about shifting of teeth after braces have been removed. Either they forgot to wear their retainer or the bonded retainer wire on the back of their teeth fell off. It surprises me that almost no-one asks why this happens. Are we just supposed to accept that this is how things work? I remember questioning this before I did my major research. I used to say to myself, "What's up with this, an unstable result? What have I let them do to my mouth?" I at least wish they would've explained things before treatment. Some people still don't get this information and it's upsetting to me. In my opinion having to wear a retainer for the rest of your life involves a big risk. Let's say I go on a trip where I travel for more than 24 hours and my sleep is irregular for a week or so due to jetlag. Or if I get a kid and forget to wear the retainer for a couple of nights because of the chaos that occurs. Or if the bonded retainer falls off while you're on a trip (I had this happen recently).
Before I did my research I asked a dentist about shifting of teeth after the wire fell off and she told me the whole thing is one big experiment. Orthodontists ask themselves if the number of years you wear the retainer is related to whether they will shift or not. After reading a lot about the topic I found a whole bunch of American websites that stated that if you don't solve the jaw problems (that almost always seem to be the culprit to begin with) the amount of time that you wear the retainer will be of no importance and that life-long retention is the safest. I would rather solve the underlying problems! Such techniques exist too, and they have been available for decades. But instead they choose to aggravate the problem. Seeing it from that perspective, I don't blame the teeth for wanting to return to their original position! ;)
I found a blog written by a person who lost her retainer and her teeth started shifting right away. She went back to the orthodontist to consult them and they said they made a mistake by not removing teeth because of crowding. Like that was the reason for the shifting. Where did that statement come from, was it just a wild guess? From what I've heard risk of shifting increases if you have teeth pulled. This is because the dental arches are made smaller leading to decreased tongue space among other things.
How about at least providing the patient with some theories. Or are they trying to evade the fact that they ignored a big problem with the mouth that still remains?
Retainer forever? We'd prefer teeth that are not kept in place by a "bandaid"!
måndag 4 april 2011
Is It Mental or Is It Dental – a scary article
Today I finally took courage and read the famous article Is It Mental or Is It Dental?
A lot of courage is required for this task - this is actually scary! When I was finished the last piece of the puzzle fell into place. People of the modern world eat refined foods which causes our craniums to develop improperly.
My face is a typical face that didn't grow correctly (even though it's a very common problem and not a very strange thing). All the things in my face I used to be bothered with are related to this:
1. Oblong and too narrow face.
2. Chin too far back.
3. Too big distance between nose and upper lip.
4. Protruding and too narrow nose.
5. White of the eye too big and downwards slanted eyes.
6. Black circles under eyes.
7. Asymmetrical face.
8. Creases at the mouth and the cheeks.
9. No visible cheekbones.
My goodness, these are things I spent years of learning to conceal with make-up! As you may have guessed retraction orthodontics makes this worse. The article also stated that soft tissues such as cartilage and tongue aren't affected by an underdeveloped cranium, they grow as they will. This is the reason why people with an underdeveloped upper jaw often have trouble breathing through their noses - narrow nose, adenoids etc. Not only that, this could even be the reason of myopia because the eye sockets don't grow to their full size which causes the eyeballs to get squeezed. It's just a theory but it makes a lot of sense.
Breathing difficulties and myopia can cause you to tilt your head downwards to make breathing and seeing easier. This way the airway opens up and it can interfere with your posture and cause you to slouch. Reading this made me all sweaty! These things have turned my life up side down! But you know what, I just laugh at the whole thing! It's just too much, too crazy. It's true, I'm laughing, because what are you going to do about it? You are a tiny human being who lives on a little planet and you’re basically in a good place. Still, it's scary and more people should read the article, Is it Mental or Is it Dental.
On the subway home today I couldn't help looking at people around me. Some of them with perfect profiles, others with sunken faces - worse than me. After all it's very interesting, isn't it?
Picture borrowed from Is It Mental or Is It Dental. Note the long distance between the nose and the mouth on the two women. The article says that the long face is related to the teeth appearing big and protruding. The boy has a big overjet and in many cases this has been treated by retracting the teeth in the upper jaw (extraction/retraction orthodontics). Imagine doing that to this boy. The profile below the nose would become diagonal and unnatural, nothing would be done about the position of the lower jaw except possibly pushing it further back. You can clearly see how bad of an idea that would be. (Or maybe it's just because yours truly had this kind of treatment done and knows how much damage it does.)
A lot of courage is required for this task - this is actually scary! When I was finished the last piece of the puzzle fell into place. People of the modern world eat refined foods which causes our craniums to develop improperly.
My face is a typical face that didn't grow correctly (even though it's a very common problem and not a very strange thing). All the things in my face I used to be bothered with are related to this:
1. Oblong and too narrow face.
2. Chin too far back.
3. Too big distance between nose and upper lip.
4. Protruding and too narrow nose.
5. White of the eye too big and downwards slanted eyes.
6. Black circles under eyes.
7. Asymmetrical face.
8. Creases at the mouth and the cheeks.
9. No visible cheekbones.
My goodness, these are things I spent years of learning to conceal with make-up! As you may have guessed retraction orthodontics makes this worse. The article also stated that soft tissues such as cartilage and tongue aren't affected by an underdeveloped cranium, they grow as they will. This is the reason why people with an underdeveloped upper jaw often have trouble breathing through their noses - narrow nose, adenoids etc. Not only that, this could even be the reason of myopia because the eye sockets don't grow to their full size which causes the eyeballs to get squeezed. It's just a theory but it makes a lot of sense.
Breathing difficulties and myopia can cause you to tilt your head downwards to make breathing and seeing easier. This way the airway opens up and it can interfere with your posture and cause you to slouch. Reading this made me all sweaty! These things have turned my life up side down! But you know what, I just laugh at the whole thing! It's just too much, too crazy. It's true, I'm laughing, because what are you going to do about it? You are a tiny human being who lives on a little planet and you’re basically in a good place. Still, it's scary and more people should read the article, Is it Mental or Is it Dental.
On the subway home today I couldn't help looking at people around me. Some of them with perfect profiles, others with sunken faces - worse than me. After all it's very interesting, isn't it?
Picture borrowed from Is It Mental or Is It Dental. Note the long distance between the nose and the mouth on the two women. The article says that the long face is related to the teeth appearing big and protruding. The boy has a big overjet and in many cases this has been treated by retracting the teeth in the upper jaw (extraction/retraction orthodontics). Imagine doing that to this boy. The profile below the nose would become diagonal and unnatural, nothing would be done about the position of the lower jaw except possibly pushing it further back. You can clearly see how bad of an idea that would be. (Or maybe it's just because yours truly had this kind of treatment done and knows how much damage it does.)
lördag 2 april 2011
Overbite and upper jaw too far back
I can't help but look at friends who I know used to wear braces, some of who had teeth extracted, and give their teeth and jaws a quick glance. Those who didn't have teeth extracted have the broadest smile, no doubt about it. They don't all have an inwardly slanted upper lip but usually straight (convex is the ideal, like most fashion models). But of course I avoid staring, it would have been weird if I did. :)
I almost worked myself to death today. To be able to write articles about overbites and jaw surgery I have to try to figure out exactly what happened to me. I finally gathered enough strength to open an old photo album with pictures of myself. I could never stand looking at pictures of myself as a kid, a face that I was forced to have damaged to please my parents and the dentists. (At least, that's how I used to look at it, I know it's not entirely true.)
I found pictures of myself as an eight year old. What can I say? My upper jaw is too far... back. Can you imagine? You have a 10 mm overjet - how the heck are you supposed to be able to figure out that the upper jaw is too far back? (The dentists should tell you this because they should know, shouldn't they?) But this is often the case, or so I've read, and I could clearly see that this was the case with me. The teeth appeared to be protruding but that's a different story. The truth is that the position of the teeth is usually perfect only they have been pushed out because the upper jaw is too narrow. Therefore the jaw is to blame, not the teeth!
Next thing that happens is that the upper jaw stops the lower jaw from developing properly and you end up with a weak chin. It's said that these problems keep getting worse the older you get and that was something I could determine from looking at these pictures. The face grows longer and longer and the profile becomes more and more diagonal. It really is pretty scary. Traditional orthodontics that move teeth backwards guide the face to grow even more wrong. Basically, they do the opposite of what should've been done.
Furthermore, to not help an eight year old who has this kind of problem? No, you choose to wait until it's too late. That's bordering on evil in my opinion! From what I've come to understand, scientists have known for about a century that when the cranium, the jaws and the teeth start to grow in the wrong direction they will continue to do so and if anything, get worse.
I feel disfigured. After having read all this I wonder how anybody has ever been able to find me attractive or cute. I may look alright from the front? I wonder if my super fast metabolism has anything to do with this. The cranium didn't develop the way it should which makes you look sick. I look like a person who has melted and got smudged out.
Maybe I should stop working this late...
I almost worked myself to death today. To be able to write articles about overbites and jaw surgery I have to try to figure out exactly what happened to me. I finally gathered enough strength to open an old photo album with pictures of myself. I could never stand looking at pictures of myself as a kid, a face that I was forced to have damaged to please my parents and the dentists. (At least, that's how I used to look at it, I know it's not entirely true.)
I found pictures of myself as an eight year old. What can I say? My upper jaw is too far... back. Can you imagine? You have a 10 mm overjet - how the heck are you supposed to be able to figure out that the upper jaw is too far back? (The dentists should tell you this because they should know, shouldn't they?) But this is often the case, or so I've read, and I could clearly see that this was the case with me. The teeth appeared to be protruding but that's a different story. The truth is that the position of the teeth is usually perfect only they have been pushed out because the upper jaw is too narrow. Therefore the jaw is to blame, not the teeth!
Next thing that happens is that the upper jaw stops the lower jaw from developing properly and you end up with a weak chin. It's said that these problems keep getting worse the older you get and that was something I could determine from looking at these pictures. The face grows longer and longer and the profile becomes more and more diagonal. It really is pretty scary. Traditional orthodontics that move teeth backwards guide the face to grow even more wrong. Basically, they do the opposite of what should've been done.
Furthermore, to not help an eight year old who has this kind of problem? No, you choose to wait until it's too late. That's bordering on evil in my opinion! From what I've come to understand, scientists have known for about a century that when the cranium, the jaws and the teeth start to grow in the wrong direction they will continue to do so and if anything, get worse.
I feel disfigured. After having read all this I wonder how anybody has ever been able to find me attractive or cute. I may look alright from the front? I wonder if my super fast metabolism has anything to do with this. The cranium didn't develop the way it should which makes you look sick. I look like a person who has melted and got smudged out.
Maybe I should stop working this late...
torsdag 24 mars 2011
Face damaged by orthodontics
I will gladly admit it: My face was damaged by orthodontics. It's alright, I can talk about it now without having too many feelings of anxiety.
Thankfully, I'm quite cool about my looks. I have come to realize that my appearance - and with that I'm referring to everything from eyes, forehead, lips, chin and face shape - has been affected by on the one hand the initial malocclusion and then, as the experts put it, been "damaged" even more by orthodontics.
But I can't let this break me. I am pleased with the way I look, I realize that would never be a super model anyway and I intend to live my life happy despite what happened. I will try to avoid "what if...?" thoughts because that's not the way life goes. Instead I'm almost grateful that this happened to me because that way I might be able to inform and help others. It’s in my nature.
It has been hard since this proved to be a bigger topic than I could've ever imagined and the risks associated with some of the orthodontic treatments are far more serious than I first thought. Still it is very interesting! I'm lucky to have been able to preserve my composure. I could have gotten really depressed but I somehow didn’t.
When I first started researching this I found the whole topic extremely disturbing. But I decided to face my fears, for other peoples' sake too. I read that, "adults with problems due to extraction orthodontics often have difficulties putting words to what they feel". I used to say that "it doesn't feel like my mouth anymore", that it was "diffucult to bite my teeth together" which are both very vague statements, especially when my teeth look fine to someone who is not aware of the debate. It has proved almost impossible to explain to a doctor. When I visited the American orthodontist, they said, "ok, maybe your jaw muscles are a bit weak?" and I can't blame them for thinking that. But the truth is that the mouth is too small for the tongue, the dental arch has an abnormal shape and the positions of the jaws are wrong - especially the lower jaw is too far back. And these are the causes of my bite being wrong, it's no mystery anymore.
Thankfully, I'm quite cool about my looks. I have come to realize that my appearance - and with that I'm referring to everything from eyes, forehead, lips, chin and face shape - has been affected by on the one hand the initial malocclusion and then, as the experts put it, been "damaged" even more by orthodontics.
But I can't let this break me. I am pleased with the way I look, I realize that would never be a super model anyway and I intend to live my life happy despite what happened. I will try to avoid "what if...?" thoughts because that's not the way life goes. Instead I'm almost grateful that this happened to me because that way I might be able to inform and help others. It’s in my nature.
It has been hard since this proved to be a bigger topic than I could've ever imagined and the risks associated with some of the orthodontic treatments are far more serious than I first thought. Still it is very interesting! I'm lucky to have been able to preserve my composure. I could have gotten really depressed but I somehow didn’t.
When I first started researching this I found the whole topic extremely disturbing. But I decided to face my fears, for other peoples' sake too. I read that, "adults with problems due to extraction orthodontics often have difficulties putting words to what they feel". I used to say that "it doesn't feel like my mouth anymore", that it was "diffucult to bite my teeth together" which are both very vague statements, especially when my teeth look fine to someone who is not aware of the debate. It has proved almost impossible to explain to a doctor. When I visited the American orthodontist, they said, "ok, maybe your jaw muscles are a bit weak?" and I can't blame them for thinking that. But the truth is that the mouth is too small for the tongue, the dental arch has an abnormal shape and the positions of the jaws are wrong - especially the lower jaw is too far back. And these are the causes of my bite being wrong, it's no mystery anymore.
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