Brace Face.

On Tuesday I got something I have been wanting for a very long time. I finally went to the orthodontist and got braces. I have been wanting braces since I was a teenager, but we could never afford them. When I was 22, I almost got braces. I had the appointment set up and everything, but then a few days before my appointment Lewis lost his job. I cancelled it, not wanting to have another expense while he was unemployed. But even after we started doing great financially, I never rescheduled the appointment.

I have always been extremely self-conscious about my teeth. I can't stand to look at myself in pictures because it is the first thing I see, and I think its the first thing every one else sees. During the consultation, I nearly backed out of the whole thing because A) I wasn't a candidate for Invisiline, B) I am going to have to have 4 back teeth pulled to make room for the rest of my teeth to go back and C) its going to take up to 22 months of treatment time. 22 MONTHS? What the hell. But everyone at the office was super nice, and my orthodontist seemed really excited about what the final results would look like. He said it would be really dramatic. So I did it.

My first appointment took 2 and a half hours. When it was all done, I was left with a mouth full of metal and the inability it close my mouth completely. It is actually pretty mortifying. I'm not sure which is worse, my teeth before or with the braces. I know that it is only temporary, but now I know for sure my braces is all anyone notices when they look at me. By the end of first day, my mouth was throbbing. By day 3, the brackets have done a pretty good job of shredding the inside of my mouth and the aching was even worse. Today is day 6, and the pain has subsided but I still haven't been able to eat much. Having the braces is definitely going to curb my snacking habit.  I've been living off of mashed potatoes and mac n'cheese for almost a week...but I'm not really complaining about that. Mashed potatoes are my favorite food anyways.