Sure, the orthodontic treatment is GOOD and USEFUL. I knew that and this was the reason I chose to go through many months of teeth straightening treatment.

The “day 2″ though was a huge punch into my confidence.

I expected pain since Damon is a very aggressive system (in the good sense of this word) and works fast. Sure, the changes in the teeth can become slightly painful.

Woke up in the morning with the same pressure feeling I had in my teeth since last night. No pain, just pressure. I then clench my teeth, as a normal person should. In the end I wasn’t gonna keep my mouth slightly open as I woke up with.

AUCH!

Cursed, shocked of the pain coming out of nowhere. “Jesus, how can this hurt like this?” I though to myself, noticing that not touching my teeth was good. No pain there, only when I pressed the lower teeth to the upper teeth, meaning closing that mouth and clenching them.

Cute, let’s see how we eat and brush.

The brushing was interesting to say the least. I was trying not to put too much pressure on my teeth and it worked pretty well. Expected more pain, got less than thought I’d get. I was brushing with care, not forcing anything, being very gentle and thorough.

And then .. I ate.

Or something like this. The pain I felt when putting pressure on my teeth was serious and I just didn’t want to face it anymore. Sure, a simple painkiller would solve this, but I was stubborn. No medication, I wan’t to feel it. And feeling it I was.

My grandmother and her sister ate better. I ate some mashed potatoes (I mean really mashed), drank some milk and ate pudding; all kinds of meals a toddler is getting used to. No solids. My teeth were in perfect shape theoretically, but painful when pressing. So, no pressing.

Even if I expected to starve that day, I wasn’t in such case. There are so many things you can eat in such occasion and the “mashing” and “mincing” are two things that make almost anything edible even for an orthodontics patient with new braces on.

My second day in Damon wasn’t that bad. As I went to sleep, trying to keep my lower and upper teeth from getting in contact with each others, I realized my pain wasn’t that serious and the discomfort pretty bearable. I was looking at 7 months with the metal braces on and I knew THIS DAY was the worst of all days and that I CAN MAKE IT.

Attitude means a lot in such a situation and I was looking at months of braces with a positive attitude. Nothing happening to me from now on could be as bad as this day was and this day wasn’t that bad at all. And it could have been a good day if I wasn’t as stubborn as to not take any pain medication. But I wanted to feel it. To sense how my Damon braces are starting working to make me have a perfect smile.

My orthodontics journey started 1 year ago. On June 1st, I was there, ready to start my new life. I read ALL I could about this, so I kinda knew what to expect. I knew my age (almost 29 at that time) wasn’t a huge deal, that my treatment would be a “weird” one (7 months in Damon 3 to solve some of the lateral issues and then Invisalign since I didn’t want to show braces at this age) and that this WILL CHANGE MY LIFE.

I was ready with all this. Crooked teeth were a big issue and some of my problems weren’t quite “usual”. I liked my “special” status, but knew this complex case was also trouble.

My orthodontist set the meeting and I was ready to get braced. On the “International Children Day”, I really felt like one.

I knew it’s a good idea to use the toilet before (being on that chair for 2 hours is not that “cool” for one’s bladder, so I used it. I was then ready to start this, thrilled to see how many “cool” things I’ll have. I am a strange person, curious and thrilled to try all this. I know it’s sounds pretty weird, but I couldn’t wait to see what they’ll do to me.

Etching was placed on the teeth, then washed out. It was sour, it’s an acid. Then they placed bonding (tastes like Super Glue) and the brackets on the molars and bicuspids. These were the teeth to be braced only. Then the archwire was put there, the “sliding doors” closed (Damon has self-ligating brackets, so no need for ligatures) and then some power-chains tied on some of the brackets to close a gap I have.

I was talking funny, but felt pretty good. A wire was poking my cheek, but it was cut short then. I felt a small pressure on my teeth, but I was pleased to see I made THE FIRST STEP towards a perfect smile.

– to be continued –