Braces Update

It was about a year ago when we first learned that Maria would need braces due to a missing tooth.  At first we were a little shocked, but have slowly gotten used to the idea.  Last winter, she had that baby tooth removed and has had a retainer to "maintain the space" until she was ready for braces.  She finally lost her last tooth a couple of weeks ago, and was on track to get braces in April.

But then we got a letter from her orthodontist stating that they were closing the Marysville office at the end of this year.  I was never very happy at this particular office anyway and thought it was the perfect opportunity to change orthodontists.  So we got some recommendations from friends, and went to the office in town where we probably should have started all along.  (I didn't go there at first because it was not who our own dentist recommended.)  

We had our first visit at the new orthodontist yesterday.  There was a small hope that we might be told that Maria didn't need braces after all, although I didn't think it was very likely.  And that's not what happened.  Maria does need braces, followed by a retainer until they can put an implant in, hopefully when she's 16 or 17 years old.  But this time, the orthodontist showed me what they need to do, and even showed me how her front teeth don't line up, causing bite issues on her left side.  And she explained how they are going to use the braces to move her current tooth into the space of the missing tooth, because the bone under that tooth should be better to put an implant in.  I had no idea you could just move a tooth an entire space over.  She told Maria that if she was very good about wearing rubber bands, she could probably only have the braces for 18 months, but maybe two years if she isn't good about the rubber bands.  I was just so pleased to have so much explanation - at the old office everything was secretive and information only given with a  "we'll explain it later" attitude.

So I was convinced Maria does need the braces.  And then we had a decision to make.  We can get started now, and have them off most likely before Maria starts high school.  Or we can wait until she's 14 or 15 years old, and then get the implant soon after the braces are off.  Advantages of doing this now is that she won't have to have braces in high school (where its less socially acceptable), and she can get it over with sooner rather than later.  But the bone where the implant goes may shrink after the braces come off, requiring a much tougher implant procedure when the time comes to do that.  The bone also may not shrink at all.  The advantage of waiting is that the bone wouldn't have much time to shrink  after the braces before the implant, but there is no guarantee of that not happening, of course.  Disadvantages of waiting is having to have braces during the first two years of high school, and for us, maybe having to pay for both kids' braces at the same time.  And right now our insurance will cover $750, which is not even a quarter of the cost but still helpful.  Our health insurance will change again at the new school year, and we might lose that option.

So Ben and I decided on our own that we thought Maria should have the braces now.  But Maria was still coming to terms with the fact she needed braces at all, so we were going to wait a couple of days before bringing it up.  Last night, though, Maria volunteered that she would like to go ahead and get it out of the way now too.  So she may have braces within a month.  After a year of going back and forth, I'm just glad to have a clear path ahead.