No one told me that lettuce stuck in my teeth would be my biggest complaint!

Face it, sooner or later you'll eat out and have food stuck in your braces. Sometimes, a discreet quick swish or two of water dislodges it. Most times, it does not, and you must excuse yourself and head for the restroom with your dental kit, or risk grossing everyone out. (Hint: don't smile widely with food in your braces and (probably) nobody will notice it).

Brushing your teeth in public restrooms (or even at the office) can be embarrassing and even downright gross (dirty sinks, bad smells, etc). Personally, if I must brush away from home, I try to pick more "private" public restrooms (the ones with one stall and one sink, and a door that locks). The cleaner the restaurant, chances are, the cleaner the restroom. Or at least you hope so. If the sink is wet or dirty, lay down a few pieces of clean paper to give yourself a clean surface.

Inevitably, you will need to brush in a completely public restroom with a bunch of sinks, where others come and go. Just go about your business quickly and nonchalantly. Lots of people have braces, lots of people have kids with braces, and lots of people had braces when they were kids. Believe me, people are basically sympathetic. Be as discreet as possible and nobody will care.

How often will you need to brush in a public restroom? If you eat out regularly, the answer is: a lot. If you know that you're going back to the office (or back home) after eating, you could wait until then. But letting food stay stuck in your braces for hours isn't a good idea, and it certainly isn't good for your breath, either. 

Remember that clean teeth are happy teeth! Just keep repeating to yourself, "It's No Big Deal!!"

UPDATE:

The best news of my life is hearing that I am more then half way there. It super exciting to know that my journey is on the end stretch.  My days of carrying around a brushing kit are soon to be over.

www.brunosmiles.com 

Famous people wear braces too!

Are you nervous about getting braces? Maybe you’re dreading orthodontic treatment because you are afraid it will make you feel self-conscious about your smile. Some of the world’s most famous people have had braces at one point in their lives. Not all of the famous people on this list had braces in childhood—many adult celebrities have benefitted from braces too!

Famous Braces

Drew Barrymore – Shortly after filming the Steven Spielberg hit E.T., Drew Barrymore was publicly photographed wearing braces.
Tom Cruise – Unlike Drew Barrymore’s childhood braces, photos reveal Tom Cruise wearing discreet, clear braces at a recent movie premiere.
Danny Glover – Do you remember the Lethal Weapon star Danny Glover? He wore braces in adulthood too.
Gwen Stefani – During the height of No Doubt’s popularity, Gwen Stefani was photographed publicly showing off her braces on many occasions. With so many photos of her with braces on the internet, we think it’s safe to say she was proud of her choice to straighten her teeth.
Chelsea Clinton – Do you remember President Bill Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea? She grew up before America’s eyes as the first daughter. During her time in the White House, she received braces and orthodontic treatment.
Prince Harry of Great Britain – Even royalty has problems with tooth alignment. During adolescence, Prince Harry wore traditional, metal braces.
Fantasia Barrino –This successful American Idol veteran received braces after singing her heart out on the hit television show. Her braces helped align her bite and her teeth.

Muggy Weather such as this- let us treat ourselves

Weather such as this deserves nothing but a good time to cuddle on the couch and enjoy junk food. 

I found yet another great recipe that is brace friendly and delicious and this time I went "low fat." 

So enjoy the cheesecake and better yet enjoy your Monday.

RECIPE: LOW FAT TIRAMISU CHEESECAKE

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

INGREDIENTS:

2 pk (8 ounces ea) fat-free cream cheese

1 pk (4 ounces) sugarfree instant vanilla pudding mix

2/3 cup dry milk powder

1 cup cold coffee

1 teaspoon Brandy extract

3/4 cup Cool-Whip Lite

1 (6 ounce) prepared chocolate pie crust

2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa

DIRECTIONS:

In a large bowl, stir cream cheese with a spoon until soft.

Add dry pudding mix, dry milk powder and coffee. Mix well

using a wire whisk. Blend in brandy extract and 1/4 cup Cool

Whip Lite. Spread mixture into pie crust. Evenly drop

remaining Cool Whip Lite by tablespoon to form 8 mounds.

Sprinkle chocolate chips over top. Refrigerate for at least

1 hour. Cut into 8 servings. 

Yield: 8 Servings

207 calories; 7 gm fat; 11 gm protein; 25 gm carbohydrate;

636 mg sodium; 71 mg calcium; 1 gm fiber

The dating game!

 

(My adopted brother- Jonathan(left) Sarah(right))

If you would of asked me 6 months ago if braces would effect my dating and social life I would of told you that the minute I got braces...life was over.  But the truth is my life didn't skip a beat things actually started to get better. 

I was single at the time I got braces put on and immediately after (2 weeks) was asked out on several dates. When I finally accepted I asked, "does the fact that I have braces affect you?" The response took me surprise when he turned to me and said, "Honestly the fact that you are confident and humble enough to know what is best for your overall health and really the fact that you have braces shows that you care about yourself." Later when I thought about that I realized it wasn't anyone else that had the issue with my braces rather I, myself had to get past what I thought others would think. Would someone not like me because I have braces? The truth is that if I really think about it, why would I want to be friends with and/or date someone that looked at me differently because I had braces? I wouldn't! 

So get over it and just do it!

It's down to the wire!

So its time to take a step forward and go up on the wire size! Super exciting moment to know that its just one step closer to my Hollywood smile!

www.brunosmiles.com

A few myths I realized to be just that...a myth!

So since I have had braces for 3 months now I have realized quite a few things and one of the biggest is that all the myths are just that, a myth.
I listed a few of my favorites that I thought for sure were true but in reality its not that bad.

1. Braces have to hurt or feel tight to work—No pain no gain right? Well, not exactly. In the old days, only stiff wires were available. When tied to the braces, these stiff wires exerted heavy forces leading to more pain and discomfort for the patient. Now, with new technologies and flexible wires, there is significantly less discomfort associated with tooth movement. These days, you can have straight teeth with minimal discomfort. However, there are always some patients that complain about not having any pain because they think that without pain, their teeth are not moving. Remember, “It does not have to hurt to work!” 2. The tighter the better—A common comment I get from patients and would say myself is, “Make it tighter, doc. I want to get my braces off  faster!” You may think that tighter adjustments and heavier forces will move your teeth faster. While a certain level of force is necessary to move teeth, a force level that is too high may start to damage the bone and surrounding tissues. Orthodontics is a delicate balance of forces. Too much force may cause some teeth to move the wrong way and increase overall time you need braces. 3. Wires need to be changed every visit—Super-elastic wires of the present day can be bent into all different shapes and still spring back into their nice U-shaped form. If you have crooked teeth, the super-elastic wire can be connected to your crooked teeth and prove a steady light force to straighten them without needing to change the wire very often. With the limited wires of the old orthodontia days, if a wire was used that put too much pressure on a tooth, the bracket would either pop off the tooth or the wire would be permanently deformed and not move your teeth at all! That is why in the old days, orthodontic patients got many wires with incrementally higher stiffness, and these wires were changed more frequently.  4. Once I get my braces off, my teeth will stay straight forever—Getting your teeth straight and your bite right is just half the battle. Keeping your teeth straight after getting your braces off is the rest of the battle. Teeth are connected to the bone by elastic fibers. As the teeth are moved into their new straightened positions, some elastic fibers are stretched and others are compressed. After your braces are removed, these elastic fibers will tend to push and pull your teeth back towards their original position. That is why orthodontic retainers are required when braces are removed to keep your teeth straight. 5. My wisdom teeth are making my teeth crooked—You may think that wisdom teeth cause crowding. However, there is very little evidence to support the fact that wisdom teeth cause crowding. If this was true, then your teeth would never get crowded after your wisdom teeth were extracted. In fact, people who never developed wisdom teeth or who had their wisdom teeth removed may still see their teeth get crooked over time. Teeth just tend to drift forward over time regardless of whether or not you have wisdom teeth.  6. The date that I am supposed to get my braces off is set in stone—When patients are told before treatment that they will be in dental braces for a certain number of years, it is very easy to focus on that date. Usually, an orthodontist can judge from his or her experience what the typical time frame is to finish treatment. However this depends on many factors. Some factors that would slow down treatment include: broken braces, not brushing well, not coming in for regular appointments, and having dense bone. If you want to get your braces off on time, make sure you co-operate by brushing and flossing well, wearing your elastics, and showing up for your regular appointments. 7. It is easy to transfer or switch orthodontists—Though it may just look like braces and wires to you, every orthodontist uses slightly different wires, brackets, and appliances. Sometimes, the wires that one orthodontist uses would not even fit in the braces that another orthodontist uses. Each orthodontist also has his or her own technique in treating each case. For example, in creating that beautiful smile, some orthodontists may focus on correcting a bite problem first while other orthodontists may focus on straightening the teeth first. Sorting out the finances is another difficult part of switching orthodontists because different offices structure their payment plans in different ways. If you switch orthodontists, you probably will end up paying more money than if you had just stayed with one orthodontist. I know that most of you are not familiar with orthodontics so I hope that helps. These are some great things that prior to knowing about braces are questions I believed to be true but in fact they aren't.

Braces do work!

Just wanted to update you with some photos to show that through all the pain and struggle braces do work. 

Just have to remind myself...it's worth it and I can do it!