First restriction broken!

I went out last night with a group of friends.  We were at a bar/club, it was fun.  I didn't feel so self conscious about my braces.  But then....they wanted to get a bite to eat afterwards.   Ok, I can't eat in public since I got my braces.   So I looked at the menu, which only had salad as a vegan option anyway.  Decided to order tea.  It was cold, about 2 a.m., and I thought Chamomile tea would warm me up a bit while my friends sobered up with their nachos and fries.  Then it hit me, my dentist clearly restricted me from drinking hot tea!  I don't know if it is the heat or the tea itself that is prohibited.  I drank it anyway, and all night I was worried that the tea had loosed my brackets somehow. 

This morning I googled and found a great recipe for a dessert that is moist and easy to chew.  Vegan Spice Cake to the rescue.  It is so delicious and perfectly chewable.  Highly recommend it, vegan or not, braces or not.

Adjusting

I still have not been able to eat solid foods.  I tried to eat french fries yesterday.  It hurt too much.  Then I tried a soggy salad.  Nope, couldn't chew at all due to the fact that my bite no longer closes.  However, I did try a Cashew Tomato Soup which was tasty.  I'm branching out on recipes for soups. I even made up a few.  I am sure my soup repertoire will be amazing by the time my braces are off.

Having braces has slowed me down in the morning too.  I've had to adjust my schedule in order to allow for slower eating time and prolonged cleaning of braces.  I go to bed a half hour earlier and get up a half hour earlier.  Not something I had even thought would have to be changed once I got my braces.

I also figured out how to apply wax more easily too.  My jaw has been clenching while I sleep, causing neck and shoulder pain.  I've been applying lavender filled pillows that I heat up in the microwave on my shoulders to ease the soreness.  I find that if I put a piece of wax under the pillow between my shoulder and the pillow, it softens up a bit and I don't have to press it so hard onto my molars.

Still trying not to smile or laugh too much in front of people, still feeling like my braces are all people see, even though I know it's not the case.  Have to get over the self consciousness.

Finally my last triumph has got to be flossing.  I couldn't figure it out for a week.  Gross, I know.  I finally figured out how to do it carefully, plus my teeth are loose enough now that I can fit the floss in where I couldn't before.  Having braces sure has made a bigger impact in my life than I thought it would.

I like them!

I'm starting to get used to my braces.  I don't wake up drooling on the pillow anymore.  I don't wake up with my lips dry and stuck to my braces anymore.  Finally, I'm getting used to my lisp.  I am starting to like having braces!

Of course I still miss eating.  But I made an apple pie, and it is so soft, I can indulge no problem.  Being able to eat pie kind of makes up for not being able to have burritos and sandwiches.

I have had them for 6 days today.  Someone complimented my color choice of ligs today.  A compliment! I don't look like a freak!  My co-workers haven't even commented for the most part.  The ones that did, say they didn't think I had a need for them anyway.  People are being so nice.  I feel really grateful and a bit silly for being so self conscious.  It was just such a huge change to me when I looked in the mirror.  But now I'm thankful for them, for the work they are doing, and that I can even afford them.  Total turn around, I like them!

Wax Is My Friend

Learning to love this stuff.  I finally figured out that you can eat with this stuff on your braces, and it has made mushing up food in my mouth so much easier.  Since I have an overbite, the orthodontist built up the back of my last molars on both sides so that my mouth doesn't close and pop off the brackets on my braces.  That makes eating impossible!  So I have to mush food around my mouth with my tongue to break it down.  Exhausting.  Wondering though, is the stuff vegan?  Hope it doesn't contain stearic acid.  Time for some research.

Creative Food Preparation

So I bought some yogurt yesterday.  I don't normally eat yogurt, I never liked the sourness of it.  However, now that I have braces the game rules have changed.  I need something to have as a quick snack at work that won't require major clean up afterwards.  This came out fantastic! Mine is a vegan version. Here is the recipe:

Vanilla Soy Yogurt (I used Whole Soy & Co.)  topped with:

About 7 frozen strawberries
1/2 a sweet apple
1 TBSP of lemon juice
1 TBSP of honey, sugar, or sweetener of choice (you can adjust to your taste)
1/4 cup water for blending.

I put the strawberries, apple, lemon juice and sweetener in my Vitamix blender and blended until smooth.  Pour over the yogurt.  I had enough to ration out for 3 large servings.  Amazing!

Braces-the beginning

I've always prided myself on being healthy.  That certainly included my teeth.  For over 14 or so years, I have always gone to the dentist 2 times a year, and only needed a cleaning.

That changed this year.

This year, I got a new dentist.  On my first visit she said I had 3 cracked teeth.  How could that be?  She explained that my fillings had expanded over time and cracked the molars a bit. If I didn't do anything about it, then I might eventually need root canals.

Yes, I cried.  You know when you have long hair for many years, then for some crazy reason you impulsively decide to cut it?  You look in the mirror after the hair dresser spins the chair around, and you cry because your hair is gone and it seems permanent?  That is how it felt.  I cried for the loss of my teeth.  I could hear my mom's voice inside my head, saying that everything starts to break down when you get older.  I was officially breaking down and getting old.

The dental assistant asked me if I was ok.  Yes, I just need time to process I replied.  I took a few deep breaths.  Let's do it.

Add caption

Your teeth are also crooked, my dentist said. You need braces.  Wow, what a way to kick someone when they are down.  Then I thought, this woman is looking at me and seeing dollar signs.  Is she scaring me into treatments to make more money?  But no, my teeth are crooked, a bit more on the bottom than on top.  After mulling it over (the price and the whole ordeal) crying from shock at what it would cost (but don't worry, we have credit cards for this purpose) I decided to take the plunge.

To blog or not to blog?

I know there are many blogs about being an adult and getting braces.  I read some and enjoyed being able to relate to the experience.  However, it didn't feel like enough.  I had to vent.  My facebook friends got tired of my whining after 3 or 4 posts.  So I thought I needed a blog.  I don't want to be a complainer, I hate that about people.  But I am experiencing something new and uncomfortable and have no one to talk about it with.  So this is my journal.  I hope you enjoy it, but ultimately I'm writing it for myself.

As I began to toy with the idea of a blog, I thought about what would make mine unique.  Well, I'm vegan and I have braces.  Hmmm....well, actually I wanted to be able to write about more than that. I want to write about my own self image.  I want to talk about what the experience of being a woman in her 30's in southern California is like.  California, the land of sunshine and movie stars.  A place where it seems even more important to always look your best.

At first I felt like it was self important or pretentious to have a blog.  Why would anyone care what I have to say? I'm still not sure.  I know I enjoy reading, and I've always enjoyed journaling, but was afraid someone would find my journal and read it. It's so ironic that when I blog, the whole world can read it, but I can remain completely anonymous to my closest friends and family.  So this is our little secret.