Treatment

When you bring a child into the world and raise it, you hope (or at least most sane parents do) that it will be happy and healthy. You hope, that with luck, that child will get somewhere in life, meet new people, make contacts, have friends and family and fun and gain knowledge and experience from the entire thing. See, I'm getting the contacts, at the moment, and my mother is happy. But (there always seems to be an exception...) I have certain things that hold me back. The wonderful thing is I can actually alleviate these.

Currently I have an underbite. It means my lower jaw is further forward than my upper jaw, and it makes my bottom lip stick out a bit and my teeth are going pretty much insane trying to compensate- The top ones desperately leaning forward to meet the bottom ones, which are leaning back. There is still, when I bite together, a noticeable gap. I look, in short, a little strange. I'm very aware of this problem, and have been for some time. You know how you go to the dentist? Yes, I do that too. But I also go to the Dental Hospital for checkups- and they are figuring things out very nicely and quickly for my course of treatment.

Firstly, I should start at the beginning; it seems logical. When I was younger, genetically I just kept growing more and more teeth, without the old ones falling out. Sort of like a premature shark occurrence. I had nine teeth taken out before I was ten, in one operation. They were all rotten because the toothbrush wouldn't- nothing except acid, in fact- would get between them. So these nine teeth came out, and home with me. I thought they were pretty cool in that gross way that children think things are cool. My parents thought they were, for want of a better word, "Ew". They threw them away. Goodbye, teeth.

They've mostly grown back, of course. As I sort of stuffed myself when I was starting puberty I got lots of protein and fat (the latter of which is now slowly burning off quite nicely, thankyou), so I'm still okay in terms of nutrition. I should think so too, considering to keep up with what I need I have to eat around four or five times a day. Sometimes because the jaw isn't aligned correctly it hurts to bite so I'll eat yoghurt a lot.

I went to the Dental Hospital on Friday. The surgeon who will be doing my operation in around a year and a half's time, came to see me. I think this is very good, that they are so well prepared. He was incredibly blunt and straightforward: "There is a seven percent chance that after the operation you will not feel your lower lip; it will be completely numb. There is a one hundred percent chance of  this for the first eight weeks afterwards." I nod and smile; seven percent is enough to worry about, but a numb lip does not affect speech so it wouldn't be that consequential. He, I believe, attempts to scare me: "Of course, there is a chance you will die-" and I say, "but that is tiny." He looks a little miffed but nods. There are about five or six people standing around watching us have this not-so-intimate chat. I am very used to being watched now as I'm a rare case so the students always come and peer while Mr. Harradine (who actually is the head dentist at the Dental Hospital) does his job. But today it was the surgeon's turn to take the limelight first... Or rather mine. As usual.

The surgeon and I talk for a while; do I have any questions? Yes. "How many times have you done this operation before?" "Thousands". It is quite common but my case is unique in that there is so much to be done now to prepare. He feels my face, mentally taking notes on the structure, testing the shape, telling me that this will make me more "classically beautiful", rather than merely less ugly. He explains they will be bringing my face forward (the middle of it) and the lower jaw back, to meet it. This will result in a very different facial shape. I hope that the blog is still running so I can tell you all about it, because I sure as hell won't be able to speak.

He gets up to leave and I thank him for coming to talk to me when he is evidently very busy- he also thaks me, and shakes my hand before walking away at a pace that I thought was near impossible to define as walking. Doctors.

I turn to Nick (Harradine) and say, "Right, what have we got to do today?" I am always to the point and chipper about dental appointments. Yes, they may be long, painful and/or boring. Yes the dental students may take me height and be embarrassed about me knowing so much on this subject, but yes, also, it is important to remember that I am good friends with all my doctors. I joke around with my GP; also called Nick (useful for my Nick file; I now technically know five) and with Mr. H, well... He taught me how to get out of, and put someone in, a headlock. Also useful!

We get to business. I meet a new dentist who will be working on me. The looks on their faces tell me the next step will be very introductory; I am right, they plan to bring me back here on June 10th to insert some springs between my back teeth. By said new dentist; I like her, so it's all good. But then, I like all my dentists. A week later exactly (to the hour) I will be back in the chair for a brace fitting as far as I know- no, I lie, to have a wire fitted which stretches my upper jaw as it is too...thin? It is not wide enough, not to meet with my bottom teeth. The problem I had a child was called crowding (of the teeth). On July 15th I will go back, presumably for full bracing of all my teeth, along with wires, elastics, wax, and (please no) VERY flattering headgear. Cough.

The only bit I really don't look forward to is the having to wear a mouthguard to skate once I have the brace in- but I would rather look stupid wearing a mouthguard than stupid with shitty teeth and a messed up jaw.

After the operation I will be in hospital for around 3 to 5 days. I cannot go to work or school for two to three weeks, at least.

I hope they do it in the holidays or else I'll miss something important like University!

Happy Reading, folks! Wish me luck, there will be pain. And lots of it. :D