Back story

So perhaps the best place to start is before I first started checking out orthodontists.

As a kid, I never saw a dentist. My dad had his entire top row of teeth removed as a teen (abscessed) and my mom's teeth appeared to be relatively healthy. We didn't have the spare change or dental coverage until I was 15, which is when I finally had my first visit with the dentist. Shortly thereafter, I had four impacted wisdom teeth removed and about 12 to 16 fillings, located in all of my molars, one incisor, and one bi-cuspid. More recently, I had a root canal, crown lengthening, and crown put on my lower right molar (#31, maybe?) after fracturing the tooth on an M&M. During that ordeal, my other lower molar on the opposite side started hurting as the substantial filling started giving way. Cue a second root canal and crown.

So that's my dental history. I had been given recommendations and urgings in the past to get braces by nearly every dentist I saw, but again, didn't have the extra cash. Now that I've finished my undergraduate degree and have completed the two above-mentioned root canal/crowns, I'm ready for braces.

So, I hope I'll keep this updated with both photos and text. After all of the dental work I've had done, I'm somewhat fascinated by teeth and things that can be done to and with them. Besides, reading about other peoples' experiences really answered some questions and concerns I had, so I hope I can do the same.