This Week in My Mouth, buttoned down edition
So, the last time I was at the orthodontist, he decided there were not already enough hooks in my mouth and so he had the tech "bond a button" (which I just like saying; try it out loud, you'll see) to the inside of one of my lower teeth so we could run rubber bands from it to the outside of my upper braces in a couple of places because it was angled in towards my tongue too much.
Let me emphasize, even further than my feeble italics can achieve, that this is on the inside of one of my lower teeth. Guess where my tongue has spent all its time since then? I am seriously concerned the ol' tongue is going to be misshapen from spending all it's time bending in only one direction.
I have provided some pictures for you to enjoy the full glory of the thing I'm talking about. You can see the "button" there on the left and then a couple of images of how the rubber band attaches to it and then goes around some hooks on my braces. I've actually been wearing this bottom to top rubber band for several weeks now, so the tooth is pretty much upright and not all bent in anymore. So, you know, it works and stuff.
Of course, you cannot really eat with this bottom to top rubber band in place. Food gets in it. It breaks and snaps you in the gum. Whatever. So, wearing it all the time has meant a lot of remembering to carry around the little baggy of rubber bands and the little plastic hook thing they gave me to aid in rubber band manipulation. There have been plenty of days where I've been less than great at that. But, mostly, I've been wearing it all the time, as instructed.
Also, you may note in the pictures that I've finally given in to the constant encouragement of The Hive to try one of the colors of "rubber bands" that go around my brackets on the bottom. Since my first one two and a half years ago, they've wanted me to try the purple and I've been steadfast in choosing the silver (which shows up least against since it looks just like part of the braces mostly. The Hive are cute, persuasive, and united. Hard to fight.