Here is the before picture:
Wed. Jan 2 - Nash got his retainer. The original retainer they made didn't fit (surprised? Yea, me either.) The original retainer was your typical retainer - pink roof and metal wire around the teeth. It didn't fit because 1-he's missing four teeth on top and 2-the majority of the teeth he does have on top are still baby teeth. So, we sat in the dentist's office while they made a new mold of his teeth (the front teeth that we are trying to fix got broken off the first mold they made when the original retainer was made). The second retainer they created is one that looks like a piece of plastic - seriously. It fits along the top of his mouth and covers all of his top teeth. He can take it out to eat and brush his teeth (and when his mother isn't looking). Dr. Lambert told me that he thought it would only take 3-4 days to move that stubborn tooth to where we wanted it because we had made so much progress with the resin.
Thurs Jan 3 - Nash is complaining about his retainer hurting him. I sympathized with him some. I never had braces or a retainer so I can't say I know how he feels. I kept telling him to buck up and that it was probably just his teeth moving that he could feel.
Friday Jan 4 - Nash is still complaining about his retainer hurting. I finally (mostly in exasperation and to get him to stop whining) tell him to take his retainer out and show me where it's hurting. He had previously told me it was hurting where he's missing teeth so I figured it was pushing teeth forward more than anything. Turns out, the retainer had cut his gums where that piece of skin is that connects his cheek to his gums. Oops. Upon further inspection I notice that it's starting to cut his gums in the same spot on the right side as well. After multiple texts to my sister (and mom) I decided I would try and find some wax they give kids for braces.
Saturday Jan 5 - Fortunately for me, I have many, many family members who have had braces! One such fabulous person is my 14 (or is he 15?) yr old cousin! I called my aunt on Saturday morning and she was able to find some wax that Austin was no longer using since he has recently had his braces taken off. She was kind enough to let us have the wax!
Monday Jan 7 - Today I was able to get Nash an appointment with the dentist. Dr. Lambert was able to file down the retainer on both sides so that it is no longer rubbing on either side of his gums. Dr. Lambert also put a bit more of the resin into the mold to help push Nash's front tooth a little further forward. We have another appointment scheduled for Thursday afternoon and we are crossing our fingers that his tooth has completely moved by then & we will be retainer and resin free!
Thursday Jan 10 - Found out Nash threw his retainer away at school today! I told him he owes the custodian a thank you card for helping him dumpster dive! He didn't realize he'd thrown it away until the end of lunch so they were dumpster diving outside in the big dumpster. Gross! It wasn't even Nash that told me he threw it away! It was a friend of mine who is the secretary at the school. Nash was mortified when I mentioned it! He went back to the dentist today to see if his tooth had moved all the way. Turns out.....it has! He only has to wear his retainer at bedtime now and he only has to do that until the end of January. I did ask the dentist if he was sure the tooth had moved all the way because on the inside side it looks like it hasn't moved all the way over the top of the bottom tooth. Turns out, he's worn his front permanent tooth down. So, the bottom of his tooth is crooked now and will have to be fixed at a later date. But, apparently that's an easy fix. I sure hope so!
Here is the after picture:
No more top tooth behind bottom tooth! He still looks a little goofy because he's missing two teeth on both sides so he only has two teeth and then two very big gaps! You can also see how the bottom of his top tooth has been worn away (top tooth on the left - it's more obvious when you see it in person than it is in this picture).
