Using Orthodontics to reinvent Kim's smile:

Part 2

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My kids were learning about puberty in school this week. One of their assignments was to ask their parents about what it is like to be grown up. My response jokingly was that I don't feel grown up because I just got braces! So now I am known as the mom with braces. I had to reflect on what it's like to be a grown up with braces? I am not embarrassed or self-conscious about wearing them. It is so short term (a few months). I focus more on the long-term outcome – my soon to be beautiful white teeth and smile – than the short-term inconvenience of wearing braces.

When the braces were first put on, it felt strange to have something foreign on my teeth. I have to be vigilant about the how and what I eat. For example, I can't bite anything hard with my front teeth. At the beginning, I ate a lot of smoothies, egg white omelets, pasta and soft rather than solid foods because I was scared that I'd otherwise break the wires or brackets. A good side effect to braces is that I lost those nagging 5 pounds of winter weight! And I am already starting to see my teeth shift! Stay tuned as I report more progress soon.