I must say – the person I never thought I’d have to worry about with their teeth was Emma. She has the straightest little baby teeth you’ll ever see in your whole life. And with a brother that sucks his thumb still, he was always the talk of “someday you’ll have to have braces” discussions. Little did we know what was brewing under the surface.
Already, 1/2 way through second grade, she’s only lost 3 baby teeth. They took forever to come out too. She lost the 1st 2 within a couple of minutes of each other. And in that space we only got 2 adult teeth. Her top 2 center baby teeth have been wiggly since September. And I’d guess at this time they are only 1/2 way to coming out.
Our dentist told us at our checkups in Jan that we should probably have an orthodontist look at her teeth. He was worried about crowding. She has NO space between any of her baby teeth.
Side note – Aidan, resident thumb sucker, has no teeth problems. Five years of sucking his thumb and his bite is perfectly lined up. Figures.
I took her in and we found the massive problem brewing underneath her gums. The next adult teeth on the bottom (incisors?) are turned back under her gums and over her 1st adult canines. And the other adult canines/molars are bunching up as well. The top ones are straight for now but probably headed the same direction. Her top 2 that have been loose for so long – well, they have no root left. Essentially they are just wedged into her very crowded teeth.
She has gone in to have a mouth mold done. We are going to have 9 baby teeth pulled – the 4 front ones on top, and on the bottom – 3 on one side and 2 on the other (remember, she lost 3, so that will even her up). I think on the bottom she’ll only have molars left. The are making an appliance for the bottom that will keep her molars from sliding forward once the teeth are removed.
Then we wait – wait for the adult teeth to come in and see how bad the damage is. Most likely she will need braces on the bottom to correct the problem that is already there. I’m praying God works a miracle and her teeth straighten up as they come in. They will just continue monitoring, pulling teeth as required.
Most likely she will need adult teeth pulled as well. He said he can use some things to give her some better spacing, but not enough to make room for all her adult teeth. Then probably another round of braces when she’s about 12.
So next week we begin pulling teeth. We’ll go in 2-3 session, depending on how she does. Nitrous will be involved most likely since some still have roots. That could provide some good entertainment. We’ll post pics of her after the teeth are pulled. I’m wondering what she’s going to eat. Hmm…..
And we’ll keep praying that Aidan quits sucking his thumb and his teeth stay straight.
