Braces

Yesterday, I went for a dental consultation to decide if I should do Invisalign. If you do not already know, Invisalign is a type of clear retainers that are changed monthly to slowly straighten the teeth, and is a prettier and less painful alternative to braces. Also, they can be conveniently removed anytime on your own, to ease eating, etc.

I have never considered braces, because I always felt that braces are not only ugly, they are painful too. My teeth is not perfect, but it looks okay in photos and it's not really very crooked nor does it affect my smile, so I never felt that it was necessary.

However, I realize that although my face looks okay frontal, my side view is terrible because my mouth is protruding due to my slight overbite. I look horrible in candid photos because of this reason. I thought that Invisalign can help push in the teeth so I was very excited and thought that it can help make me prettier!

But after the consultation, I was told that Invisalign is unable to help aesthetically in what I want to achieve. To get the results I want, I have to extract two teeth and wear traditional braces. I have a choice of getting ceramic braces which are less visible (metal ones are a huge no-no for me), but I still think that the pain will be terrible and the braces would be very inconvenient for me. Will be quite difficult to eat food like my favourite bbq chicken wing right? Plus, during the period that my braces are on, my lips would probably be even more protruding! It takes at least 1.5 years to 2 years, so I'm not sure if all that trouble is worth it? My job doesn't require me to be pretty, so I do all these for what? Sounds like a big sacrifice for nothing. Can someone tell me that braces is really more pros than cons?

I am also reluctant to remove two proper teeth at the side because they are still working fine and the only reason for the extraction is to push the front teeth in. But the thought of having two big gaps for some time sounds super ugly! 

Sigh, if only Invisalign could achieve the result I want! But if Invisalign really cannot help push my front tooth in, I also don't want to waste time! Does anyone here have any advice? I always feel troubled by my protruding side view but does beauty really matter? I am already 23 this year and 24 next year. By the time I'm done with braces, I would be 26. Does beauty still matter at 26 years old for a normal office girl like me? Is it worth it to potentially look ugly and feel discomfort during my prime age of 24 - 26 just to have nicer teeth at 26?  It's not like my teeth is very crooked now. Opinions please?

Anyway, during the consultation, I learnt that my 4 wisdom tooth are out already! One of them is growing side ways instead of upwards but surprisingly it doesn't hurt at all from that side! But it will create trouble in the future so I guess I will have it removed. The one that is hurting me now is another side, which will require surgery. I am so afraid! I was hoping and hoping that my wisdom tooth would be straight and not require any extractions but sadly, all four are not growing correctly! Should I remove it one at a time or two at a time? 

Oh, and for everyone's info, my pain treshold is extremely low. And I am afraid of everything. Do leave a comment here via Imotiv or on twitter or on Dayre or email me (the-ice-angel@hotmail.com) ! Thanks!