I continued to add $100 a month to it, and nicknamed it my facelift fund. I've hit the age I thought I might indulge in a facelift, but my taste for surgery was extinguished by a run-in with breast cancer and subsequent reconstructive surgery. I now know that despite what a surgeon may tell you, body parts that have had surgery are never the same and that it's probably better to leave them alone unless they are threatening to kill you. So the facelift fund continued to grow.
In the past few years the facelift fund has morphed into the dental fund. I have had one dental disaster after another. Last year I had had 3 root canals and crowns. That is way more time in a dentist chair than I would ever choose to spend. The only bright spot was that I didn't have to wonder how I was going to pay for it all.
Having gotten past the root canals and crowns I have been really pleased with how my new teeth look. I had some orthodonture as a child, but it was not extensive and over the years I'm not sure it all stayed put. My children both have lovely teeth and I had wished my teeth were as wonderful. Still it's not unusual for people of my generation to not have perfect teeth, so I could live with them.
I was born without two lateral incisors. This worked out well when my parent contemplated orthodontics for me because my teeth were not overcrowded. At the time that I didn't have much in the way of teeth straightening it was mentioned that I might have the teeth that occupied the place of my incisors my canine teeth, reshaped to look like lateral incisors, I don't think that appealed to my parents so it was left undone.
At my last teeth cleaning I was telling my dentist how much I liked my new lower crowns and he said, why didn't I consider having the canine teeth reshaped. Thanks to the Bernanke put - the action of the Federal Reserve that kept interest rates low and encouraged money to flow into the stock market, pumping up prices and the S&P index -
my facelift/dental fund has held up through the prior dental work.
my facelift/dental fund has held up through the prior dental work.
With my sister's wedding coming up I decided to take action.
This is my before picture. Whatever correction my orthodontist did to my bite is history, at this point I have a nightguard and that helps mitigate the misalignment damage.
The lower teeth are the new crowns, the central incisors are natural. You can see that the two next to my front teeth are pointy. Normally they'd be further back in my mouth.
The lower teeth are the new crowns, the central incisors are natural. You can see that the two next to my front teeth are pointy. Normally they'd be further back in my mouth.
My dentist ran a simulation and gave me the full option - reshape the canines and straighten the two front teeth. After all these years with the two slightly crooked front teeth the straightened front teeth looked funny to me. A little too long and thin.
Option two, is just the two side teeth reshaped, leaving the two front teeth slightly crooked.
Given that my dental luck is not good I may have the opportunity to have the front teeth restored later. I hope not!
So here I am, Right now they're just temporary crowns. The one on the left is a little shorter than the right because my front teeth aren't straight and they sit at a different angle. I like that because it looks real to me.
I went out to the dental lab and a fellow with a decidedly artistic bend matched me up to some color charts. The top part of the crowns will be a lighter tan/gray opaque tone, while the lower part will be more translucent with -and this was a surprise- a slight orange tone. I guess I'll match my glasses.
I'm pleased with how they look already and I love the idea that the permanent ones will match my imperfect front teeth.
At this point in life it's not about being perfect, it's about being the best me that I can muster. That pleases me. Who needs a facelift when they have photoshop?
