First Person: Perfect teeth are nearly impossible, but I don’t regret the effort

I’d been sitting in the same orthodontist chair for the last six years of my life. But that morning in May, I knew I was going to leave with a new identity. After wearing braces for four years, the experience of running my tongue across my naked teeth without slicing it felt euphoric.

That high was short lived. It turns out, I had become fixated on perfecting my teeth. I started to notice smaller issues. For instance my gums are uneven, a certain tooth is more exposed. While I finally achieved a longtime dream of straight teeth, I kept chasing dental perfection that is impossible to naturally achieve.

Before undergoing dental treatment, I assumed braces’ purpose was to make teeth look pleasing, I was unaware of the pain that I would experience.

When my dentist first mentioned that my crooked teeth would need braces, elementary school me was excited to choose the colour of my elastics. I thought I needed braces for cosmetic reasons, but it turned out to be for functional reasons as well.

I was cursed with a small jaw, very stubborn teeth and an overbite. My front teeth fell out on their own when I was around six years old, but the rest wouldn’t budge. I faced my first dental challenge in middle school: the expander and retainer.

The constant pressure of the metal expander pushing on opposite sides of my jaw was very uncomfortable. Every time they were tightened, I was unable to eat solid food for a while.

My biggest regret was being irresponsible with my retainer. I forgot that it existed and would rarely wear it, which delayed the process.

When I was 14 years old, I had my first procedure. Like a true dental nightmare, I got seven baby teeth manually extracted, and I was awake the entire time.

Toothless and tired, I accepted defeat. When I was 16 years old, I had my full set of braces. I never got to choose the colour of my elastics because I had self litigating braces. There were clips on each bracket holding the wire instead of the elastics.

I was unaware of the insecurity I would experience because of my train tracks. I stopped smiling with my teeth because I hated attracting attention to them, and I hated how they looked in pictures.

Kiana Lovegrove, a 2024 graduate from the dental assistant program at Algonquin College is familiar with dental struggles from a personal and professional perspective.

“I believe I was around eight, I was first consulted by an orthodontist, and they said I would need braces, an expander, and double jaw surgery,” said Lovegrove.

Lovegrove had her braces since 2021, she is in the waiting process for the double jaw surgery and genioplasty.

“In July of 2023, I got my Surgically Assisted Rapid Palatal Expansion. (SARPE), So they cut my palate in half, and put the whole expander in,” said Lovegrove.

As if my mouth wasn’t already dysfunctional, my jaw started to click when I did daily tasks like talking, eating and yawning. One of my worst fears happened not long after, I wasn’t able to fully open my mouth.

I attended physiotherapy for a few weeks. Spoiler alert, it didn’t work so I gave up.

“Jaw issues happens most often in young people because their bodies are still growing,” said Ihor Kurilchenko, a dentist from Ukraine with 10 years of experience. “The lower jaw, continues to grow throughout life, but the most active phase is from 18-21 years old.”

Kurilchenko is completing a NDEB equivalency process as a dental assistant so he could get his dental license to practice in Canada.

“When teeth change their position, they begin to overlap each other and the bite changes significantly in that moment,” said Kurilchenko. “This problem will go away on its own when the teeth are in the correct position.”

My jaw unlocked on its own a week before I was scheduled for another fully conscious surgery.

My left canine tooth was incorrectly positioned inside my gums. I knew there was a second procedure awaiting me, the surgery to expose the buried tooth.I became well acquainted with needles and numbing gel because most procedures required my teeth to be drastically and painfully shifted.

Some torturous years later, all of my teeth were reunited and I was starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel. That light disappeared the moment I started wearing elastics.

With a similar fate as my retainer, I barely wore my elastics and it was never a part of my routine.

“One thing people don’t realize is having any kind of orthodontic treatment is a lifelong commitment,” said Lovegrove “Your teeth are going to want to shift back to their original state, they have muscle memory.”

Elastics were preventing me from achieving my goal, so I forced myself to wear them. Ten days before my 20th birthday, I got my braces removed, I feared that I wouldn’t recognize myself.

After wearing braces for the last fifth of my life, I felt like an imposter in my own body without them. It took me a week to become used to my new teeth, and I learned how to smile again…with teeth.

Like a full circle moment, I have to wear retainers to keep my teeth from shifting back to their original formation. So far, it has been half a year since I started wearing them, and I am proud to consistent.

Even with all the procedures and appliances, my teeth aren’t perfect. My gums are messed up, I’ve had cavities fixed and I feel nervous in the dentist’s chair.

“It is impossible to cure a person 100 per cent,” said Kurilchenko. “According to statistics, the best correctly administered treatment is endodontics, with approximately 92-95 per cent success rate.”

This process taught me that my teeth need more attention and care compared to other people. They are a part of me and I accept it, my teeth are good enough for me.