Metal Mouth Confession

I'm blogging because i am obligated to update on past events ever since the not-so-popular Manage Your Money post. well, will prioritize events and attempt to keep it as short as possible so as to not waste the precious time of my loyal readers - which i can name only a few such as Davin, Fabian, Shireen and Nasa. Here goes.

First important event that happened was i got braces fixed on my teeth. It is under the directive of Mr Tomi Entaban, who requests for straight teeth prior to marriage. well, im just using it as an excuse. i happen to come from a deprived childhood - Teenagehood where all my close friends had braces during secondary school days and i didnt get them for two reasons, one being it was too expensive to go to a private Orthodontist and i was too lazy to wait for Government's help. so i am up to the idea of dedicating 2 years of my life to constant pain and discomfort and not to mention forgoing the experience of biting on an apple, guava or other items that require me to use my front set of teeth. and not forgetting increased frequency of brushing my teeth and longer mealtimes.

so lunchtime during work days is dedicated to only Eating, which takes up almost 1 hour of my time and i have to get back to the office 5 minutes earlier if i have a meeting right after lunch because i take about 5 minutes to brush my teeth and make my braces sparkly clean again. as weird as it seems. i actually enjoy brushing my teeth and keeping them braces shiny and food-free. so i dont really mind the hassle. but i have yet to get used to the embarrassment of brushing my teeth at shopping malls after meals should i be there for long hours in a day. so my new addition to a growing list of "items i cant leave home without" is a braces toothbrush - different from the normal toothbrush as it has a curved middle to fit the braces and its already fraying, showing the signs of frequent use and im attempting to prolong its lifespan by brushing lighter than i am already. also, an Interdental toothbrush which looks like a miniature milk bottle brush to clean between the brackets. and toothpaste of course.

then there's also the once-every-morning-and-night mouthwash and floss for braces - the normal floss just splits when i use them between the wires (obviously). to benefit the readers who have absolutely no experience whatsoever with braces or even knowing someone close enough to describe of their experiences, it actually looks like a finer version of those sparklers that kids burn as fireworks and all one did with it was to twirl it around and round and look at the flame until it forms an after-light in your eyes way after you took your eyes off it. hope i am making sense.

well about the cost, its RM5k for the entire treatment, which i paid RM1.5k during my first appointment and the remaining amount i pay RM200 every visit for the next 17months. the entire duration of treatment is about 2 years, depending on "how obedient your teeth are at moving" - i quote from Esther. i told the dentist to speed things up as "i wanted to get married in 2 years time". Why the large sum of money? well i happen to go to a renowned Orthodontist which is conveniently located right opposite my office. i was considering cheaper alternatives around Klang area but i opted for David Specialist Orthodontist because i didnt want to spend my entire saturday waiting around with a bunch of people at the dentist every once a month. at David's i can go during lunchtime and i can go every 3 weeks once to speed up the process.

wait i havent finished justifying why i needed braces. well according to the RM60 consultation that i paid for prior to fixing those braces, i begin by explaining that my front set of teeth is not aligned with each other. one with perfect set of front teeth are those that have both their upper and lower 2 front teeth rightly connected with each other where there would be a straight line from top to bottom. then there's my front set - upper and lower teeth actually slants forward instead of being adjacent to my jaw. then there's my left inner teeth which is not functionally correct in terms of having a right "bite". to explain, its like youre supposed to have interconnecting upper and lower teeth to grind food properly.

plus, all my adult molars need to be extracted. and the bottom two are actually growing horizontally into my current set of teeth. thats really uncomfortable even now so having braces on isnt much difference in terms of the pain that i have already been feeling ever since i was in India. those bottom two need surgery where, the dr explained, a flap in the flesh need to be cut and the teeth destroyed into smaller pieces before extracting the root out. it will cost me RM500 per tooth. so that will come from my ING insurance. meaning i can operate once a year because i am entitled to rm500 on dental per year. it is better than Esther's where its rm200 for dental and optical. funny how these people compensate their employees.

as i write, Soo is still recovering from a similar surgery, took her 1.5 hours to remove but the root was left in the mouth because it was just too difficult to get it out. and her mouth was swollen after the procedure and shes baby-fooding for the next week, meaning we all have to eat baby food as well since we split weekly groceries and shopping at my house.speaking of which,i save quite a bit on food after moving into the house at Taman Bahagia and not to mention healthier, giving me opportunities to perfect my humble cooking skills. i specialise in "cincai" cooking. trial and error for those unfamiliar with the terms. and am always looking for people who are willing to give my cooking a try. as cliche as it sounds "seeing people enjoying my cooking motivates me to cook more and better" haha.

i suppose thats about all i have on braces. between now and my next appointment on Nov 15th, i am attempting to eat as much as possible because post tightening, i will be unable to chew for about 1-2 days, leaving me really pissed and hungry from only filling my stomach with porridge and oats. i get pissed because im hungry and unable to eat anything else. well to conclude, this experience is making me really appreciate everything i eat. in terms of enjoying the experience of eating, despite my teeth being terribly inefficient in grinding food as there's a whole lot of treasure hunting in my mouth between a few mouthfuls of food since a whole lot will get stuck between the brackets - tiny metal things stuck to each of my teeth, except the 4 incisors - dracula teeth that may or may not be extracted, depending on "how well my teeth moves".

i still owe a blog on my recently started hobby of running. will keep that in my obligation list. if there ever was a term in the first place. so much for keeping it short and sweet:S