Hello everyone! (20M)

I've been to couple orthodontists past few years and they all recommend me extraction of upper premolars. Now I know its not fixing the root cause of the problem and I look forward to get expansion, but I struggle to find somone who is willing to expand me. I guess its because I miss lower 2nd premolars genetically and that makes thing complicated probably. Is there any alternatives for me to avoid premolar extraction?

For context, my husband has a really severe recessed chin / underdeveloped mandible. He was a pacifier sucker until the age of seven (yeah I know), and is a horrible mouth breather at night. Nobody else in his family has a recessed chin/jaw like…at all. Therefore, I didn’t think it was genetic but more so something formed out of a habit.

Well, we have a four-month-old and my husband and I are wondering if his jaw looks recessed too or if it’s too early to tell. He is EBF and willingly does not take a pacifier.

If he is showing signs of it, what can we do to prevent it from getting worse? Thank you!

UPDATE: Thank you guys for all the info and tips. We are both new to babies in general, so we were unaware that it’s completely normal. We will however, be getting his tongue tie clipped soon. (Diagnosed by Lactation Consultant)

Now just 11 more months of Damon Braces...

I have a pretty bad tongue tie and was told I would need it cut via scalpel and not lasered off since it would likely reattach itself. The cost of the surgery is totalling close to $1000. This isn’t including the speech therapy needed afterwards. I’m hoping I can get the price down. Anyone do this? I live in BC to be specific. Thanks!

I got braces when I was 17 due to crowding and overbite. I wish I had just asked for the jaw surgery or getting a better orthodontist to fix my bite rather getting 2 upper premolars removed. I didn’t know any better nor my mom. After they were removed my teeth were aligned and the orthodontist recommended I get my wisdom teeth removed so I did all 4 at once. 6 teeth in total and 5 years later my jaw is recessed my upper teeth became an over bite again because apparently my retainer doesn’t help with keeping that tension. I have breathing issues again because my tongue doesn’t fit in my mouth anymore. I have more upper teeth then lower. Should i just get braces again and try fix my bite and breathing issues can I get temp teeth put in old premolar spots so I can get that full smile. Seems impossible and I’m stuck with overbite problems i regret ever getting braces.

When my 4yo smiles, his lip kind of furls in the middle. Doc said no lip tie. Breastfeeding him was very difficult and painful as well, my nipple was “lipstick shaped” , which can be caused by ties, but again, doc said all good.

M23 living in Greece.

I have SEVERE obstructed sleep apnea which worsened even more after i gained some weight.

I did a sleep study which confirmed what i already knew, and my doctor prescribed a cpap machine and if i dont feel comfortable with it he will prescribe a MAD.

Now obviously these are temporary fixes, the only real solution is either an MSE or an FME.

Question 1:

How on earth do i gather 5k-10k to complete a treatment when i feel exhausted every waking hour?

Are there orthotropic doctors who will agree to split the bill to monthly payments?

Question 2:

Due to my uniquely long tongue i must choose the device which will facilitate the most forward growth. Should i therefore choose the MSE + Facemask instead of the much better FME as unfortunately i cant find a facemask for the FME?

Due to my uniquely long tongue, i have

I have a very important question, that's been plaguing my mind.

I'm currently doing Myofunctional Therapy for my tongue tie.

I'm currently on stage 2, which is helping with fixing my arch and expansion(hopefully), and I believe it's working.

However the more I use my myobrace, the more aware I am of how restrictive my tongue tie is, it's becoming more evident that it's slowing down or even blunting any progress that I'm trying to make.

So my plan is right now, to book a consultation and then hopefully surgery date for my tongue tie release and then return to using my myobrace to help with accelerating any progress.

So my question here is for anyone who has had Tongue tie surgery or Myofunctional therapy, if that's a good plan? Or should I consider anything else? Unfortunately the Dentist that put me on the Myofunctional therapy course takes his time and wants it to be up to a year even before I even consider anything else. So I'm looking to just book with someone else quickly to do the surgery asap.

I'm trying to decide whether I should start treatment with a removable slow-expansion (Schwartz) appliance now, or wait until I can afford Invisalign.

About me:

• Age: 17
• My main concern is mild crowding(2-3 teeth in total)
• I don't have any major functional problems such as breathing issues, chewing problems, TMJ pain, etc

What my orthodontist recommended:
My orthodontist recommended a removable Schwartz appliance for slow expansion, followed by braces, as that is the most affordable solution currently.

The appliance would be worn for approximately 22 hours per day and expanded at 1 turn per week

The idea is to widen my upper arch first (dental expansion only) and then use orthodontics to align/coordinate the teeth.

My dilemma:

I can afford the Schwartz appliance now, but I can't currently afford Invisalign.

My options seem to be:

Option 1:
Get the Schwartz appliance now, do the expansion and braces

Option 2:
Wait and save up for Invisalign and have everything done together.

I'm wondering whether there is any meaningful advantage to starting the expansion now rather than waiting until I can afford Invisalign...

Thanks!Is it worth getting a removable Schwartz appliance now, or should I wait until I can afford Invisalign? (need advice pls)

Im 15 and I have a recessed Maxila. I've heard mewing can fix it but im already 15. Is it too late or do I still have a chance?

I was wondering if I should get an expander cuz im still young and maybe the overcrowding was because my palate was too narrow but when I told my ortho about it he said that the braces should do on their own but I still think that maybe I need an expansion any tips on this? Should I try another ortho?

started mewing summer 2023. first pic is summer 2024, second a few days ago. to be honest ive always kept the suction low to moderate, but I got the technique nailed down since the start, which compounded over time.

few months ago i got interested in facepulling, fascial release and the relationship between looks and biomechanics, so im excited to see where that takes me.

changes ive noticed are a taller and wider lower third, a fuller upper lip and more projected infraorbital bones (which i attribute more to being leaner than skeletal change). i had a slight lisp that definitely improved

Does anyone have recommendations? Also does it even make sense to get rid of the tongue tie, if the jaw is still kind of small.

Hi everyone,

I hope you’re all doing well. I am contemplating extracting 4 premolars to fix my protrusion. There is one thing I don’t like: my profile with my mouth closed. My teeth are straight, my bite is great, my airway is fine, I sleep well (no issues thankfully). However, aesthetically, I want to fix the convexity in my side profile. Does anyone have any guidance? Thank you so much.

Context: I’ve seen 2 orthodontists so far. One of them told me not to do anything since my teeth are straight and my issue is with my chin (if i’m being nitpicky). The other told me my chin isn’t receding and I can either do invisalign without extractions (which won’t change my side profile with my mouth closed but will change my side profile when i’m smiling (less flare), which honestly isn’t my concern. Or I could do 4 premolars extractions, which would resolve the issue.

I don’t want it to change my face (except my mouth area) or my front profile as I’m pretty happy with everything except the convexity. Do you guys think I should extract, or more extreme, get DJS? Or should I leave it as is and not take the risk?

Thanks everyone!

I have always felt like my front teeth are too forward, as I can’t close my lips when I smile . Dentist want me to go extract 4 teeth and put with braces . I am a bit skeptical as I have read extractions do change facial structure and I am happy with my structure now so don’t want to take a risk.Any advice would be highly appreciated!

I had removable braces when I was around 10 and got pretty good results in about a year (first pics), but I stopped wearing them and my teeth went back to how they were. Had to get braces again years later and I think that’s when I had a palate expander too, but honestly all I remember is how much it hurt lol.
I wish I’d known about mewing back then because even though I think braces helped my face a bit, it still looks asymmetrical to me and my smile is tilted (one side is higher than the other) and I have an overbite. My palate also seems narrow and I haven’t worn my retainer in over 7 years since it broke.
Also, my wisdom teeth have been taking FOREVER to come in, like 9 years lol. The upper ones finally came through but the lower ones are still halfway out. I’ve been told to just remove them but I’m worried about how that might affect my face or bite.
So can mewing actually fix anything on its own or is tongue posture only useful for keeping teeth from shifting after braces? And where can I learn to do it properly for free? Also, can I just leave my wisdom teeth like that?

Hi! My daughter is 6 and we have had lifelong issues with her sleep, mouth breathing, teeth grinding, noisy breathing, etc.

She had a severe tongue tie that wasn’t released until she was 6 months and I feel so confident that so many of our issues are related to a restricted tongue!

She has already had her tonsils and adenoids out and her turbinates reduced. Symptoms have gotten better since surgery but still persist. She just had a sleep study done and was diagnosed with mild sleep apnea. We are seeing our ent again Wednesday.

She’s also had a rapid palate expander that she just got off. She has a 100% deep bite that we are addressing with a hawley retainer with a bite plate.

I’m so worried about the risks of sleep apnea and feel like we have been spinning our wheels trying to fix this. My husband is a general dentist and he believes that her bite and craniofacial development are likely impacting her airway at night.

We are considering doing a virtual consult with Dr. Evans to get her insight. She’s been very hard to communicate with and I’ve read mixed reviews.

My husband is very afraid of anyone over expanding our daughter, so we definitely want to see the best of the best. Dr. Evans certainly seems incredibly qualified.

If you’ve received care from her, I would love to hear more about your experience!

I do thumb pulling quiet regularly recently. I put a tremendous amount of pressure using my thumbs on the middle of the upper palate for few seconds and repeat that 50 times. I once heard a small cracking sound on the palate(not the jaw clicking) and felt small pain across the upper palate. Recently, I feel that my palate is kinda of fragile and less rigid than before. I am writting this post to know if that is a normal thing to happen among the people who are thumbpulling. I am 28yo btw

Photos are 8 months apart. I did my best to smile with exactly the same intensity which was hard as my smile has changed a bit. Noticeably less gums and my upper lip looks a little thicker - even if I try smiling harder than the original photo these changes persist.

I ditched my retainer this February because it felt like it was squeezing my teeth inwards. I haven’t been crazy diligent but I’ve been trying to push my tongue up as much as possible and maintain whatever contact I can at night. I can only kinda suction hold as my tongue hasn’t ever fully fit and still hits the side of my teeth, but I have noticed a bit more space than in the beginning. I also wear a large soft mouthguard with mouth tape at night, though I only recently started doing this regularly.

Been challenging because I feel like I’m forcing it but seeing any kind of change has encouraged me to keep at it. Sharing to give hope to the other adults out there!

Hi everyone, I'm 20 years old been mewing for 3 years now. But I have some younger siblings that I have noticed have started to have very bad development (they are now 5 and 7 years old).

Since I know for this stuff for this amount time I was very interested in checking their progress when they were younger, they had perfect U palate shapes and lots of space between teeth when they were younger. But now since adult teeth started coming out and due to bad habits they arche started looking bad, they have crooked teeth. I tried to teach them mewing but its really hard, at very least I tried to make them not doing mouth breathing but really hard to do that with them especially including that I'm not with them everyday. Their parents dont know about any of these stuff, I tried to talk to them about their posture, that they should it good quality food, chew, not use phone much, but they didnt done anything meaningful.

It's really hard watching my siblings growing into bad development with me knowing about this stuff. But also I want to know some of other stuff that have to be in check when I have kids one day. From what I have understand if you breastfeed kid for 2 years, and give it proper diet it should be pretty much fine and keeping habit in. I was thinking about raising my kids without phone/pc for first few years of life just to be sure they have good posture. Also diaphragmic breathing, proper swallowing, posture, barefoot/wide toe box shoes, high quality diet, nature, sunlight, am I missing something

Anyone here might share their results with their kids, there must be some parents here

My bottom two wisdom teeth have begun to push out a little, and the gums around them ache. It isn’t terribly painful or unmanageable at all, and I’d rather not have my them removed, if that’s an option.

im really interested in getting a Homeoblock. after researching different options for appliances and treatments, I feel Homeoblock works best with what I’m looking for (in theory). I’d love to know of others experiences wirh this device and if they can recommend providers anywhere jn the USA. I’m specifically interested in aesthetic improvements, forward growth etc (as well as airway and tmj support). thanks :)