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Without braces Steph Parsons experiences more freedom

Steph without her braces. Photo by J. Parsons. Roll over the image to see Steph with braces. Photo by Shayla Towner.

By STEPH PARSONS
fhspress.com Contributor
Posted January 13, 2016

Having braces is such a weird experience. I had mine for 22 months, so practically two years. I got them five days before my birthday in 2013 and got them off on October 1, 2015. It's been three months since I got them off and it's been the best three months ever. I don't have anything cutting my lips and tongue up.

Braces are there to help you get your teeth straightened but braces are only half of it. Now I'm wearing retainers 24/7. Well for six months that is. After six months I get to wear my retainers only at night.

The appointment to get my braces off was very exciting. I was scared that my teeth wouldn't look good and that I wouldn't like my teeth, but I was so excited to finally see how my teeth would turn out. The braces were cool and all but I was ready to get rid of them.

During the appointment I was put in a room by myself. It was kind of scary. When we got underway, my orthodontist popped off the brackets and off came my braces. The wire and everything. After that was when the dentist scraped off all of the glue, or cement, or whatever they used to keep the brackets on my teeth. After that they needed to take pictures of my teeth so that they have before and after pictures. A little while later they had done some cosmetic work on my teeth making my teeth level on the top and bottom. And the appointment was over. My name was even on a board that said congratulations.

The orthodontist asked me if I wanted to keep my brackets. I said no but my mom butted in and took them. I don't know where she keeps them now.

Without braces I can eat everything I wasn't able to eat before. Like popcorn, corn on the cob and much more. The dentist even gave me a bag of candy that I wasn't able to eat for two years. Ironic right?!

Wearing the retainers makes me have a lisp. A really bad lisp. But even with it I am having a great time with out braces. I smile so much more. I no longer get scared about having food stuck in my teeth and I am constantly laughing now. It hurt a lot when I laughed because the way my mouth forms when I laugh, my gums would catch onto my brackets.

I seem to believe I can be the smartest person in the world. Note the sarcasm right there please. Well when I was in Las Vegas for Thanksgiving break this year, I was visiting my grandparents, my family went out to breakfast. Well I went into the bathroom to clean my retainers because I had put them on the table instead of my retainer case. Well when I was cleaning them, one of them dropped. My bottom retainers to be exact. Well when they dropped, they broke. They didn't break enough to have to pay $200 to get them fixed but now it hits my tongue and it kinda hurts now. So that was my smart self.

Having braces was a great experience but not having braces is even better. I love it. My teeth look so good and are straight, finally. Now they stay this straight forever.

steph.parsons@fhspress.com

FOOTHILL HIGH SCHOOL fhspress.com SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA