Okay, so why a site called Orthodontist Charlotte NC and why should you listen to what I have to say?

One of the most popular searches for orthodontists in North Carolina happens to be Orthodontist Charlotte NC.  Since I have a good understanding of how search engines work, I was excited to find out that my dad’s internet marketing company was able to negotiate the purchase of the premium domain name containing these popular search words.  This often searched for phrase is ideal for any single orthodontist or group practice.

It just so happens that I have a lot of experience with orthodontics in the Charlotte NC area, as I am a former hockey player who has had to go through a couple of rounds of braces.  My experiences taught me a lot about the profession as well as how to properly care for my teeth.

Growing up in  Minnesota, I was exposed to hockey at a very early age.  I started skating at four years old, and played competitively until I was 18 years old.  Unlike many of my friends, my teeth remained relatively perfect until I was 17, but before we get to that, let me explain the first time I had braces.

As many of you may know, it is typical to be referred to an orthodontist from your family dentist around the age of 10-14 years of age.  Dentists can visualize current problems, and likely predict tooth placement, which makes it the perfect time to make corrections before teeth become even more complicated.  In my case I was referred to the dentist due to a minor under bite at the age of 12, even though my teeth were perfectly straight.  My parents thought they were lucky because of my reasonable alignment, but scheduled an appointment with a local orthodontist in our area.  After fully examining my mouth, jaw, alignment, and bite, he recommended that I receive braces for a minimum of two years.

Within a year of receiving my braces my father was transferred to Charlotte NC, which meant I would also be seeing a new orthodontist.  Upon my first appointment, the new orthodontist reviewed the orthodontic treatment plan that my previous doctor had set in motion.  In his expert opinion, he believed that an error was made assessing my bite, and the braces were not doing as much as they could be doing.  This meant a minimum of two more years of having the braces on my teeth.  At 11 years old it wasn’t the end of the world, and in the end I would have a perfect bite and set of teeth.

Well, three total years went by relatively quickly, and I went in for the removal of my braces.  The relief I felt when they were removed was amazing, as I had forgotten what a nuisance the older style of braces could be.  The transition was quick and painless, and my parents were happy that my orthodontics experience was coming to a close.

The next day my father and I drove up north for a hockey tournament, three hours in all.  Upon the first face-off, the left winger on my side cross-checked me in the mouth and shattered my bottom three teeth.  I instantly felt the bits and pieces of my teeth, and went into a rage knowing how much time and money my parents had spent making my teeth perfect.  So we got into a fist fight, and I was actually ejected from the two day tournament, and this was only a minute into the game. … pure disappointment.

Upon returning to Charlotte, I had to make an appointment with a dentist, orthodontist, and endodontist(root canal specialist) for the game plan to repair my teeth.  We tried to keep all of our appointments within Charlotte, but the best doctors were about thirty minutes from our house.  This appointment and schedule delay allowed for two serious abscesses to set in, and two teeth ended up with root canals.  Following the root canals and the crowns that were put on my teeth, they also noticed the alignment of one of the teeth was severely off.  Due to the recent happenings, my parents decided that I should have this repaired when I was finished playing hockey, just in case something similar happened again.

A number of years later I stopped playing hockey, and prior to going to college outside of Charlotte, I went to see the Charlotte orthodontist again.  While the cost of braces had seemed to come down, I didn’t want to wear the same metal braces I wore at 10 years old.  Fortunately, the Charlotte orthodontist that I was seeing offered the new invisalign technology, and in my case the teen invisalign system.  This would allow me to have a completely different experience, and properly align my teeth and realign my jaw.

My experience with invisalign invisible braces was amazing.  They didn’t affect they way I spoke, I barely noticed them, and the only tough part was the fact that they cost a little more.  However, I felt liberated and did not feel embarrassed at all when I entered college for the first time.  Not every Charlotte NC orthodontist offers the invisalign invisible braces technology, but I highly recommend them if your doctor offers them.

Now here comes the worst part.  Shortly after entering college, a few of my teeth began to hurt.  They were mainly the ones on the side of my mouth, and the only way to make them feel better was to have cold water against them.  I knew this meant that there was potential for another root canal, but didn’t understand how this could be, as I had been taking such great care of my teeth, even wearing my retainer every evening as recommended.

Well I found out that my hockey playing days were coming back to haunt me once again.  For some reason my teeth were extremely sensitive to trauma, and some of my teeth were slowly dying due to the previous trauma from pucks, sticks, and fists.  So each time a tooth was opened, it had a dry socket, and did not actually contain any pulp, and they were not the result of any dental cavities.  Not only that, but one of the teeth actually had a cracked root, which allowed an infection to set into my jaw, and I had to have a separate surgery to clear it out.

After two more surgeries, the dentist put on the final two crowns, however the ordeal didn’t end there.  Due to the change in tooth placement and structure, I had to revisit my orthodontist in Charlotte NC to have him attempt to realign the recent repairs.  I felt extremely lucky when I found out that my current retainer would do a decent enough job at realignment, although he expected it could take another year before my jaw fully aligned.

While I might be one of the best patients an orthodontist in Charlotte North Carolina could ever ask for, I feel great that I had access to such wonderful care.  Whether you are in the South Park, Huntersville, Matthews, Pineville or other towns near Charlotte, make sure you see a doctor approved by the American Board of Orthodontics, or the American Association of Orthodontics.

While I may have had serious amounts of trauma that created most of my problems, I believe seeing a cosmetic orthodontist is a wonderful idea for anyone who wants to feel better about their teeth and about themselves.  Don’t wait years for orthodontic treatment or to have your oral health evaluated.  Take the time to find the best Charlotte orthodontist in the area, and truly look into the possibility of using the invisalign braces technology.

I hope that Orthodontist Charlotte NC can be a huge help in your search for a quality local orthodontist by saving you many hours of research time. It is also my goal  to periodically post articles and videos here about orthodontics, and to actually recommend highly qualified and capable orthodontists here in the Charlotte area who  keep up with the latest innovations in dental care.  I speak from experience when I say it is really worth the time and the money to find the right orthodontist.  I hope that you enjoy this site, and I welcome your comments.

Orthodontist Charlotte NC takes a look at what an Orthodontist can do for you!

Are you an adult in need of braces?  Orthodontist Charlotte NC explores what is available for you.

I have a lot of experience with orthodontics in Charlotte NC area, as I am an adult and the proud wearer of braces.  Orthodontist Charlotte NC wants to share a common situation why many wait later in life to get braces. 

I grew up in a low income family, and braces were simply out of the question.  My teeth were far from straight, but I had to live with them.  When my friends at school teased me and called me ‘crooked mouth,’ I couldn’t do anything about it.  I learned to smile with my lips closed so as not to draw attention to my teeth.  As I grew into a teenager, my self-esteem was low, even though I was a straight A student.  I was embarrassed to stand in front of my classmates to give any kind of speech.  I thought all they were looking at was my teeth.  After I married and my husband and I moved to this area, a friend mentioned to me that these days it wasn’t uncommon for adults to get braces.  That’s when my search began for an orthodontist in Charlotte NC, one who specialized in adult braces.  My search led me to the new invisalign system, which in turn led me to start this new website, Orthodontist Charlotte NC.  I knew I was not the only adult interested in braces and that this website could benefit them, as well as children and teenagers.

Not all Charlotte NC orthodontists offer the invisalign invisible braces, but I highly recommend them.  They are amazing and virtually painless.  They don’t affect the way I speak, and most people don’t even notice them.  My teeth are straighter and I can smile with confidence.  No more closed-lip smiles for me!  My overall oral health is better, too.

My daughter inherited my crooked teeth, so when she was ten years old, her orthodontist removed her wisdom teeth to allow more room for her orthodontic treatment.  After some minor cosmetic dentistry, we were not at all surprised to learn that her diagnosis called for braces, so we chose invisalign invisible braces for her, too.  Today her teeth look great, and she doesn’t mind the retainers at all.  Traditional braces are made from metal wires and brackets which are placed on the front of your upper and lower teeth.  Some people are put off by having to wear such obvious equipment for an extended period of time.  For those people, lingual braces may be the answer.  They can be placed on the rear of your teeth, hiding the majority of the metal parts.  Orthodontics for children and adults has come a long way!  If your child was born with a cleft lip, help is available, but the sooner the better.  Most surgeons agree that it should be repaired by the time a baby is three months old, so see an orthodontist immediately.

Orthodontist Charlotte NC can help in your search for the orthodontist that suits your personal needs.  Whether you’re searching for braces in Charlotte NC or invisalign in Charlotte NC, one suggestion I’d like to make is that your doctor be one approved by the American Board of Orthodontics or the American Association of Orthodontics.  Even if you’re in South Park, Huntersville, Matthews, Pineville, or other towns nearby, a search can be time consuming, so we’re here to help.

Orthodontist Charlotte NC looks at what foods should you avoid with braces.

Dental braces align teeth to improve the function of the mouth and jaw. Once the braces are on, taking care of the braces is mainly up to the person wearing the braces. Certain foods should be avoided or eaten in smaller bites to help prevent damage to the braces. If damage does occur to the braces or the tooth, make a visit to the orthodontist

Hard Foods

Avoid hard foods such as beef jerky, corn chips, popcorn, candies and cookies, ice cubes, nuts, hard fruits and vegetables or cut them into smaller pieces. Beef jerky should be avoided because of its tough, leathery texture that can cause damage to the braces. Corn chips can poke the gums or loosen the brackets of the braces. The hulls of the popcorn can get stuck between the tooth and the braces and are difficult to clean out. Avoid chewing ice cubes, eating nuts and hard candies. Continue eating fruits and vegetables, but cut into bite-sized pieces so that braces won’t be damage.

Sticky Foods

Sticky foods can do a lot of damage to the wires and brackets of the braces, reports the website Parenthood. Sticky foods can cause the wires of the braces to bend and brackets to become unglued and move around. When this occurs, take a trip to the orthodontist, who will straighten the wires or re-glue the brackets. Some sticky foods that should be avoided include fruit roll ups, bubble gum, taffy, caramels, gummy bears or other gummy candies and licorice. In general, it is best to avoid all candy because the sugar can get between the braces and the tooth and cause tooth decay.

Large Food Items

Foods such as corn on the cob, bagels, hard rolls and large chunks of meat should be avoided or eaten in smaller pieces, reports Robert T. Kent and Associates of Carolina Braces Cosmetic Orthodontics. Cut corn off the cob to avoid getting corn hulls stuck in the wires and brackets of the braces. Bagels and other hard rolls should be cut up into bite-sized pieces to avoid bending the wires of the braces. Eating large pieces of meat such as a pork chop or steak should also be cut into smaller bite size pieces to avoid bending the wires.  Source: livestrong.com

Braces Orthodontist Charlotte NC.  How to pay for braces in Charlotte NC