ello all,
Allow me to introduce myself as needabsso.
Please follow along as I share with you my story/quest/journey.
I think I kind of always knew that braces were going to be a part of my life. Fortunately , I did not have severely crooked teeth. rather, I had buck teeth and very spaced apart teeth during my childhood. The protrusion of my buck teeth led to Many incidents in which they were chipped and a cap was placed. the first two times being at 12 years old.
It was during a cap replacement that my dentist informed me that I have a 50% over bite and extra teeth, even with all of the extra space! He assured me that I was wrong in my worries and that my functionality was fine. He said braces would only be aesthetic. Given my mother was a single parent, we chose to opt out of aesthetic solutions.
Fast forward and I am 16 years old. At this point I have moved out of my mother's house (she had reunited with my abusive and narcissistic father) and in pinching to make ends meet. I awake one morning and my jaw has locked! In a panic, I go to the clinic. I am given ibuprofen and sent on my way. This happens five more times in the course of 3 months. My doctor puts me on diazepam and sends me on my way. little did I know, my whole quality of life was about to change.
Years go by and I'm on and off muscle relaxants for my jaw pain. I'm so sure that it's stress related, as I was told! I have a functional jaw structure!
Working and pulling myself through school, while trying to manage the pain, I save up what little spending money I have, to meet with an orthodontist.
The orthodontist does some xrays, looks at my teeth and tells me the following:
I have a 50% over bite AND over jet.
The xrays show that the disks in my jaw are wearing down, bone rubbing against bone.
I have malloclusion and these problems together are all resulting in recessed gums, which may mean gum graphs in my future if not handled immediately.
Furthermore, I am told that because I was not treated as a youth, I will have to undergo jaw surgery! The good news, happens when an oral surgeon confirms my ortho's beliefs, that because of the severity of my over bite, the jaw surgery will in part be covered by my province.
Of 50,000$ I will be required to pay 3,500$CAD.
I am ecstatic! Relief is in the making, I believe....
But you see , it's not that simple...
It turns out that due to all of my malocclusion issues,
In order to have the surgery, I must undergo a year of pre op and post op braces costing 8,200$CAD.
Being estranged from my family, I feel helpless.
For months, I try to budget a way to pay for my braces. I contact family I haven't spoken to in years. No one can help me. And then I hear of this website called gofundme.
I quickly signed up and created a campaign for my braces and overall bsso. Within two days, I have raised $670!
I am moved to tears!
I am here today, sharing my story, looking for the support of those who have undergone this journey. Those who know the agony of tmj and the effect it can have on your schooling, work and friendships.I ask those who were fortunate enough to have insurance cover it, to help set me free from pain. I am hoping to reach out to those who can empathize with me and part with a dollar or two to help me achieve this new quality of life.
On my campaign page I have uploaded photos of my xrays and a shorter summary of my journey.
If you cannot help through funding. Please, share it with those who maybe can.
Thank you all for reading my post.
The generosity of time itself , speaks wonders.
-B
You can view my campaign at this link
Www.gofundme.com/eep0kg
