Thought I should do a post to recapture my braces milestones.

At the back of my mind, I know for a fact that someday I will have to put on braces to correct my protruding teeth. The only thing that is stopping me is the fear of looking "fugly" at my prime i.e. 26-28 years old. But then, as I grow older, the protrusion got worse and since Hb (then bf) and I are already planning to get married, I had no choice but to get on with it. The single biggest motivation was to be a pretty bride with a beautiful smile! And so at 29 years old, I went to get my 1st set of braces done!

 

30-03-2008 till 07-09-2009 (526 days)

16-03-2008: $1,100 [Deposit, X-Rays, Photos & Moulding]
30-03-2008: $ 870 [Deposit & Upper Braces Fitting]
20-04-2008: $ 423 [Extraction & Medication]
18-05-2008: $ 325 [Wire Change]
17-08-2008: $ 325 [Bottom Braces Fitting]
14-09-2008: $ 764 [Extraction, Frenectomy & Medication]
25-10-2008: $ 385 [Wire Change & Scaling]
23-11-2008: $ 385 [Wire Change & Rubber Loops Change & Scaling]
24-12-2008: $ 325 [Wire Change & Rubber Loops Change]
24-01-2009: $ 325 [Wire Change & Rubber Loops Change]
21-02-2009: $ 325 [Wire Change & Rubber Loops Change]
28-02-2009: $ 714 [Loose Bracket, 2 Screws, 4 Springs and 4 Crisscrossed Wires]
21-03-2009: $ 325 [Springs & Crisscrossed Wires Adjustment]
30-04-2009: $ 325 [Loose Bracket, Wires Change]
30-05-2009: $ 325 [Loose Bracket, Mini Wires Removal, Thicker Crisscrossed Wires]
04-07-2009: $ 325 [Loose Bracket, Springs Adjustment, 8-Ring Rubber Loops]
01-08-2009: $ 275 [Springs Adjustment, Additional Crisscross Wires, Rubber Loops]
22-08-2009: F.O.C [Springs Adjustment, Additional Crisscross Wires, Rubber Loops]
07-09-2009: $ 510 [X-Ray, Braces Removal, Scaling]
08-09-2009: $ 70 [Solubles for Retainer x 4 boxes + Plastic Case for Retainer]
Total Spent: $8,421

The entire process was supposed to take 1 1/2 years. However, it was no where near completion at the point where we had to get our pre-wedding photography done. We didn't get to choose any of the overseas packages that I super like cos' they all had ultra long leadtime. So we had to get one locally; Bridal Concept which allowed us to delayed the shoot to the latest possible date while in time for albums and DVD to be ready for the reception in November. We took our pre-wedding photography on 15-09-2009 and the removal of the braces was meant to be temporary. However, after the wedding, there wasn't really any motivation to continue with it. In the end I did it considering the 8K plus I've already spent on it.

26-05-2010 till 24-04-2011 (333 days)

26-05-2010: F.O.C [Upper & Lower Braces Fitting + 2 x Bite Blocks]
23-06-2010: F.O.C [Loose Bracket + Wire Change for Lower Teeth]
03-08-2010: F.O.C [Removed Bite Blocks + Wire Change & Rubber Loops] 
14-12-2010: F.O.C [Top & Bottom Wire Change + Rubber Loops + New Clay Clump]
27-01-2011: F.O.C [Top & Bottom Wire Change + Removal of Rubber Loops]

09-03-2011: F.O.C [Top & Bottom Wire Change]

24-04-2011: F.O.C [Braces Removal]

Total Spent: F.O.C

I first read about Invisalign on X.i.a.x.u.e's blog and so happened, when I went back during one of my visits, the nurse showed me a set. Upon checking, the nurse said it cost RM16K! I nearly fainted. But I went ahead and asked my dentist about it anyway to just try my luck for discounts considering I've already spent so much with him. He was reluctant at first cos' the cost itself is expensive. But then upon further inspection, he did say that I am a suitable candidate for Invisalign to correct deep bite, to align my jaws etc. In the end, he said he'll write to US to recommend me as a test patient with the condition that I provide them my testimonials on Invisalign upon completion. Told me he'd get me the cost price. Net net it came back as USD1,995 x 3 = RM5,985 which I immediately paid for since it was over 60% in discount!!! Only downside was that, I had to remove 2 of my top wisdom tooth. I hate extractions, they always leave me bleeding overnight!

31-05-2011 onwards

25-04-2011: $   140 [Temporary retainer, Polident x 2 & casing]
31-05-2011: $   272 [Top wisdom tooth extraction x 2]
31-05-2011: $5,985 [Invisalign Aligner No. 1 to 3]

14-07-2011: F.O.C [Invisalign Aligner No. 4 to 9]

Total Spent: $6,397

So ya, if you ask me now, I will totally recommend Invisalign for the sheer fact that it is invisible (i.e. not noticeable at all) and that it's less painful (easier to eat)! Am so excited!

The hardest thing about changing to a new job is that once the initial excitement wears off, reality kicks in. To everyone else, you are just an idiot who got lucky; unless and until proven otherwise. To your superiors, you are to show what you are made of i.e. if you were really as good as what you claimed to be. To yourself, at this point, you are just beginning to wonder if you indeed made the right move.

It is no wonder that people choose to stay in their comfort zones. Why leave? It's a fucking jungle out there with dangerous animals waiting to prey on you and every turn you make, there is something unseen lurking round the corner; waiting to attack and gnaw you alive!

My gawd! Save me!!!

Visited my dentist today. It's time to get my Invisalign aligner no. 4 to 6. Dentist asked me how was it and I told him that it was OK. As a matter of fact, I almost did not experience any pain! Almost cos' there was a time I had a bad ulcer at the back of my tongue which caused difficulty in swallowing and ulcer on my "lelangit" where when the aligner was snapped on, I screamed out in pain automatically. But then despite the walk-in-the-park experience, I also told him that I personally did not notice any movement.

So he did a quick check and told me that my bite is no longer too deep. Then he proceeded to ask me to snap on my aligner no. 3 for him to check. I was half worried of him sounding me for the cleanliness of my aligner (had lunch and didn't brush before snapping it back on) but to my surprise he exclaimed "GOOD! VERY GOOD!", you are wearing it correctly!

With that he proceeded to supply me with not 3 but 6 aligners and that meant I'll be dentist free for 12 weeks!!! My next appointment is a quarter away on 6th October!!! Yippieeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!! And this time round he told me that by the time I come back for my next appointment, there'd be noticeable difference!

Let's take a look at this loooooong journey of mine towards achieving a beautiful smile!

Round 1: 30-03-2008 - 07-09-2009 (526 days); Pre-wedding Braces
Round 2: 26-05-2010 - 24-04-2011 (333 days); Post-wedding Braces
Round 3: 31-05-2011 onwards (49 days); Invisalign

25-04-2011: $   140 Temporary retainer, Polident x 2 & casing
31-05-2011: $   272 Top wisdom tooth extraction x 2
31-05-2011: $5,985 Invisalign!

YTD Spent:
$8,421 on Round 1 and 2
$6,397 on Round 3
$14,818 on all rounds over a period of 908 days i.e. over 2 years or $16 per day! I must be mad la!

I have been splurging a lot lately. Personally I can be quite thrifty and spend the bare minimum on myself month in month out. However, when I do spend, I tend to make huge purchases. Of course this doesn't happen too often but then I just realized that I may have gone overboard with my spending the past few months; the period where I was transitioning from my old job to my new job. I wonder if it was a sign of stress.

Here are some of the big ticket items I splurged on specifically on Louis Vuitton, my all time favourite brand.

• RM5,000 Louis Vuitton Monogram Ebene Cabas Rivington
• RM2,400 Louis Vuitton Monogram Ebene Zippy Wallet
• RM   940 Louis Vuitton Monogram Ebene Mini Pochette
• RM   750 Louis Vuitton Monogram Ebene Card Holder
• RM   620 Louis Vuitton Monogram Ebene Skinny Card Holder

• RM5,100 Louis Vuitton Monogram Idylle Elegie
• RM1,400 Louis Vuitton Monogram Idylle Pochette

• RM4,250 Louis Vuitton Monogram Vernis Roxbury Drive
• RM1,600 Louis Vuitton Monogram Vernis Small Zippy Wallet
• RM2,850 Louis Vuitton Monogram Vernis Zippy Wallet (for mummy)

All in all on Louis Vuitton alone, I've spent RM24,910 and that was in about 4 months!!! Not to mention, I also bought other stuffs like:

• RM1,500 Samsung Galaxy Tab for Hb 
• RM2,499 iPad 2 for myself (3G + WiFi 64GB) 

I also changed the entire set of skincare from Kose & Odbo to SKII for my mom and I aaaaaaaannnnnnnnnndddddddddd signed up for facial treatments.

Most importantly, I've also changed from conventional braces to Invisalign. I think I have gone mad. Have got to stop spending like this!!! My credit card payment was over 5-digit last month!!! Madness!!!

Historical milestone today on my blogging journey. For years I've blogged under the handle "maemee". It was my name in Teochew which held a special meaning cos' my favourite grandpa used to call me that. However, after marriage, I felt that the name does not resonate too well with my life stage at this point. So I've decided to change my handle to "ON9LA1" instead which signifies my life as Mrs. Ong. With that, I deleted the old "ON9LAI" (which is basically empty) and exported "maemee" to "Mrs. ON9LA1".  :)