I needed braces from an early date. In 1960, at the age of 12, our family dentist suggested I see an orthodontist to fix my deep overbite. My parents didn’t think I needed an extensive treatment plan, like full braces, so they choose “Plan B” for me which involved wearing an upper retainer provided by our family dentist. Soon, the retainer was made and I wore it faithfully. I had adjustments made on it every month where the wire would be tightened. For a few days after each adjustment, my upper front teeth would indeed, be rather sore. After a year, my teeth were nicely lined up, but nothing had been done to address my overbite issues.
Through high school and my college years my bite continued to deepen. My bottom teeth actually would rest in the gum tissue behind my upper front teeth when I closed my mouth. Around the age of 39, I had a new dentist who quickly identified my problem. He referred me to an orthodontist AND oral surgeon who did all sorts of x-rays, pictures, impressions, etc., where they both recommended that I have jaw breaking surgery to fix the problem. Shortly after this diagnosis, I moved to another state for a new job not having done anything yet to address the issue. A year or so later, I KNEW something had to be done. I was now having all sorts of jaw problems (TMJ). I soon found an “old fashioned” orthodontist who specialized in “difficult” adult cases. He said he could correct my problem, WITHOUT JAW SURGERY, but that I would have to be a COMPLIANT patient which involved wearing headgear full-time, in addition to nice shiny metal bands and brackets on both upper and lower teeth. I had all sorts of rubber bands and much of the time, heavy power chains strung through the brackets of my upper teeth.
At the age of 42, I was quite a sight! It took nearly three years to get the desired results, Those years of rather sore, but not always painful, teeth WAS WELL WORTH IT. All my jaw issues and deep overbite were gone. Now, nearly 30 years later, at the age of 72, I still wear retainers at night to keep everything in place.