7 Ear Old Needing Braces

I have had 4 kids that needed braces, so I have learned quite a bit about it. The first and most important thing is DO NOT let them talk you into pre-orthodtics......it is a hugh waste of your money and unnecessary torture for your daughter. You need to wait until her mouth is completly developed before starting. Then your child will only be in them the required 2 years and all the work will stay put instead of shifting with a growing mouth. The second most important thing I found was a great orthodontist....his name is Dr Raj Anglokar....he accepts payments and does a wonderful job. We started going to him over 14yrs ago and have never been unhappy.

Once you do get the braces if you or your husband have a medical spending account at work you could put money aside in that tax-free for the known cost of the braces. That will help you save a little bit.

I agree with the others...do not start braces too young as it will be a waste of time. I have a nine year old who has been seeing an orthodontist for over a year and only wearing a retainer (I bought the initial one and they replace at their cost when his teeth change) I do know that most places offer payment plans so that it is more affordable for you. And they also make it more fun so that you are not thinking about any pain or if it is uncomfortable....like choosing fun colors, etc. I had one dentist who wanted to extract several of my son's teeth due to overcrowding and the orthodontist said no way! They are waiting for his mouth to get ready not force it...I would highly recommend Fey and Grey in Bothell. Good luck!

I went to an orthodontist from age 8-16. I had spent half my life there when I got my SECOND pair of braces off (which I had because of the orthodontist fault - he even had to eat the cost). I think they started me too young and tried experimental treatments that I'm sure was expensive and not really beneficial.

I don't know your daughter's situation, but I wouldn't start any thing until closer to 5th grade (that seemed to be a normal age for other kids to start seeing an orthodontist) or even later, like Junior High. I have always had an overbite (still do) and over-crowded teeth. My husband also has an overbite but had a huge gap that wasn't taken care of until the last couple years in high school. Both our teeth have shifted from then and mine are not as straight as they once were (over crowed still) and my husband is self-conscience of his small gap that has come back.

Our little girl has a big overbite and we're already worried about the costs of all the orthodontic treatment she'll need. I don't worry about the pain. I guess because 1. we all endured it and we're fine, 2. orthodontics are better now, and 3. there aren't nearly as many weird contraptions now as there was 20-25 years ago. If you can, get a second opinion and find out when they recommend starting treatment. Do research online and find similar situations as your daughter and compare their treatment. Also, be very careful when messing around with a child as young as your daughter's jaw. Instead of pulling teeth, they had me widen my jaw manually each week for years (talk about painful - a retainer that I expanded about a mm each week). Well, this made it easier to straighten my teeth later on, but my bite is completely messed up and I acquired TMJ because of it.

I have no advice about paying for it - I have no idea how we'll afford it when time comes. But I do think you should be as knowledgeable and informed as possible before committing to any one orthodontist. :-)

By all means, get an opinion from an orthodontist before doing anything or even starting to worry.

My daughter is 8 and we were also told by her dentist that she needs to start on a spacer, etc. The dentist wanted to do it herself. But I took her to the orthodontist and he said definitely no to the spacer. The only thing he ordered was full x rays to see where she is at. He said at most he might suggest pulling some teeth early to make space but he is even waiting on that decision.

If you are on the Eastside, his name is Dr. Burleigh Surbeck and I highly recommend him. I loved the fact that he was more interested in waiting and giving my daughter's mouth a chance to develop, rather than rushing to treatment.

C.