New retainer time

I was badly overdue a new set of retainers so on the advice of my dentist I made an appointment with Dr. Paul Dowling in the Beechwood Dental Clinic on Friday.

After sitting in to Dr. Dowling's chair I had a look around his modern office.  It was a lovely day and he had a sliding door open to a lovely little bamboo walled in city garden - adorable.  I joked that it would be a great place for a lunch time cocktail :-)  His nurse quipped that the drinks area was around the corner!

After showing Dr. Dowling my old retainers he talked me through options for new ones.  He then went on to take impressions for my new retainers.  That pink stuff they use to take impressions is repulsive and I gagged a little as I waited the short while for it to set (maybe a minute, or so).

I'm embarrassed to show a picture of my old retainers but for posterity here they are:

My new retainers will be ready for collection in a few weeks - I can't wait to get them and to get the rid of the old ones.  Hopefully I get a good few years out of the new ones!

BTW, as an aside, when I got my braces off about 12 years ago I was told I would have to wear retainers regularly for about 5 years.  However after 5 yrs I left them off for 1 night.  The next evening when I put them on they were difficult to get on and were very tight - my teeth had moved!!! Since that time I religiously wear my retainer every night and will continue to do so for the rest of my life.  Your teeth constantly want to revert back to their original position - I don't want that to happen!!!