Translation...
Ok, so for those of you who are gangsterly-challenged, here is the C3PO translation of my previous post:
. . .
Greetings my dear and fellow orthoists. It is with great pleasure that I announce my return after many a fortnight without post. I do take great pride in this publication vehicle and also great pleasure in sharing it with all of you. In particular I would like to thank Mrs Shanton for giving me a nudge. And so what follows herein will constitute my latest news and should be interpreted as such.
I begin by reporting that the last 7 weeks have been dreadfully slow, and I should very much appreciate speeding this process with all due haste, and nothwithstanding any amount of patience I may have left. It should be noted however that despite my disdain, the situation promises to improve considerably in the coming weeks in the month of May. The most notable event will be the bonding of my upper laterals into their proper form and size. I pray that his will make a considerable difference, especially cosmetically.
As exhibited in the photographs below of week 0 through 7, the spaces between my first and second upper teeth have increased considerably. This is, however, expected since the removal of the power chain at my last appointment. Despite their function and temporary employment, I do find them troubling; a regression as it were. Also shown is the remaining amount of crowding in my lower incisors. I do fear that they haven't so much as budged in all this time. I am curious to know if a power chain may assist them along.
The good news is that on the 2nd of May at 9 o'clock in the morning, my beloved orthodontist will remove the brackets on each of the top two laterals and follow by afixing a bypass wire so as to allow room for my dentist to complete the bonding procedure. It should be noted that the process will occur over several appointments and weeks, at the end of which I anticipate my spirits rising upon inspection of the final result.
. . .
Pretty acurate translation for a robot with no teeth, eh? Who knew C3PO could speak gangster!
No word on a surgery date yet either. I called at the beginning of April and they said that the summer hospital time hadn't been booked yet so they really couldn't tell me anything other than I would get 4 to 6 weeks notice. I think the end of May will be the absolute earliest I might hear something but I am not counting on it.
posted by Graham @ 11:21 AM
13 comments
13 Comments:
What a crackup you are! I totally enjoyed that post and I now feel that I have a grasp on what is going on with you. Just one question, how come bonding, why not crowns? I had some bonding done yesterday which my dentist told me is really only temporary. Oh well, maybe in Canada they have better bonding material? Mary
Mary: Good question. I don't actually know exactly what will be done, it really could be any of bonding, veneers, or crowns. My OD said bonding so I assume that's what will happen but I guess my dentist will have the final say. Here's a site which shows the bonding procedure.
Peg Lateral Bonding
I could TOTALLY imagine C3PO reading your post. And I'm not a total Star Wars geek, either, go figure. That was beautifully composed. Can't wait to see some more pics of your face. Thanks for posting. I feel like I got my fix today! :)
Huhnn what what what??? Did I just read over at Erin's you're wondering about how you're paying for all this? I thought you were Canadian, and you had free healthcare (aside from dental?)
Steph: Yep, I am Canadian, and yes most of the work is covered but we do have to pay for the OS office visits, and braces aren't covered by work insurance for adults (but it is 50% for kids? Rediculous!). So for me it looks like this:
braces - $7000
SARPE - $600
bonding - $1200 (??)
upper/lower - $3000
If I get lucky, maybe my dentist will use codes which allows the bonding to be considered a major restoration which would be partially covered. If not, I have a health spending account which I can use to cover some of it. And for the upper/lower, I saw a clause in my policy about "other oral surgery" which I am hoping means my upper/lower might be covered.
The kicker is that I still have to pay up front, and then they reimburse me later, if at all. So yeah, I know this isn't as bad as what you guys have to deal with but I still feel the bite.
No, no, that DOES bite. I have great insurance and I paid a couple of $5 visit co-pays for the surgery and about $20 for various medications. Braces are about $7000, and none of that is covered by insurance as I'm an adult.
We're just hearing all the time down here how excellent and comprehensive and free your healthcare is. But I don't know, the more I read. Our CEO where I work visited Canada and reported back that it is ILLEGAL in Canada to pay for private healthcare services. I thought that was quite interesting. Everyone goes into the same queue, and some of the healthcare may not be covered? Hmm...
Oh for sure, it is definitely a huge plus to have the system we do. No one has to pay for critical procedures, nor the vast majority of out-patient stuff. Things that are not covered include cosmetic surgery (though if done in a hospital rather than a clinic the anesthesia might be covered), dental, ortho, psych therapy (unless done in a hospital), podiatry, chiropractic, optometry, massage, physiotherapy...that's all I can think of but I'm sure there's more.
Employer insurance covers a percentage of drugs, basic dental, vision, and a few other things but it varies and employers are not obligated to offer it, but most big companies do to be competitive.
I'm not sure about the legal side of it. There definitely are private insurance vendors who offer coverage far and beyond conventional employer insurance but this is a relatively new phenomenon here. It is really only for the ultra rich who don't want to wait in line. Many folks opt to have procedures done in the US to avoid waiting but they pay for it themselves (hip replacement being the classic example). The general rule though is that traditional insurance won't cover anything that the government already covers. And don't forget that "free" actually means "pay through the nose in taxes instead". :)
The debate over private health care versus public is quite a heated issue these days, even touching on national identity. The public system is in rough shape so private companies are trying to get a shoe-in, all the while that the government is finding more and more things to de-list anyway. The tide is changing in Canada for sure, but I still don't think I'd want to be anywhere else when it comes to health care.
Graham, Just wanted to say "thanks" for the laughs, I loved the post! I am a newbee to the Ortho Gang that I have become totally engaged in. I have spent many nights reading and looking at the progress of so many, yours was one of my first! What a dramatic change you have gone through and boy does it look great. I have just completed turn #40 on my sexy GAP making device, oh how lovely this is! Anyway, I wanted to say thanks for providing so much insight during my decision making process, seeing others go thru this made me know that I am not alone and not the only "Crazy" one, as I have been recently called so often. Thanks again.
Forgot to give you this. I'm not a pro at this blogging stuff yet, but I am learning. I guess this is my site address, check it out:
http://sarpe4me.blogspot.com/
Thanks again!
Michelle
Graham--thanks for the insight into your healthcare system, from the point of view of a REAL GENUINE CANADIAN PERSON! Very interesting stuff. And, we're having debates about healthcare all the time here, and we commonly hear that Canada has free healthcare and we should be more like Canada. It's quite interesting, isn't it? Whatever the case, it's very expensive. I like to buy over-the-counter Allegra from Canada. It's prescription-only here in the US because insurers will pay dearly for it. Now that it's generic however, watch for it to go over-the-counter so that the company can cash in on otc sales. Still, your Allegra (antihistamine) is way cooler than our what with all the French printing. Tres bien!
Hey Graham,
You are a funny guy LOL! Both posts were great, and I'm so impressed with your gansta expertise, you sound like you could be the real deal! LOL...
Glad to see your teeth are progressing. I know you will be glad when you can get your surgery done. Mine is coming up pretty soon! YIKES! 24 days away!
Brandy
Graham
Thanks for the words of wisdom on leaving my options open. The more I have thought about what you said, the more I realize you are right. I mean, after all, the whole reason why I am doing this is to get that "Great Smile". I think I will revisit the idea of the second surgery at a later time when the need will become more obvious. I will be working by then as well and perhaps some will be covered by Insurance.
Well, I will keep posting progress pics for everyones enjoyment. Chow for now!
Michelle
You do have a knack for these things! You're a riot! :)
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