Pearly Whites

[Beestie]

Originally Posted by Catwoman

...And don't tell me you're doing it for 'yourself' because that's bollocks.

Your point is well taken in some instances (when self-esteem is affected) but in my case, its a matter of perspective. My front teeth do not look good but I don't feel badly about myself as a consequence, I would just prefer if they didn't look the way they do. I have decided to have them all capped at the end of this year.

Similarly, I have the metabolism of a squirrel on crack and I'm pretty thin as a consequence. So, I spend a lot of time in the gym trying to add some beef - I miss one week in the gym and I lose 5 pounds - seriously. While I can change my appearance by working out, there is nothing I can do through my own effort to improve the way my teeth look. Its ok not to be happy with how you look so long as it doesn't diminish your estimation of your self-worth.

However, getting back to your original point, a lot of people, especially young women in Western society, could benefit from having your attitude. I think many people are disappointed when, after having augmentation of one sort or another return to their former self-assessment shortly after the glow of the change subsides. It has to start from the inside.

[staceyv]

I use rembrandt whitening toothpaste- the one sold for "heavily stained teeth", and I drink red wine, coffee every day and smoke cigarettes- and I get compliments on how white my teeth are. I also sometimes use their whitening kit that comes with 4 or 5 little tubes of toothpaste.
You can kind of see my teeth in this pic.

[Iggy]

I have a question... Why is it that most of the time I cannot see pictures, it just says "Attached Images" over an empty box? I don't know how to fix this. Please tell me if you know! Thanks!

[Undertoad]

What browser and what firewall?

[Iggy]

Originally Posted by Undertoad

What browser and what firewall?

Now I am kinda internet confused... I know I use McAfee Firewall, but I'm not sure what browser I use. The program I use to pull up the internet is Microsoft Internet Explorer, and Earthlink is my Service provider. I'm not really sure what else I use...

[mrnoodle]

people sometimes treat themselves to certain luxuries, and don't particularly need a reason. Why do you cut your hair? shouldn't people accept your hair the way it is? Why make your clothes match? Why eat filet mignon when chipped beef has the same nutritional content? why do anything?

steadfastly refusing to change one's appearance EVER just because it might conflict with feminist doctrine just means there will be a lot of braless women with bad teeth and no makeup running around. if i wanted to see that, i'd go to england.



JUST KIDDING



i mean i'd go to more Phish shows.

[Happy Monkey]

Originally Posted by mrnoodle

Why do you cut your hair? shouldn't people accept your hair the way it is?

Hear hear!

[Catwoman]

Originally Posted by mrnoodle

why do anything?

Er, quite.

Originally Posted by mrnoodle

steadfastly refusing to change one's appearance EVER just because it might conflict with feminist doctrine just means there will be a lot of braless women with bad teeth and no makeup running around. if i wanted to see that, i'd go to england.

Nothing to do with feminism, same goes for men and those bloody male manicures and back waxes. I love a hairy dirty man. Oh yes, and naturally, women are braless with bad teeth and no make-up. You want FAKE.

[mrnoodle]

Originally Posted by Catwoman

Nothing to do with feminism, same goes for men and those bloody male manicures and back waxes. I love a hairy dirty man. Oh yes, and naturally, women are braless with bad teeth and no make-up. You want FAKE.

No, clean. And with self respect comes the desire to put one's best self forward. If someone wants purty teef, I say more power to em. And although it pains me to say it, same goes for back waxes.

which reminds me of a story, which i may have shared before. I knew a guy who was a volunteer wildnerness firefighter who is the singlemost hairy specimen of humanity ever born. About 5'8", 300lbs of muscle, no neck -- you've seen the type. Well, after a forest fire a few years ago, he was one of the first ones to the makeshift shower set up in a meadow near the site. He stripped down and went to clean off, not realizing that someone (who was apparently unaware that there more people nearby) was watching him. That person called in a Bigfoot sighting. I'm not making this up. He's that hairy. [/sidetrack]

anyway. Catwoman, where do you draw the line between simply having enough pride to try to look your best and falling into this "mass media tells me to look a certain way, and I'm too spineless to resist" scenario? For me, that line is cosmetic surgery (not to repair a defect, but because 'my lips aren't poofy enough', etc.).

eek. i'm contributing to the derailing. sorry, going back on track. Anyway, these bleaching products sound iffy to me. If your teeth aren't sparkly clean to begin with, you'll just have white plaque, which is nasty. I say go the professional route -- get a full cleaning combined with the stain removal.

[LabRat]

I know why I want to do it, and even stated that fact in the initial post. So what if something else could make me happy? I would do that too if I felt like it. What I do to make me happy is my business, be it having liposuction, , doing yoga, or painting my house chartruse. How do you know whether or not I questioned WHY I wanted to do this? Or how long I thought about it? Or about other options? Didn't think so. Than please do not make assumptions about ME. I don't care if YOU (or anyone for that matter) think it makes me look better, I care about if it makes me feel better. It may be silly to you, but I probably think what you do for yourself for the purpose of pleasure is silly. What are you trying to point out that's so obvious? What is obvious to me is that because you think it's silly, it must be wrong to do. And your judging me on that makes me REALLY not care what you think.

[LabRat]

Yeah, what noodle dude said...

[mrnoodle]

i had to cut mine because prospective employers wouldn't accept it the way it was. but i mean, you know. :sigh:

[chainsaw]

Back to the teeth whitening thing... My oral hygienist told me to never use any of the over the counter whitening products. She says they're fine for your teeth, but the gel/solution can burn your gums if you use it too much. Then she offered me the $1,500 whitening treatment they do in the office with ultra-violet light or a laser or something. She may have just been trying to sell me something. Who knows? Man, I hate that.

[lumberjim]

Originally Posted by chainsaw

Back to the teeth whitening thing... My oral hygienist told me to never use any of the over the counter whitening products. She says they're fine for your teeth, but the gel/solution can burn your gums if you use it too much. Then she offered me the $1,500 whitening treatment they do in the office with ultra-violet light or a laser or something. She may have just been trying to sell me something. Who knows? Man, I hate that.

too too much!

should be less than $500. I had it done that way. it was extremely uncomfortable for about 1 hour, but when i left. my teeth were noticably whiter.

the problem with the strips is that they only do the surface of your teeth. teeth are translucent. and they have ridges and bumps and stuff.

the mouth piece solution is cheaper, and once you have the molds, you can always re-do it at home after the stains come back.

[LabRat]

Originally Posted by lumberjim

the problem with the strips is that they only do the surface of your teeth. teeth are translucent. and they have ridges and bumps and stuff.

the mouth piece solution is cheaper, and once you have the molds, you can always re-do it at home after the stains come back.

This is also why I went with the Docs system. I can buy the SAME gel I'm using now separately for touchups down the road, as long as my kid doesn't destroy my molds