I highly recommend Dr. Thao Vu! She's very knowledgeable and meticulous!
My journey started with a consultation in mid-2018. Dr. Vu presented me with a few options (traditional braces, invisalgn, or inbrace/lingual braces). At the time being in my late 20s, I opted for inbrace. To start the process, I needed 4 extractions (each corner) because I had overcrowding. Unfortunately, my case for inbrace was denied (took a few weeks to find out) due to me needing extractions, which meant my case would be more complicated. The moment I found out my case was denied, I was bummed because that meant I can only go with traditional braces (while in my late 20s planning for a wedding within 2 years) because I knew I wouldn't be compliant with invisalign & it would end up being a waste of money. To my surprise, Dr. Vu presented me with another option of getting extractions first & then just having wires/rubber bands on each corner to help close the spaces first and resubmit my case for inbrace. In Fall 2018, I got 4 extractions & then Dr. Vu added wires/rubber bands to each corner to help close the space. She started seeing me every 4-6 weeks (until Covid). Within a few months, I saw a huge improvement with my teeth straightening without having braces yet. By Fall 2019, my case was approved for inbrace & I started with inbrace both top & bottom for a few months until Dr. Vu informed me that my bottom teeth weren't shifting as fast due to inbrace not being as aggressive as traditional braces (there was so much overcrowding on the bottom before). She offered me the option of keeping inbrace on top & getting traditional braces on the bottom to speed up the process, which I agreed. Fast forward to Feb 2022, I got my bottom braces off & Mar 2022, I got my top braces off. On my wedding day (Feb 2022), I still had inbrace on top, which no one noticed. Most people didn't notice I had braces at all throughout the process.
My process was bumpy, but I have one suggestion: be open-minded. Everyone's mouth & teeth are different. Dr. Vu will give estimates & time frames, but they can change due to things out of her control. I experienced a lot of breakage (wires, rubber bands, etc) due to my strong jaw/clenching. I was supposed to wear rubber bands to fix my overbite, but one button came off during covid & I couldn't see Dr. Vu for months, so that slowed down the process too. What I appreciate was Dr. Vu was upfront about the cost and once I paid it off, she continued doing the work until it was done. She didn't take shortcuts or use snakey tactics. For example, some believe that orthos give an estimate of 2 years but drag it out longer so you pay more, but it's definitely not the case here (unless patients decide to add on additional services). Dr. Vu is very informative and presents all the options pertaining to your particular case, but never forces anything. She gave me all the knowledge I needed to make decisions for myself.
One negative is the limited hours. I was lucky to have been in grad school and have an untraditional work schedule, where I was able to fit in visits to the ortho. But the limited hours is to see Dr. Vu herself (she keeps a good eye on all her cases). In the case that I had an emergency like something broke, I was able to schedule other days/times to see an assistant to fix for me (same day or same week). The limited days/times may be due to work-life balance or other personal reasons, but just know that Dr. Vu puts 100% in when working with her patients. The meticulous work and service that she provides is worth the time/hassle of limited days/hours. She has a 2nd location in Garden Grove now!
Timeline:
September 2018: 4 teeth extractions, wire/rubber bands on each corner to close the space
September 2019: inbrace on top & bottom
Some time in 2020: inbrace on top & traditional braces on bottom
February 2022: bottom braces off
March 2022: top braces off read more