The dentist went over my treatment plan today, which basically entails 9 top temporary crowns on the first visit, 6 bottom temporary crowns on the second visit, then waiting a while and adjusting the temps until everything feels just right.  Afterwards there will be three visits to create and seat the real crowns.  He did a little adjustment to file off some high points and determine whether an existing crown needed to be replaced (it does), and then we picked out shades.  My teeth are going to be so pretty and white, and even!  The temps may look a little bit toilet-bowl white since they aren’t translucent like normal teeth, but the crowns will look more natural.  And he actually paints the real crowns to shade them towards the gums to make them as real looking as possible, so it is better that I am starting a bit whiter than I probably want.  In fact, painting is one of his hobbies; he has a beautiful watercolor hidden in the back of his office that is truly stunning.  His assistant says he can spend an entire day just painting a few crowns to get them looking perfect.  I am so excited!  The new look is just a bonus, of course; the real issue here is fixing my bite so it stops ruining my jaw.  I’ve been wearing a splint for nearly two years now and my jaw has finally healed.  I have had TMJ pain since I was a teenager, primarily because my teeth do not fit together.  Not only was I ruining my jaw, I was cracking and breaking my teeth because I had to mash so hard to get anything to fit right.  It will be wonderful to not have to cut my meat into microscopic pieces anymore.  It is hard to eat healthy when I can’t munch on raw vegetables, too.  I am SO excited to finally get all this going!