*Update post 6*Getting palette expander next week...

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#1 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Fri Aug 31, 2007 8:00 pm

For those of you who have had these, can you tell me your experience? I am so worried that I won't be able to speak properly and that it is going to hurt like crazy!

Okay, I'm a baby

, but I've only had braces on a few days now, then the palette expander next week, then they are going to remove tWo of my teeth, and it's all starting to freak me out a little!

#2 Post by **ohmyjaw** » Fri Aug 31, 2007 9:00 pm

Don't worry! A palate expander is not a big deal. It's just annoying. I had one when I was a kid, and I don't remember it ever being painful. It just makes you talk a bit funny.

#3 Post by **sirithaeariel** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 5:16 am

Hey, don't worry, I have one currently and its not as bad as it sounds ^___^ the only thing I feel when I turn the key is a little sinus pressure, at least thats what it feels like. hey on the lighter side you can freak people out by showing it to them, its really funny to see their reaction, my band teacher freaks out ^__^ so don't worry, its not nearly as bad as they say. My friend had hers I think she was just trying to scare me when she said it hurt, it really doesn't. good luck ^__^

#4 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Sat Sep 01, 2007 8:36 am

Thank you both

I get it on Tuesday, so I will let you know how it goes.

#5 Post by **discomom** » Mon Sep 03, 2007 11:49 am

Don't worry!! I had one as a 14 year old and like mentioned above , it just made me talk funny but after getting used to it everything was fine. My current co-worker has one, and she is fine with it. She is a teacher and at the beginnning of the year she explained to the kids that they might not be able to understand some of her words. But after 8 days of school, you really can't tell the difference. Good luck with it!! Lori

#6 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 7:54 pm

Well today was supposed to be the big day...

First of all, I was mistaken, it wasn't a palette expander, it was a bite plate. But that didn't happen today.

They tried to put it in, and I couldn't even close my mouth. The ortho looks at it and tells the assistant to cut it waaaay back as far as she can. So she does and attempts to put it back in. Well, I still cannot close my mouth and if they had left it in I wouldn't even have been able to swallow, let alone talk or eat.

The ortho said that my bite is so deep that the appliance will not work. That he has to go "old school" on me and configure some type of appliance that they used to use way back when. So they took an impression and I have to go back tomorrow to be fitted with whatever contraption they have devised.

Well, on the bright side. I have had one day without an upper archwire and they removed those awful spacers!

So here is to hoping that "old school" translates to not that bad! LOL!

We shall see tomorrow!

#7 Post by **cwatt1** » Thu Sep 06, 2007 4:06 am

Hope everything goes well for you today, EmbraceMe! It'll be interesting to see what your ortho has come up with.

#8 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Thu Sep 06, 2007 6:00 pm

Well, it's in. And all I want to know is what kind of evil-minded person thought of this device? LOL!

Okay, so I don't know how "old school" this actually turned out to be. It appears to be the same thing they originally started with, it is just very modified to fit into my mouth. But I do know that as soon as it was in and I realized how I could barely enunciate, and couldn't really swallow, I was in tears right there in the office. Ugh! Plus I am coming down with the flu (thanks to working in a daycare where all the lil' kiddos are sick right now).

Talking is not fun and I feel very foolish. I did find that Rainbow passage on here and will practice that religiously.

I attempted to eat pancakes this evening and found that my teeth (molars) to not come together at all. Is this the point of a bite plate? Should my teeth not touch? How is one supposed to chew food? I just swallowed the pancakes in tiny pieces.

I am trying to keep thinking of the end result (a beautiful smile), but it is trying every ounce of my sanity right now. When I asked the ortho how long i will have to wear the bite plate he said "oh, months and months and months ". At least he is honest

#9 Post by **samantha_lou** » Thu Sep 06, 2007 10:05 pm

You'll be really surprised at how quickly you'll get used to the new hardware, I'm on my second expander now and I really don't notice it at all. Its a bit annoying for the first few days, but within a few weeks - you'll be talking just fine and will learn to eat without getting food smushed up in there! My biggest complaint was the drooling, it took a couple of days for that to subside!

#10 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 2:30 pm

okay, I'm on day 3 with this thing and I cannot eat. My teeth do not tough AT ALL! And if I attempt to even cut something up really small to eat, I gag.

Is this supposed to prevent all of my teeth from touching? It's bad enough I cannot speak, but now I cannot eat anything of any substance. Anybody who has a bite plate that can offer any tips on how to eat?

It feels like there is just a huge suction cup stuck to the roof of my mouth and my tongue feels like its only job all day is to do everything in its power to break the seal, LOL! And it is not really fun that I sound like Cindy Brady all day

#11 Post by **ohmyjaw** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 4:12 pm

I have no experience with bite plates, but what you're dealing with sounds pretty challenging. Maybe it will get better over time as your bite becomes less deep?

I would suggest thinking up some soft food ideas, like mashed potatoes, soups, milkshakes, etc, and contact your ortho's office for further advice. On the plus side, maybe this is an excuse to live on ice cream for the next few months!

#12 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 4:36 pm

I think you're right about it getting easier as my bite improves, but yikes! This sucks!

I have been surviving on mashed potatoes, yogurt, ice cream, and Carnation Instant Breakfast since I got braces on 3 weeks ago. I have gone from 145 pounds to 133. That I am happy about

But I cannot see not chewing for the next year or more. I will weigh nothing by then.

Sigh....

#13 Post by **EmbraceMe** » Sat Sep 08, 2007 10:36 pm

Thank you Karen. I try the search tool quite often and can never seem to get a direct hit on what I am looking for without having to weed through things that have no relation to what I want

As far as the no excuse for being hungry: well, quite honestly I think that due to differences in how people adapt to their appliances, how their bite is, their pain tolerance, etc., I believe those all can affect what or how you can eat. My teeth do not touch whatsoever, therefore it is quite impossible to eat much as their is literally no way at all to chew anything. Plus since I cannot put that much food in my mouth, it slows down the eating process, which fills you up faster, therefore eating less and causing weight loss.

I am sure in time it will improve. And I agree with you on the salt water rinses. I have been doing that several times a day since the beginning and it helps a lot

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Update post 6Getting palette expander next week...

Update post 6Getting palette expander next week...