Is this crazy?

[ellem]

I just got the rubber spacers in my molars three days ago... wow, they ache like the dickens!!! Just a general, icky headache centered right between my eyebrows.. ugh-- if I hurt just from the spacers, I'm dreading the braces a lil... am I doomed?

I've started adjusting my diet, albeit it a bit early. I bought a small mixer, sort of like a personal smoothie maker & that's what I use for all my food. My teeth w/ the spacers hurt, and oddly enough ALL my teeth feel a lil strange-- could it be from the spacers, moving them all? Or am I just imagining it?!?! I'm hesitant to chew anything!

I decided to go ahead & make soup & smoothies now just to get used to it... my husband says that;s crazy, but I feel so grossed out by the thought of shreds of food or mushy stuff stuck in between my teeth & the spacers...I can't floss them, so want to avoid any kind of food that could get caught back there. I think he's secretly afraid that'll I'll force him to live off soups & smoothies too, haha-- but I just cook regular meals for him & then make my own stuff...

I will admit to hate flossing...I do it every night now, but after getting braces it'll be a huge pain, and I imagine all sorts of tiny food bits getting stuck *shudder*.... if I stick to a smoothie/soup diet, can I at least cut back on flossing? My husband ordered me the latest model SPAMTRONIC SPAMSONIC SPAMONAIDE SPAMSTER SPAM SPAMINATOR dental irrigator, he says it'll help w/ flossing...

I also read somewhere that a great many people had tooth decay upon removing their braces-- I really want to avoid that, and removing mushy carbs from my diet for 18 months seems a small price to pay... right?!?!

Well, these are some thoughts as I sit w/ the rubber spacers, maybe feeling a lil jittery... thank goodness for these forums where I can find reassurance from others who have gone through this!

[ashesgap]

Even if you use a RediBreeze or WaterPik you still need to floss every night. Soups and smoothies still get between your teeth. Also from what i've read on here spacers are worse than braces for a lot of people. You'll get used to the braces very quick and start eating normal stuff again. There's always an adjustment period.
As long as you brush and floss normal, meaning brush 2-3 times a day and floss once, you shouldn't have any issues with decay or white spots on your teeth. I'm sure you'll be fine.
Good Luck

[pjacjac]

Ya the spaces made my teeth feel really weird, I can't quite describe it, but i have super sensitive teeth. I only had mine in for three days though thank god. Lots of soft food like eggs and yogurt and smoothies. Milkshakes were great too, anything cold to kinda numb the mouth for a bit.

I just got braces a month ago, it took about 2-3 weeks for me to adjust and I'm eating much better now, some people are faster and some are slower.

Good luck with braces.

[ellem]

*GASP* I thought I was so clever going to an all-smoothie/soup diet... I still cling to the hope that I won't have to floss as much... can plaque get between teeth even w/o food? I thought it was sugar & sticky carbs that clung to the teeth & was attacked by bacteria which in turn damaged the surface of tooth enamel...

aiiieeee....

sorry to be dramatic but i was crushed when told I wasn't a good candidate for Invisalign (my first choice)... I wanted it since I could eat, brush, floss as normal-- I really can;t imagine flossing braces even w/ the special floss threaders & such to be as effective...

ok, I confess: I teach, & many students have braces.... I see their glunky teeth/food-filled braces every day & think it must be 'cos flossing is difficult/ineffective... guess I'll see for myself soon~!

I'll still use the waterpik to blast food bits out... it should arrive tomorrow, I'll practise before getting the actual braces put in..

It's also odd the spacers should feel so strange, ALL my teeth feel funny, as if everything got moved... really hoping the regular braces don't feel like this...

[ashesgap]

Its not difficult to floss with braces, really. You get the hang of it really quick. I sit and watch TV with a hand mirror between my knees and floss in 5 minutes.
And all food can make plaque and ick between your teeth..lol. I use my RediBreeze after every thing I eat. I haven't had any build up on my teeth. Also Piksters, size 5 or 6 clean between the brackets really well. You'll be fine. The first month is the worse, after that you have the hang of it and forget about the braces all together.

[seriousthinker]

Hi,

I was worried pre-braces and the discomfort lasted a week max and now I eat everything, even forbidden foods. I carry a pocket mirror, swish water around and brush, use interdental brush 2-4x per day and floss every night and sometimes on a morning too. I'm mortified if I see food hanging around but couldn't possibly live off of soup, I'm not a soup fan at all unless it's chunky soup lol

[ellem]

Five minutes to floss? I'm suddenly feeling a bit better^^ So good to know things aren't as dire as I thought... I'm still glad I bought the smoothie maker, even my husband is starting to become more interested in what I've been making... truth be told however it's a relief to know flossing isn't such a huge chore... I really hate doing it w/o braces (but make sure I do it EVERY night!!) so the thought of finagling all the brackets was worrisome...

Forbidden foods? Even popcorn? I can give up crunching ice, eating peanuts, etc. but popcorn i LOVE... the week before getting my spacers I had popcorn for dinner three nights... (how embarrassing, haha!)... I read the teeny lil hard shells from the kernels could get stuck...

maybe my life won't change as *much* as I had thought, thanks so much for sharing your experiences!!!

[ashesgap]

With how easy it is for me to floss now, I wonder why I didnt' do it more before braces. I was doing it about 3 days a week, and now I floss every night. Once you get the hang of going between the brackets, it's very easy. I have read on here that some people have a hard time getting to their back molars. Maybe having smaller fingers makes it easier for me, but i've never had an issue.
I haven't given up popcorn completely. I have a peanut butter popcorn recipe that I love and my girls ask for it all the time. If I use my RediBreeze right away, I get almost all the popcorn off the braces. Then when I floss I get anything that might have been left behind, although usually theres not much there. The hardest thing for me to eat are Milky Ways. Its like the carmel is too thick, and my teeth are too weak to pull apart after trying to chew. Its a little sad, the first one I tried after braces made me cry.
Another thing is ribs. I love them, but don't want to accidentally scrape a bone and bust a bracket off. So I just change any recipes to boneless. Made pineapple glazed ribs yesterday in the crockpot, and used boneless...They were so good and very easy to eat.
Like I said, you'll get the hang of the changes and after a while completely forget you have braces. I know that sounds crazy, "How do I forget the metal in my mouth?" But you will.

[ellem]

Your girls are lucky to get such yummy things made for them^^

I flossed every single night before starting all this so I was sort of hoping I could get a break, haha-- apparently I still need to floss though so good thing I've already trained myself to do it... I can imagine how some guys w/ huge hands have a problem, I notice when the dentist has big hands = not good, small hands = easier to get in there!

[threescompany]

The flossing isn't so bad, really. I have a pack of threaded floss, and I'm getting faster. I was really bad about flossing before so this is actually good for me!

I work in a school, and yes, the teens can have gunky braces. I attribute that to them not brushing after they eat. That can be hard to do during a typical school day. I find that giving my mouth a really good rinse after I eat takes care of most of it, but I do try not to eat foods there that I know will leave a mess. I'm gradually learning which those are.

[aliceayres]

SPACERS HURT LIKE THE DICKENS, gets better after about 5 days though. The thing that is driving me crazy about them is the feeling that they are crammed in there and you CANT get them out.... A healthy mixture of anxiety and painful. I wouldn't worry too much about the decay, if you are hurting pretty bad you must have tight contacts. Stay strong