First "Adjustment/tightening" coming up...

[Lux]

Hi All,
I've had my braces almost a month now... and this coming Wednesday, I have my first adjustment/tightening.

I need to get something out: I AM SCARED.

When they were putting the braces on, I didn't feel any pain - except, when they put the arch wire on my bottom row, and tightened them, there was a couple teeth that I felt everything. It hurt really really badly. Crowding is my issue.... and she just kept using the little tool where they turn it (don't know what it's called) and on a couple teeth on my bottom row, I went "Ahh!!" and she was like "I know, I'm sorry! Its just a couple teeth down here that you're gonna feel probably".

So I imagine at my adjustment, that's what they're going to do again... and I'm scared. Let me tell you - I am a complete baby when it comes to pain.. so I'm wondering if anyone has any tips.. this is my first tightening or adjustment or whatever it's called, and I just do not know what to expect.

What will they do?
How long will it take?
Should I take something before I go in? Whats the best thing to take, advil/tylenol? and how long before my appointment should I take it... if I do take it, will it even do anything?

I really would appreciate some insight!

Thank you :)

[LoveOrtho]

Hi Lux,
As you can probably tell by my ticker I've had braces for a LONG time, and I still remember my first adjustment. It was no big deal to me and I never take any pain meds but if you are afraid that it will hurt then maybe take some before you leave. Maybe like 30 mins before?
At the appt. all they did was check how my teeth were moving and just like you I was dealing with crowding. Then they took my wires out and put in stronger ones, which was a bit sore and tight but nothing unbearable. I think it took maybe 10-15 minutes maximum, but it all depends on what your getting done. All my adjustments have been pretty short (under 20 mins).

Hope that helped and there is nothing to be scared about,
LoveOrtho

[Lux]

Thank you for the reassuring words!! :)

[Bracer215]

Hi Lux
Like LoveOrtho, my first adjustment at 8 weeks in was quite short and no pain at all. All they did was change the ligs and check to see how things were going.
Let us know how you make out.

[sirwired]

When dealing with general aches you are pretty sure are going to happen, the best thing is to "stay ahead of the pain." At the least, take four Ibuprofen (with your doctor's OK, as that exceeds the labeled OTC dose) about an hour before your appointment, and keep up the higher dosage afterwards until the pain subsides.

Advil/Aspirin/Aleve are certainly better then Tylenol, if you have clearance from your doctor to take doses higher than OTC numbers. Advil/Aspirin/Aleve are in a class of drugs called Non-Steroidal-Anti-Inflammatory-Drugs (NSAIDs); at higher than OTC doses, they inhibit inflammation. (At OTC doses, they do not have a significant anti-inflammatory effect, and are simple pain relievers with approximately the same effectiveness as Tylenol.) NSAIDs have well-known long-term effects on the stomach lining, which is why the OTC doses are not higher.

If you have prescription narcotics, by all means use them if you can do so safely.

[Lux]

Thanks for the advice!! I will definitely load up on the ibuprofen before hand then. I know when I first got my braces on, I was popping them like candies after the fitting!

[Jano]

Hi Lux... I had my first adjustment at 2 weeks and i was a bit scared of what was going to happen . Wasnt scary at all . Only took 15 minutes . First the technician came in and looked and asked if anything had broken or snapped or if I had any problems . Then she took my photos into the ortho's room and I twiddled my thumbs looking out the window for 5 minutes . Then he came in and looked and said hmmm hmmm and got a little pair of snippy things and click , click off came the lower wire and on went another one ( 2 minutes ) , then sort of popped on some little rubber rings on the lower ones . ( 4 minutes) . That seemed ok . But later that night I felt a bit "squeezed" in the lower teeth and then the next 48 hours I sort of leaned towards things I didnt need to bite .
No pain killers , but I recall I was a bit irritable and had a bit of a headache on day 2 . so maybe an aspirin would have helped .
Let us know how it goes .. good luck for Wednesday

[Lux]

Thank you Jano, for the reassurance. That doesn't sound too bad!

Thanks everyone again for your advice, I really appreciate it. I am a 23 year old baby (ha ha)... I tend to over think/over react and think things are going to be much worse than they are. I psych myself out. So it's good to read here that it's probably not going to be bad!

I will let you know on Wednesday after it's done.

[reynolk]

Hi Lux,
I just got my braces tightened last night. My ortho didn't change the arch wire, but I did get powerchains. It wasn't painful at all, just a slight discomfort. Like everyone has said, if you take a couple of Advil prior to your appointment you'll be fine. Good luck