Going into my first adjustment today with tons of questions!

[yeahtam]

Did anyone else experience gaps that were not there before? I have a gap in my bottom teeth that wasn't there before I got my braces and it feels so uncomfortable. I have noticed that my bottom teeth have shifter more noticeably than my upper teeth. Sometimes I wonder if these braces are doing more harm than good. Hopefully my ortho can give me better feed back at my first adjustment visit today. Not looking forward to the pain as I have gotten used to being able to eat like a normal person. Only 17 more months of treatment to go.

Just had to vent :)

[oktobergoud]

Don't worry, everything will go back to it's right place at the end anyway! Sometimes some tooth needs to move, so it will create a gap and might look ugly, but it's needed! It will go back to the right place, it was just needed to move first because of the position of a different tooth. I hope I make sense! Long story short: don't worry, those gaps will close up! Sometimes it just needs to get worse first, before it gets better.

Good luck!

[udubdave]

My bottom teeth were terribly crowded. When they started to move, I noticed a huge gap that wasn't there before, but I think that gap was only created to allow the other teeth to move properly. The gap closed up quickly after they gave me power chains. Now my bottom row is almost completely straight.

[ITALIANNYC]

My first adjustment was the worst one. Hurt like a mother **********. Just had my 5th today. Barely feel it anymore unless they are streching the powerchain. Hope it went well for you

[yeahtam]

Thanks everyone for your responses! I thought I was going crazy over the gap but it makes sense for the gap to be there so that the other teeth can move into place. My adjustment only lasted 10 minutes!!! I don't know why I expected to be there longer than that but again, I am still new to all of this. I think I have the best orthodontist team/office ever. The only time that I felt pain was when she tightened one of the brackets on the lower front teeth where the gap is. Hours later as I type this and the pain is minimal to none. The technician also told me I was doing a great job with keeping my braces clean which was also good to hear - I keep my "brace cleaning kit" with me every where I go. Before I left I was looked over by one of the docs and he said that my teeth were going to look great! I am so happy that I finally got my braces. People don't understand how much I hid for nearly 20 years because of my overbite by not taking pictures and etc. Feels good to finally be able to move forward with what I want to do with my life.

And thanks to everyone here for your responses! It's nice to read other stories and know that I am not alone with my treatment :)

[Sita]

It's normal. In the beginning I had gaps appear where there weren't any before. Now some of my teeth overlap where they didn't before. It's quite normal for teeth to get worse before they get better.

As for the pain I found that the first adjustment was the worst and the second one not quite as bad, but almost. The third and fourth were almost completely pain free. It's different for everyone of course but I think that normally it gets better as time go on.

[WiredJon]

I have my first adjustment on Monday and I'm really not looking forward to it. I'm going to need to stock up on painkillers over the weekend (or rum, though that may get me into trouble at work!)