How fast do elastics work?

[duherro]

My next appointment was scheduled to be 5 weeks, but I see heaps of people on the board having to say "yay ,its 3 months and I can see progress " etc. Does 5 weeks seem useless?

[kennyandrew85]

I've had elastics on one side of my mouth for over a year, and to be totally honest I've not noticed anything change but I'm sure it has as I'm nearly finished.

There are many uses for them so some people will notice changes and others won't.
I think I had them to stop my teeth rotating round while a gap closed.

[duherro]

also is it normal if... l smile , then only my front teeth touch while my back don't touch? The back only touches if I bite hard or intentionally do it.

[sirwired]

Elastics do not generally cause changes as dramatic as, say, the first archwire. They are generally used later in the treatment plan when the "natural" lining up of the teeth on the wire has already done most of the work. Elastics are usually used for some of the more subtle (but VERY) important changes that are not as cosmetically apparent.

[duherro]

Elastics do not generally cause changes as dramatic as, say, the first archwire. They are generally used later in the treatment plan when the "natural" lining up of the teeth on the wire has already done most of the work. Elastics are usually used for some of the more subtle (but VERY) important changes that are not as cosmetically apparent.

Yeah I already have been using elastics before, but I am wondering how fast do they work since my next app is only 5 weeks :/

[kt87]

I think it will differ for everyone. I have been using an elastic for a cross bite day and night since I got the braces put on and I went back for a checkup after about 5-6 weeks and he noticed a fair amount of difference

[duherro]

I think it will differ for everyone. I have been using an elastic for a cross bite day and night since I got the braces put on and I went back for a checkup after about 5-6 weeks and he noticed a fair amount of difference

Yeah atm, i got elastics for a crossbite, i hate them , sometimes pop off during my sleep -.-

[kt87]

I hate it too. Its so hard to get used too, I sill lisp sometimes and it irritates my tongue Just have to think of the final product I guess.
That must really annoy you! Have you spoken to your orthodontist about it? My one seems to hook in really well and hasn't come off yet *touch wood*

[plugnickel69]

I could feel changes in my bite from my elastics in two days. Most of my adjustments have been a month apart, twice they told me to come back in two weeks, a few times in three weeks, and I can only remember one six-week interval, and that was after the appointment when I got elastics for the first time.

[duherro]

I have elastics for cross bite, but how does one know if their bite is getting more and more correct? I haven't took any pictures of my teeth so its hard to tell T_T

Also another important issue is that when I wear elastics, one side feels it has more pressure :/

[kt87]

I can feel the difference when i close my mouth because the teeth are starting to touch in a different position

[duherro]

Also a strange issue, in my relaxed state, my lower jaw goes more to the right , I thought i had a normal aligned jaw to the eye but somehow my lower jaw slowly moves to the right :/

[EbonyQ]

My first three weeks were very slow, really I did not see any changes at all. Remember boss asked me about if I saw any changes with my elastic and I told him no, I did not think they worked for me.
But then the next day I woke up and looked at my teeth in the mirrow and boom!

My canine is being moved back (I use class II elastics) and have interdental brushes in different sizes to see how big the gap between my canine and the tooth infront of it is.
When I got the blue one in between them I was very happy (0,6 mm) and two days later I could get the yellow between them (0,7mm) and the next day the green (0,8).
I´m waiting for the next size to fit purple (1,1 mm) and can´t wait to get that one between them (it sounds silly but it´s so fun to use them to see how much the canine has moved, it gives more motivation to use the elastic)

The biggest size I have is gray ( 1,3 mm) so when I´m past that one I can no longer have the fun to mezure the gap. I´m hoping to get to at least the purple before my next adjusmet in about a week (it´s then 6 weeks since the last adjusment) but it´s my teeth who has to want to move that much, not something I can do other than wearing my elatics as my ortho told me

So my canine is moving very fast and it´s easy for me to see it because of the gap infront of the canine which gets bigger as the canine is being moved back. If it had not been for this gap I don´t think I would be able to see this movement

[duherro]

Wow so you literally didn't see much change in first 3 weeks then next day you did!??? Wow haha, maybe there were changes but it was just subtly and built up until you could see the "real" change.


Uhhh, idk how a normal bite feels , because I am scared of over-correction :/

[emoticon1234]

There will be some weeks where my teeth feel funny and different than they did the night before. I'm at 8 weeks on class II box elastics right now.