Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

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TheKT
Posts: 184
Joined: Thu Dec 19, 2013 4:44 pm

Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#1 Post by TheKT »

I just got my braces on yesterday and have to wear rubber bands. Question for you...if I were to take my rubber bands off for a day of meetings would I loose a lot of time? I don't feel comfortable wearing them at this executive meeting I am attending. Your thoughts? Do any of you take them out now and then? Thanks much!
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TheKT
Posts: 184
Joined: Thu Dec 19, 2013 4:44 pm

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#2 Post by TheKT »

[quote="TheKT"]I just got my braces on yesterday and have to wear rubber bands. Question for you...if I were to take my rubber bands off for a day of meetings would I loose a lot of time? I don't feel comfortable wearing them at this executive meeting I am attending. Your thoughts? Do any of you take them out now and then? Thanks much![/quote]. Lose ...not loose :-)
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WiredOldLady
Posts: 95
Joined: Fri Sep 06, 2013 9:01 pm
Location: Arizona

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#3 Post by WiredOldLady »

I'd leave them on. If someone is uncomfortable or "doesn't like it", that's their problem. You were told by your ortho to wear them. If anybody says anything, then the response is "doctor's orders".
Braces off on 8/26/14 after a year!
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klobird
Posts: 1375
Joined: Mon Apr 11, 2011 5:45 pm
Location: Washington State, USA

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#4 Post by klobird »

I had elastics the entire time I was in braces (2 years). I think the longest mine were ever out was about 90 minutes. From what I've heard, you lose a lot of progress by taking them out for longer periods of time. Elastics probably aren't going to be the only visible/impairing thing you're not going to want during your stay in braces, but it's just part of the process you signed up for. Believe me--if you're confident, that's what people will notice. Good luck! :thumbsup:
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sirwired
Posts: 2104
Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2008 10:05 am

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#5 Post by sirwired »

One source I read said the rate of lost progress was about 3:1. As in, you take them out for an hour, you lose three hours of progress. You take them out for 24, you lose three days of progress.

Unless your ortho has inexplicably given you crazy colors or a very strange configuration, they aren't nearly as noticeable as you think they are. My job also involves a lot of meeting with people that make a lot more than I do, and none of my ortho has ever been a problem. Even when I had a jaw splint and had to talk slowly to be understood.
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chichi
Posts: 485
Joined: Tue Aug 23, 2005 12:44 pm
Location: East Coast, USA

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#6 Post by chichi »

TheKT wrote:I just got my braces on yesterday and have to wear rubber bands. Question for you...if I were to take my rubber bands off for a day of meetings would I loose a lot of time? I don't feel comfortable wearing them at this executive meeting I am attending. Your thoughts? Do any of you take them out now and then? Thanks much!
I wear mine as long as I possibly can. Don't get me wrong... I hate them because people do seem to notice them and I catch people staring at my mouth more now that I have to wear them, but the quickest way to get rid of them is to wear them as prescribed by your ortho.
Had Damons (ceramic upper, metal lower) from June 27, 2013 - January 20, 2015
15-18 month sentence, official time in braces was 18 months, 3 weeks, 3 days
My Story: http://www.archwired.com/phpbb2/viewtop ... =9&t=45054
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Snowglobe32
Posts: 1224
Joined: Fri Oct 02, 2009 9:05 pm

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#7 Post by Snowglobe32 »

TheKT wrote:I just got my braces on yesterday and have to wear rubber bands. Question for you...if I were to take my rubber bands off for a day of meetings would I loose a lot of time? I don't feel comfortable wearing them at this executive meeting I am attending. Your thoughts? Do any of you take them out now and then? Thanks much!

I think it would depend on when the meeting is and how long you plan on not wearing them. Answer those and I will give you my "expert" opinion. :wink:
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BracesB4Thirty
Posts: 74
Joined: Thu Nov 14, 2013 12:36 am

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#8 Post by BracesB4Thirty »

There shouldn't be a reason to take them out for a full day, just remove them for the duration of your meeting and make sure you wear them at night when you go to sleep. I also don't wear mine for executive meetings but I wear them for normal work days and I most definitely sleep with them on at night without fail. Enjoy..
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TheKT
Posts: 184
Joined: Thu Dec 19, 2013 4:44 pm

Re: Rubber Bands - take off for awhile?

#9 Post by TheKT »

Thanks everyone for posting your comments
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