I'm a novice and could do with some help!

[purple]

I have crowding on the bottom and an overbite and when i was a kid they wanted to remove four teeth - my mother said no way and so here i am at 30 finally enough saved, and i said take the four teeth - I have plenty more!!

I got the braces on yesterday, my teeth are a little tender to say the least and I am incredibly grumpy!

I have read the articles that said the wire at the back can cut your cheeks after they start to move, but mine are cutting into my cheeks 24 hours later, so i can only assume this is not normal?

Also, due to the position of the lower brackets, my molars no longer meet which means i cant chew - at all. Is this also normal?
I mentioned it to the orthodontist yesterday but she suggested a liquid diet. Am I to subject myself to babyfood for two years!!?

I can live without popcorn (barely) but surely blending my food shouldnt be an ongoing thing....

All suggestions greatly appreciated!

P

[Dark_angel]

HI, first of all having 4 teeth removed is no picknick, i know. But well done for taking the plunge. The gaps need to be looked after for a while so salt water rinses and make sure to clean out all the food that collects in them.

Give your mouth some time to get used to having the braces, trust me it wont be like this forever, normally a week of discomfort or so then you'll probably forget you even have them.

Not being able to bite properly can be a problem for some but in time your bite will change and you'll be able to chew again, you should start to see changes in the next few weeks and you'll be back to pizza and greggs (if there is one in dublin) really soon.

IF the wire is still annoying you in a few days call them and ask to have it snipped off, mine is driving me crazy atm but ive bent it down a little and on friday it will be sorted out.

Oh and a note about the popcorn, its still edible, i eat everything your not supposed too. Toffee popcorn is so gorgeous.

I can reccomend taking some photos so you can see the changes in 3 months, 6 months etc

[KJM]

I have read the articles that said the wire at the back can cut your cheeks after they start to move, but mine are cutting into my cheeks 24 hours later, so i can only assume this is not normal?

Dont worry, this IS normal. It means your teeth are moving. Call your ortho and see if you can come in and have it clipped. Some people clip their own, but I never have and my ortho is great about getting me in to get them clipped when I need it.

The first couple days I couldnt bite down either, but it sorted itself out within a week or so and I was back on regular food. Dont worry though, until then you can have soft food that doesnt require you to chew much ( something you can mush around in your mouth wiht your tounge) I ate a bunch of Macaroni and Cheese and soups the frist week, along with McDonalds parfaits, ice cream, and any other yummy things like pasta that were soft.
Make sure your taking ibuprofin, waxing up and doing salt water rinses. It WILL be better soon!! Hang in there!!

[lionfish]

Poking wires become a way of life - LOL!

You will soon progress to more substantial foods. I had two new wires put in on Monday plus a couple of partial powerchains, and I was feeling a bit tender. I stuck to soft foods (meatloaf, spinach quiche - sans crust) but 48 hours later all is fine.

Just give it time.

[purple]

Thank you all so much for the helpful advice, its great to know it will get better...

I had to go back to the ortho this morning as a back bracket popped off.
I asked her about the wires but she said they were clipped back as far as they could go

I tried bending them back (thanks for that suggestion) but they wont budge! So its put up and shut up!

As a consolation, i treated myself to Muffins and jam doughnuts this morning which were soft and yummy!!!

On the plus side, i cant bite my nails so even if my mouth looks crap, my nails will look great!