Metal Mouth Message Board

I'm a bit worried. I have my first adjustment tomorrow. I've read how much it hurts and I'm going on holiday next week Is there much chance that they will change things dramatically?

Try not to stress out about it, willz. It may not hurt at all. And if it does, it will settle down within a few days. Think about your holiday, rather; I'm thinking about mine in 3 days time!

please tell me all about your adjustment once you have it. My is in three weeks time.

Hey. I had my first ajustment today and I'm going away on vacations this Friday. At the moment it's a bit painfull but it's doesn't hurt too bad. I wouldn't worry to much, just take some tylenoll in case the pain gets very strong.
Good luck!

Joanna

I've found that whether or not an adjustment hurts depends on what the ortho is doing.

On my first adjustment, they only changed the ligatures - no new wire. So my teeth didn't hurt at all afterward.

My second adjustment involved changing the archwire to a slightly stronger one, so it was a bit painful afterward as my teeth got used to the greater pressure. The good news is that the pain went away after less than a day.

You may want to find out ahead of time what your ortho is going to do. You can also take pain medication before the appointment and keep taking it at the intervals in the directions to lessen the pain altogether. One of the most underappreciated facts about pain meds is that they are much better at keeping the pain from happening in the first place than they are at stopping the pain once it starts.

Let us know how your first adjustment goes. I get my 1st adjustment on July 21st. I know I am getting a new wire at my adjustment.....hope it doesn't hurt too much.

Omg! I was in tears it hurt so much. He changed the wire and was so rough! I'm in a fair bit of pain now. Before now I didn't have wire attached to the far brackets, he did that today. Now the wire is sharp and sticking into my cheek And the stupid wax won't stay on.

When new teeth are added to the wire pain is to be expected but it will settle down in a few days. As for the poking wire, it may just be because it is further back than you are used to. Give it a few days and if its still bothering you give the ortho a call and get the wire trimmed.

Enjoy your holliday

Call your ortho's office and see if you can get the wire trimmed, willz.

I did tell him I thought they were poking too much and he said there was nothing he could do. I don't really like him very much. They hardly say anything to me while i'm there and make me feel silly for asking questions. When I went to my normal dentist a few weeks ago he was commenting how much my teeth had moved, the ortho didn't say a thing today!

Willz - Your ortho should see you asap for a quick visit to clip your wires. They often don't poke out until a few days AFTER you have the wire in, so even if you carefully check, you can still have a wire move. I've even had my wire begin to poke out a few hours after I have left the office. It happens to many of us and it's nothing your ortho can't take care of in a 2 minute appointment.

I've had tons of wire changes along the way but I think I was feeling better from the worst in about 5 days. Hang in there. Your teeth eventually get used to the wire (then you will probably start over with another one LOL )

Ouch. Sorry your adjustment was painful and that your ortho didn't cut the excess wire off. He should've and I hope you get that taken care of. I have my first adjustment tomorrow and reading this thread gave me some tips. I hope the pain subsides soon. Hang in there, Willz.

Well I rang this morning and the receptionist got me in straight away. The dentist tech looked at my teeth and goes "gee they are a bit long aren't they" and she clipped them. Why couldn't the ortho have done that yesterday?

Its still a bit sharp, but not to bad. I'd like to know more about the polishing tool. They didn't say anything about that, everything seems like too much trouble for them. I'm not impressed

Hi Willz

Sorry your adjustment went bad... My first djustment was terrible.. Just like yours.. It does get better though. My second adjustment was fine.. My ortho made me sit in the chair for a few minutes and open and close my mouth etc to see if any wires were poking about..

Keep your chin up It does get better..

Make sure you go and see whether a wire can be trimmed as mine from my first adjustment were causing problems for two days after.. I had to have my wire trimmed..

One thing I have learned to do before leaving the chair is to take my tongue and feel all my brackets, even the front ones, as I have discovered that even a misplaced lig can rub me like a wire. That is, there may be a little piece that sticks out from the lig from where they pulled it off the lig holder thingie. THEN, I take my finger and feel at the back of my buccal tubes. If there is anything remotely sharp I tell the tech and she fixes it then and there. They have two kinds of wire cutters and one of them actually can go into the buccal tube to trim the wire.

Since I have started doing that, I have not had to go into their office between visits to clip a wire or replace a poking lig.

I agree with KK: be insistent. Ask why, why not, when, how...anything that comes to mind. They work for you, not the other way around.