This is the place to post general questions and comments about all areas of orthodontic treatment. Before you post a question, use the forum's SEARCH tool to see if your question has already been answered!
New Members: YOU MUST MAKE A POST WITHIN 24 HOURS OF REGISTERING OR YOUR ACCOUNT WILL BE DELETED. In other words, don't sign up unless you plan to actively participate in the message board immediately. This is necessary to keep out spammers and lurkers with bad intentions. Of course, you can read most forums on the board without registering.
DO NOT POST FULL-FACE PHOTOS or personal contact information on this website. We have had problems with people re-posting members' photos on fetish websites. Please only post photos of your teeth, not your whole face. Keep your email and your personal information private. Thank you.
I am a 22 year old female. I also have put off getting braces for years because of the cost and just simply putting it off.
I have severe crowing and an overbite. (I used to suck my thumb to sleep 'till I was 12, I am sure that had alot to do with it)
I just got my spacers in on Tuesday. At first he told me a week but once the ortho put them in and had trouble, he suggested 2 weeks instead.
The spacers really suck but I am getting used to them and the soreness is going away.
I also have to have 2 teeth removed but AFTER the braces get put in.
I actually am VERY excited to get them in, I decided for the clear on both top and bottom.
I guess my question is, as silly as it may be...has anyone ever found a way to get the spacers off or say thay came off early to have the braces put in sooner? LOL
Sure you could pull out the spacers, but the fact remains that they are there for a reason. Your ortho needs to create enough space to put on the bands for your braces. If there isn't enough space, he/she will just put the spacers back in and you will still end up waiting. Sorry. I had to wear mine for about a week and a half. Seems so funny, I waited 40 years to get braces, but that week and a half seemed to drag on forever! Hang in there. You will be braced before you know it! Good luck!
LOL, I know what you mean about spacers. They feel awful but they are necessary because otherwise your ortho won't be able to get your molar bands into the gaps. Even after 2 weeks of spacers, it might still be a tight ffit and if you remove them early the bands might not go in at all! However tempting it is to pull the spacers out, resist the urge because all your ortho would probably do is put them back in until your brace-day.
You'll be in braces long enough! Another week of waiting won't hurt
My spacers will be in for 3 1/2 weeks before I get my braces. I had spacers on the uppers for 10 days then went in for a RPE fit then they put the spacers on both upper and lower for another 2 weeks. After the difficult time they had fitting the bands for the RPE I quit complaining about spacers even though they hurt so bad that I can only chew soft foods. 12 more days of waiting for me so I know exactly how you feel.
I was originally slated to have spacers in for one month (busy ortho's office), but after a week and a half I was so sick of them that I called the ortho and begged with the scheduler to squeeze me in sooner. She took pity and gave me an earlier appointment. I was so excited because I thought that meant I would get my braces sooner. No such luck. They sat me down, took the spacers out and replaced them with molar bands and sent me on my way. Then I had to make a whole other appointment to get the rest of the braces on, so I ended up waiting longer to get braces than I would have orginally if I hadn't called in! It was my first lesson in braces 101 - patience is a virtue!
My advice - continue to take anti-inflammatories and wait it out. Two weeks will go by before you know it, and the pain will eventually subside.
Good luck and congrats on the start of your braces journey!
Top brackets and spacers on 2/17/06
Molar bands on 3/6/06
Extractions and full braces 3/27/06
Update: 22-24 months total time in braces!
I had spacers around only one tooth because my teeth were so tight they couldn't get them in. I still only have 1 band and that is around a crown that I have.
Anyway, - my spacers were in for one week and they told me they might fall out and not to worry about it. Well they didn't fall out. I had one metal and one rubber spacer. After a week it was not bad at all for me. Annoying but not painful. If I had had four teeth that needed spacers around them it would have been really tough.
My daughter - different ortho - got spacers and they showed me how to put them back in should they fall out. I think she only went one week too. It is hard to remember
I also had 2 weeks to endure with spacers. The first 2-3 days were painful . I've read so many posts that say that spacers were the worst part of treatment. From my experience I have to say no. After about 10 days of having spacers on ,the spacers were not stretched out anymore and shrunk and were loose. One of them did come off when I used my waterpik the day before my 2wk appt. I simply put it in with my fingernails. Some people have taken them out and the spacer created started to close a bit. It really is best to leave them in until your appointment. Trust me , you do not want the bands shoved down because that does hurt!
Please keep them on.
I had spacers put in my bottom teeth and kept going back every week and my teeth were still too tight I ended up having to have copper wire put between my teeth and that was there for about three months.
Don't pull the spacers out. If your orthodontist initially said one week with the spacers and found getting the spacers in was a bit difficult and postponed you getting the braces for 2 weeks, he is probably recommending this from experience. There's always the chance, he will just put the spacers back in because if the space is too tight it will make it difficult for him and probably create more discomfort for you. The date will come sooner than you think.
At my last adjustment appt., my orthodontist said I will get my lower braces at my next appt. in 7 weeks. I also felt that was a long time and wished the time will go by quickly. I think he didn't suggest me coming in earlier because he wanted to do my adjustments on the upper and lower at the same time for future appts. As the date comes closer, 9/7/06, I am now getting a little nervous - not sure why because I have had no pain or discomfort from the upper braces. I think it is due to getting more braces and the visibility of the brackets. I'm sure I will adjust to the lower braces as I had with the upper braces .
