Transpalatal Arch Device Torture (desperate!)

Message

#1 Post by **rafs** » Sat Aug 04, 2007 5:16 pm

Hello:

I am new to the forum, first post, have been reading it for a few days.

This is my 2nd go around at braces, i had them for a very brief and painless period when i was a teenager to correct a problem with my 2 front teeth, and I am 34 now. This time it's to correct something in my bite which is causing me to clinch my teeth too much and thus break and erode.

So I got braces about 6 weeks ago and it was going alright, some discomfort and a protruding wire but i was generally handling it. Then on thursday my ortho put on this TPA thing and it's driving me insane. I don't know how i will be able to handle this for 3 months. My tongue hurts like nothing has ever hurt before and swallowing is very difficult. I'm taking saltwater, pain pills and that spray to mitigate the pain and all of them work for a couple of hours and then it wears off and the pain comes back.

So the question is, anyone have any advice on how to deal with this? how long until you get used to this? will my tongue ever stop hurting? i'm not even worrying about food getting stuck on the device or not being able to eat some things, i just want the pain to stop.

Rafs

#2 Post by **platinum** » Sat Aug 04, 2007 8:15 pm

I dont really know what for people have those TPAs, but you could ask your ortho replace it with something else that is not so painful.

#3 Post by **Lisa65** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 3:23 am

I'm wincing in sympathy because I remember that feeling well. It does seem like torture to begin with. The pain in the tongue almost feels like it's been burned or something. But it WILL stop. Within a week or so, your tongue will have got used to the device and it should no longer bother you. Any other problems such as trouble swallowing and/or gagging should gradually improve too.

Like Meryaten says, plenty of us have expanders, pendulum devices, TPA's etc, and most people have complained of initial pain in the mouth and tongue, but we all get used to it in the end. The improvement in my case was almost overnight. I just woke up one morning and realised the darn thing didn't hurt anymore.

Hang in there, and carry on doing your salt water rinses and sprays if they help a bit during these first few days.

#4 Post by **Stich** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 6:34 am

I second the wincing in sympathy. When I first got my TPA device I felt like I was choking anytime I ate and yes, the tongue pain. But like Lisa said, it does get better. Your mouth just adapts. Even though I never really got where I could foget it was in my mouth, the discomfort did go away in about two weeks.

Hang in there.

#5 Post by **Filip** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 8:11 am

Hey fellow TPA suffer !

I first had an RPE expander for 5 months, removed 2 weeks ago, and exchanged for a TPA molar rotator that I need to wear for another 5 weeks (hopefully). When I got the TPA 2 weeks ago, I was in severe, severe tongue pain for 3 days - then I couldn't take it anymore so I went to the Ortho for an emergency visit.

Try this, figure out what parts of the TPA that are causing you problems and if these are bendable. My OD bent upwards the two parts that were chafing my tongue (the 2 parts that point towards my throat, check out my story for a photo of the molar rotator TPA). By bending them upwards, towards the roof of the mouth, my tongue can now perform the critical act of swallowing with only limited contact with the "sharp" edges, i.e. less roughing. In short, bend the horizontal TPA parts upwards so they don't cut into the tongue.

Depending on what parts are roughing your tongue, there is also some plastic/ceramic that the OD can paste on top of sharp parts and then it hardens to protect your mouth. You can see an expample of this on my site, from March when the RPE expansion was completed and the OD wire-locked the RPE for healing. They used such paste to cover the metal thread.

I would recommed having your OD do the bending so that if it breaks (unlikely), you don't get charged extra, or your OD thinks you have interfered with the treatment.

#6 Post by **rafs** » Sun Aug 05, 2007 2:30 pm

thanks for all the replies. i will ty to see my ortho about bending this thing a little bit to reduce contact with the tongue. i have an impression of the device on it that keeps getting nastier every time i see it. hopefully things will start to settle down soon.

#7 Post by **NotBob1** » Tue Aug 07, 2007 4:02 pm

I had a TPA as a younger person and I remember how sore it made my molars! Currently I have elastic buttons on the inside of my molars and elastics pulling to do (what I assume is) the same thing. If this does not work, then it is back to the TPA....

You will survive, and it will get better. You will learn to talk around it and it won't be pushing out so hard after awhile.

It's worth it!

#8 Post by **Graceful58** » Tue Aug 07, 2007 5:05 pm

Oh...I so sympathize with you...but hold in there for it does get better. I have an upper and lower expander in and it was no picnic at the beginning. Now I don't even really think about it much until it comes to eating...then I get all sorts of food stuck in it. Otherwise it's not bad as all.

#9 Post by **Clo** » Wed Aug 08, 2007 10:05 am

I had also a TPA. First day was ok. Then everyday the pain got worse. No
sharp edges or anything, just a deep impression of it in my tongue. At day
10, just when I thought I couldn't stand it anymore, all pain was gone. The
impression was still there, but it stopped hurting. Then there were some
weeks when I could tolerate the TPA very well. Then the situation reversed.
My teeth and arch did hurt when they took out the TPA (because it broke
and I needed a new one). I was relieved when the new one was installed. So,
probably you will get used to it too very soon. Try to give it some more time.

#10 Post by **ctoler1920** » Wed Aug 08, 2007 11:03 am

I totally understand where you are coming from. I had my expander in for several months and I was very angery the first month because of the uncomfortable feeling. After a while your tongue will get use to the foreign object being there and your silivia output will be minimal. My only piece of advice is not to go to your dental visits thinking that you are going to get the expander removed, it is only false hope. I did that for several months and was disappointed everytime.

Clo is correct that when you have it removed your tongue will have to readjust and you will have a deep impression on the roof of your mouth.
I hope your time flies by!!!!

#11 Post by **rafs** » Thu Aug 09, 2007 4:16 am

i'm trying, today is day 8 with the device and i've lost approximately 7 pounds since i got it. i guess i have gotten a little bit used to it but there is still a lot of pain and eating anything other than liquids and puree is still impossible. i'm trying to stay away from painkillers today and see how it goes.

#12 Post by **Filip** » Thu Aug 09, 2007 12:34 pm

Rafs, just to let you know.
Today I had another emergency appointment due to the TPA, which now was pointing into my toungue everytime I swallowed, with another part, not the one they fixed 2 weeks ago. Now it was the little "V"/arrowhead that faces my front teeth, which was digging itself into my tongue and leaving a picture perfect impression of the TPA in my tongue.

I've been in real pain the last 3 days and I finally couldn't take it (I tend to stick it out with pain, but this was just too much). And since my OD closes the coming 2 weeks for vacation, I feared I wouldn't be able to eat for the next 2 weeks. And my tongue was also swelling. Not good I figured.

The quick fix was my own invention - to use the same plastic paste they used to protect the mouth from the RPE-locking wire. I had to convince the assistant (who was alone in the office this week while the rest are on vacation) to use this unconventional method. A little click of plastic, the blue-light gun to harden it - and presto! Night and day. This may be an option for you.

I'll try and post a picture over the weekend on my page.

#13 Post by **rafs** » Fri Aug 10, 2007 4:41 pm

i'm free! im free! ... my ortho finally saw me today and immediately realized something was wrong and removed the TPA. she said she will wait for the tongue to heal and put it on again but with a different shape that will not hurt so much. i'm kind of mad but also so incredibly releived that this pain is gone and i can eat again.