Spacers and Pain

[amy]

I had eight spacers put in my top and bottom teeth about 5 days ago. I had already had spacers put in on the top for an expander which was placed and then removed. However, once the expander was removed, spacers were reinserted.

After five days, most of the pain is gone, though my teeth are a little sensitive. However, one tooth, my far back top molar, is really sensitive. It hurts to even touch. I'm a little worried since my expander didn't work and was pushing on my teeth for about a week before being removed. Also, about two weeks ago I had some cavities filled and I'm unsure if this tooth was among them.

Is this something I should contact my dentist about? Should I just hold out and hope the pain goes away? Anyone else deal with a similar problem?

[Kitagirl]

I would say if it doesn't go away in a week or so you should ask. There have been times I thought I had a bad problem, a tooth would hurt really bad....but if you are sure its all cleaned out good and flossed (if possible, I guess not with a spacer though)...if the pain is just from the spacer or being moved it should start to fade after about a week.

[amy]

After a couple of days the pain did go away. Apparently, my bite has shifted and my back molars are hitting strangely. While eating I chomped down too hard and aggravated the tooth. What freaked me out was how the spacer felt like it had shifted.

I now have to make sure I don't clamp my teeth shut, but I'm hoping my bite will be fully corrected by the end of this process.

[Jendz]

Hi Amy,

I sympathize with you so much, spacers were awful for me and I only had 4- you are dealing with twice the pain, ouch!! I found that warm salt water rinses, Advil, and Amosan (made by Oral B) were helpful to get through the spacer process. Also soft, crunch-free foods are the most inviting during this time when your teeth are in this state of distress.

How exciting that you will have your braces on soon, once they pop those spacers out and put the molar bands on it such a sense of relief (at least it was for me) that I think you will find the rest of the process not so bad. The salt water rinses, Advil and soft foods will also help you during your first few weeks in braces. This website and message board has been invaluable to me for my research and learning during my braces journey, hopefully you will find it as a great resource for you too. I am happy to share any other information with you also, I don't have all the answers but I am glad to help.

Congratulations on starting your journey in braces!!

Jen