Metal Mouth Message Board

Hi all,

Can we have a place to just post random day-to-day braces thoughts, happenings, gripes, etc. I wanted to tell you all about what happen to me today and it just didn't seem to fit in anywhere! I'll start:

I've had my braces for a little over a week and I somehow managed to bend my upper arch wire on eggplant Parmesan . I show up at my ortho as soon as their doors opened because I could feel the pressure on my front tooth OUCH. They took me right in and replaced my wire and I got new (top) ligs
(Excuse my ugly teeth )

That pic is HUGE

I have got coils attached to my braces and spinach just finds a way to wrap around them. It's fun trying to brush it off. I have to pick at it with toothpick, then floss, then brush, then use interproximal.. Spinach is part of my regular diet but hate it with the coils currently!

I'm a little over 5 months into my treatment and I am gaining gaps in my lower right quadrant whereas they should be closing. I dislodged a molar bracket and my ortho decided that I didn't need my power chain anymore so he didn't put them back on after he rebracketed my molar. The next day, I noticed gaps. My next adjustment is two weeks away so I will have to address that then. However, for now, I am annoyed and feel I went backward in treatment. Also, my upper and lower arches are too wide making my teeth look humongous!

Well maybe not completely random but is it odd to actually start feeling your teeth be more sore after two weeks than the first week? Not just the braces in general but also my elastics feel like they are now exerting more force than before even though they are all the same size and strength from the same bag

I'm having the worst trouble and it's irritating, my orthodontist said I HAVE to wear my bands at night while I sleep but some how I figured out how to take them off in my sleep! It agitates me I wanted to know if anyone was having this same issue and if so do you know how to solve the problem XD

Whenever I sneeze I feel like my teeth and braces are going to come flying out!

Akisu wrote:I'm having the worst trouble and it's irritating, my orthodontist said I HAVE to wear my bands at night while I sleep but some how I figured out how to take them off in my sleep! It agitates me I wanted to know if anyone was having this same issue and if so do you know how to solve the problem XD

That's pretty impressive. I struggle to take my elastics off when wide awake, in broad daylight and standing in front of a mirror!

Akisu wrote:I'm having the worst trouble and it's irritating, my orthodontist said I HAVE to wear my bands at night while I sleep but some how I figured out how to take them off in my sleep! It agitates me I wanted to know if anyone was having this same issue and if so do you know how to solve the problem XD

I agree with NeilH, that's pretty impressive! I usually manage to take my earplugs out while I'm asleep though; sometimes I find them halfway across the room in the morning.

Since the noncompliance devices that orthodontists install when we don't comply with elastic wear look like NO FUN AT ALL, it's probably worth experimenting with different ways to help yourself out. Figure out what you do with your fingers when you take out your elastics, and then figure out how to disable yourself. For example, I would think you would remove Class II and III elastics by sticking an index finger in your cheek to disengage the molar hook (maybe?? I haven't had elastics yet) -- so try buddy-taping two or three fingers together so you can't get them in your mouth as easily?

I find myself clenching my jaws a lot more now that I've gotten braces as if I need anymore cause for headache

Akisu wrote:I'm having the worst trouble and it's irritating, my orthodontist said I HAVE to wear my bands at night while I sleep but some how I figured out how to take them off in my sleep! It agitates me I wanted to know if anyone was having this same issue and if so do you know how to solve the problem XD

I managed to somehow break one last night and im hoping it doesn't become a pattern for me because i saw somewhere online that not wearing them set back your progress so much and ive been wearing them over 23/24 hours with maybe 10 minutes per day that they aren't on for brushing

ItsFreyja wrote:

Akisu wrote:I'm having the worst trouble and it's irritating, my orthodontist said I HAVE to wear my bands at night while I sleep but some how I figured out how to take them off in my sleep! It agitates me I wanted to know if anyone was having this same issue and if so do you know how to solve the problem XD

I agree with NeilH, that's pretty impressive! I usually manage to take my earplugs out while I'm asleep though; sometimes I find them halfway across the room in the morning.

Since the noncompliance devices that orthodontists install when we don't comply with elastic wear look like NO FUN AT ALL, it's probably worth experimenting with different ways to help yourself out. Figure out what you do with your fingers when you take out your elastics, and then figure out how to disable yourself. For example, I would think you would remove Class II and III elastics by sticking an index finger in your cheek to disengage the molar hook (maybe?? I haven't had elastics yet) -- so try buddy-taping two or three fingers together so you can't get them in your mouth as easily?

I read this and imagined wearing a Chinese Finger Trap while sleeping

I agree that it could be configuration...but maybe its a matter of opening your mouth too wide. I have Class I elastics and I have a hard time getting them loose when I try to take them out, but they're horizontal so opening and closing my mouth doesn't do much to them...

EWUgal15 wrote:I read this and imagined wearing a Chinese Finger Trap while sleeping

LOL!

Already seeing movement!!


Day 1


Today (2 weeks)



Notice the gap between my front teeth now open!

I see your ligs are tied in a figure 8 pattern on some teeth. I find this method interesting. From my research I have found that figure 8 pattern causes the most friction against archwire . They tied mine in figure 8 when I had upper and lower but that was to intrude molars. Immediately went to power chain after 1 month of top front braces. However my huge square wire came out of one of my front teeth so they went over the power chain with clear ligs tied in a figure 8 (on two front teeth)

So thats my random thought:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/7640253

http://www.jaypeejournals.com/eJournals ... &isPDF=YES

I guess figure 8 is for tip and torque but more for final phase of treatment? I am mos def not in my final phase of treatment, I have only been in back braces since december and front top braces since july....