Metal Mouth Message Board

Okay. I've only had my braces for a few days now, and I'm hearing some horror stories. A girl I work with had the same type of braces that I do, Ceramic, and she got hers removed a few weeks ago. Her description of the removal process was horific. She said that they couldn't remove them the same way they do the metal ones. That had to "shatter" each one individually. She said it was so painful that she was at the point of tears. I'm hoping that she just had a bad experience. Is there anyone else that has ceramic braces removed by this "shattering" method? I need to hear about any positive experiences.

I have never heard it is actually painful, I hope not I get them put on Dec 19. Hope we find out the answer. Thanks for asking.

HI, I had my upper ceramics removed and replaced with metal. It really was not bad as long as you can handle the sound of the scraping off of the glue. That was the worst part for me. but no pain
best wishes,
Leah

leah wrote:HI, I had my upper ceramics removed and replaced with metal. It really was not bad as long as you can handle the sound of the scraping off of the glue. That was the worst part for me. but no pain
best wishes,
Leah

Thanks for the responses.

Leah - Why did you have your ceramics replaced with metal ones?

I just got mine off on Monday, and it really wasn't that bad. Only a couple of brackets shattered. Apparently it is pretty common, though, and I was lucky. It didn't really hurt except for one stubborn one that didn't want to come off and the drilling to get the bonding material off. The whole process took about a little over an hour. Definitely not as bad as getting them put on!

Montesser, I had my ceramics replaced because I had to have alot of flaring to get my top teeth straight, and in the process of pushing them back my Ortho said the force that he would have to use to get them back in place ceramic would not be strong enough and would pop off. So I switched to metal which I like so much better now.

Hope this helps answer you question,
best wishes,
Leah

So I switched to metal which I like so much better now.

Leah, I am still trying to decide whether to go with ceramic or metals in a couple of weeks. If you could, since you've had both types, could you say why you like metal better? TIA.

I had my ceramic braces for 3 years (uppers only). When it was time for removal, some of them shattered and some of them didn't.

It wasn't painful...there was a lot of pressure for a specific few teeth but it wasn't horrible.

For the ones that shattered, the ortho had to use a drill/polisher thing to remove the excess bracket and glue. It took a while. But it wasn't too bad.

Remember this is only my opinion...... I like my metal braces better than my ceramics that i did have because - thay are smaller and more comfortable. no staining. they are easier for me to clean. it's just personal preference. Please don't make a choice by what I say.

Leah

Leah: Remember this is only my opinion...... I like my metal braces better than my ceramics that i did have because - thay are smaller and more comfortable. no staining. they are easier for me to clean. it's just personal preference. Please don't make a choice by what I say.

Thanks for your answer. I really appreciate it. Believe me, I wouldn't make my decision based on one person's experience (that would not be like me at all). It just helps to hear people's personal experiences.

My ortho strongly advises against the clear/ceramic brackets because they do break easily and he has had many problems with them shattering and even taking part of the tooth with them when they are removed.

Don't want to scare anyone, but it seemed pertinent since I just asked him about going with the ceramics earlier this week. I am going with metal. I figure I have wanted straight teeth/braces for so long why hide it?

I've only heard negative things about those ceramics.

I got my bottoms off yesterday, full metal and lemme just tell you i was crying. it was the most painful part of the whole braces process.
At least they warned me. It was awful. So ceramic or metal, you're gunna be in pain.
Sorry to be a downer lol

Remember this is only my opinion...... I like my metal braces better than my ceramics that i did have because - thay are smaller and more comfortable. no staining. they are easier for me to clean. it's just personal preference. Please don't make a choice by what I say.

Ditto what leah said. I never got used to my ceramics...too big, too much hassle with staining, changed them out three months in. Best decision I have made regarding my treatment (other than deciding to do it in the first place).

I've only had my ceremics for less than two weeks now, and I think I'm finally gettting used to them. Luckily, I haven't noticed any staining. I'm not a big coffee drinker, but now that it's starting to get cold, I'm craving hot chocolate. I think I'll keep the ceramics for now even knowing the process that I'll have to go through to get them off. If I wanted to change them, they would have to get them off now anyway. I may as well wait and have that pain later. Thanks everyone for their postings.

Don't worry about it. I had ceramics the first time around and then metal for the brief second round... getting them off was about the same, and really no big deal. Both times, I had a little tenderness in a few teeth, and so they went gently on those teeth. I did have one ceramic shatter, but they just scraped it off, so it was okay. Its not a big enough thing to worry about....just enjoy getting your teeth straight and the end will come soon enough.