34 and eating like a 1 year old...

[happysmiles]

Hi everyone

I had top and bottom braces as well as those molar build up things soldered to my teeth on Friday 17 September (the blue light device and wearing of protective glasses makes it seem like they're welded on don't they?!) and I am soo hungry!

I've been having a look at the posts over the last few days and don't know all the technical names for appliances - I either have ceramic or clear damon braces on the top arch (I don't see any little elastic ligatures) and metal on the bottom molars with the bottom front clear / ceramic. Against my orthodontist's wishes I went with the clear on the bottom front as well...

Ever since my adult teeth grew as a young girl it's been clear I'm a candidate for braces. There just isn't enough room for all my teeth - heaven knows why my body decided to grow wisdom teeth too! (all four came out in my mid twenties due to being ridiculously impacted - I was shocked when I saw the roots of the bottom two, they had been holding on to my jaw for dear life and never stood a chance).

The issue is severe overcrowding on both top and bottom and two top rotated canines - one of which is twisted about 180 degrees. I don't know the technical names for all the other teeth but there's also a crossbite and another twisted tooth next to the offending canine also at a 180 degree angle but in the other direction.

At 34 I still resent my parents for not getting me braces at 15 - apparently my family doesn't believe in doing things for appearances (even though the crowding means I can't clean my teeth properly and have decay spots on my two front teeth despite dental hygeine that both my dentist and orthodontist praise...argh, parents!).

Appearances - hmm, over the years I have hated smiling, that means people think I'm not happy. And in fact I haven't been. I've suffered depression for many years and, while definitely not soley the reason, the fact that I associate smiling with feeling bad has been a huge contributor to that. This, people, is not an 'appearance' thing (though I happily admit I'm relatively vain - I like to look good too).

So the idea of looking even worse for a couple of years absolutely tormented me. At 19 years of age I thought I was too old for braces, how wrong I was! I want to smile.

Here I am, nearly 20 years later looking like a 17 year old ugly duckling. I'm single (and not expecting to date again for a while) and in a strange twist of timing fate, my contract at work just ended and I need to find a new job while wearing new braces and talking with a lisp...

So hello everyone! This is me, in it for the long haul.

Oh, back to the title of my post - realistically, how long will it take to be able to eat fairly normally again? I have a pretty high pain tolerance (I get fillings with no anaesthtic and am fine) but when I eat it still feels like I've been hit in the mouth with a baseball bat! Also, the molar build up things mean I have only four teeth to chew on so even when dealing with the pain I don't seem to have the physically ability to eat properly! I'm so hungry and don't need to lose weight...

Will I ever chew again?

[Chuck1026]

Hello Happysmiles,

Congrats on taking the plunge!

I am 44 and got braced with Damon Clears up top but (per my Ortho's demands) metal bottoms. Since I have always been an expert at hiding my lower teeth (lots of spacing) the metal is hidden most of the time.

Oh, I should add that most people I know do not even realize I have them until they are up close. And then they are amazed how hard they are to see!

I also have molar build-up. The first 24 hours were unpleasent. Like you, I never had novicane and tolerate pain well. Sill, by the 2nd day, I needed someting solid to eat. I popped Advil and chose a half "outdoor chicken" that was smoked and tender as can be. I cut it into small pieces (key) and did my best to crind with the pathetic molar build-ups. That was hard BUT each meal it gets easier. Since 9/6 (my brace day) I have eaten chicken, fish, pizza, salads, bread... the important thing is to eat slowly, cut firmer foods into small pieces and then toss them to the back of the mouth and work it around. By not using the front teeth in public, food does not collect on the front brackets - always carry a travel toothbrush just in case.

After just a few days, you will not be nearly as sore. If you have the same "heat activated" archwires I have, yo will find anything cold (water or BEER) feels great because the arch wires release with cold.

So hang in there. My wife thought she would finally be able to eat faster than me, but now the braces do not slow me down much, LOL. You will be fine!!!!

Chuck

[happysmiles]

Thanks Chuck!

You ate pizza? That IS a good sign. And good idea not to eat with the front teeth - spinach on your two front teeth is a sure fire way of getting people to notice you're wearing braces! Heat activated wires hey? That sounds like a good excuse for drinking ice cold beer this coming summer (I'm in Australia)...

Even after one day I'm noticing a big improvement in chewing coordination. And in fact, I'm strangely enjoying the ache in my jaw because I know what it means - I'm one step closer to being finished and becoming an expert at showing off my teeth instead of hiding them LOL

Congrats to you too for biting the bullet.

Hey, how do you get a countdown ticker?

[shekhinak]

Welcome to the bracket club!

I had my top braces put in, and I'm just shy of age 49. For the first week I was surviving on applesauce and yogurt. I've been trying to lose 5 lbs for about a year, but braces have really helped! Between the foods I can't eat, and the ones I just don't feel like cleaning out of my braces, it's pretty darn easy to avoid junk food

I found that after about a week, I was starting to get back to eating normally again, though according to my ticker, I've only been in braces for 12 days now.

After you've made 7 posts, you're a full-fledged member here. Then go to the website listed by my ticker below (TickerFactory.com), and they'll have instructions on how to put one on your signature line

[flynn]

Your post made me laugh, I was joking that I eat like baby!! I am just over a month in and I thought I was over that phase but about 2 days ago my bottom molars started hurting again and sadly, back to mushy food
I can understand you story- my mom never believed in braces, either, and I have an 8mm overjet! I avoided smiling, like you and was often accused (or labeled) as anti-social, angry, rude, sad.....What is with parents???
I am 39 and looking at 2 1/2 years of braces. I have ceramic uppers and metal bottoms (I was told ceramic lowers are not an option). I suffer from migraines and my neurologist said braces might help. So...I said OK- dont care if I am 'too old'- I am doing it. I am glad to be fixing my smile finally, and potentially reducing migraines, although these last couple of days with this major aching I am experiencing, its hard to keep my spirits up.
Good luck to you!!

[happysmiles]

Thanks shekhinak, I tell you what - getting braces is the easiest way to lose weight, it just drops off...

It's been 8 days now and I'm slowly figuring out how to eat. I've graduated to Pasta and chicken with flat noodles so am less hungry! Still subsisting on a majority diet of goop though

I wonder if the aching molars is a good sign flynn - maybe it means things are moving around and hopefully the ache will go away quickly. It has to stop at some point!

BTW - I wonder though why the metal brackets make you feel like you've got a mouth full of barbed wire...? The aching is inevitable but surely they could make metal brackets that come with an inbuilt wax cover. I cut my finger on one of them - so sharp! and it sure would beat having to fumble around with wax on wax off

[shekhinak]

It is pretty weird having a mouth full of metal, isn't it? I've been in it for two weeks now, and I'm getting to the point where I can eat somewhat normally again. Biting into a sandwich is a challenge, but at least I can use my back teeth again. I'm finding that I prefer to eat vegetarian foods though, because they tend to be softer.

I went into a panic because my front teeth kept smashing into each other, and I was certain I would crack a tooth. The orthodontist told me she had never heard of that happening, and that and the fact that everything ached was a good sign that my teeth were moving (good?).

I think it's kind of the Kubler Ross stages of Adult Braces:

1. Swallowing your pride, so you can go to a practice where most of the patients are kids
2. The "What-did-I-do" stage
3. Crying
4. Learning to cope, partly by eating mushy food
5. Acceptance.



Keep us posted on how you're doing! It really does help to hear what everyone else is experiencing, so we know we're not alone!

[Gorda04]

Hey happysmile!

I feel your pain!! I have the same molar build ups and have lost a lot of weight since starting.

My Ortho told me No beer! Is that true?! I wonder.....

[happysmiles]

No beer hey...? I wonder if the beery sugary goodness is the problem?

After two weeks I've started to notice my teeth are yellowing and have decided it's because either:

a. I'm eating things that stain them or aren't brushing enough

or (more likely)

b. am looking at them waaay too much and getting paranoid.

My ortho (and the ones online) all say to avoid sugar because it can cause big decay problems under your brackets. The yellowing is making me wonder about this, have been sucking on a piece of dark chocolate every night for the last couple of weeks...but I don't see any alarmist posts to suggest that braces off means big square stains on all your teeth. hmm

Shekinhak, I would add stage 6 to your Kubler ross braces stages:

6. obsessive attention to detail ('obsessive' may be overstating it)

With all this extra time spent looking at my teeth, I'm discovering loooaads of imperfections I've never noticed before - mainly chips and uneven wear that may look a little odd once my teeth are straight.

Fingers crossed I get back to 5. Acceptance again soon. Am starting to worry it won't be worth it after all!!

[rlpea]

I have a tooth hitting a bracket on the bottom, so I can't bite down all of the way, I know what you mean! I have to cut my food up into tiny pieces and pretend to chew before I swallow.

[happysmiles]

hehe! I pretend to chew too!!

[happysmiles]

Thank you everyone for all the supportive comments so far! It's really helped me and I hope my story will one day, if not today, help other newbies too

I've started up a blog in the 'Our Braces Stories' forum - here's the link:

From fangtabulous to fabulous!

I'll be sharing the good and the bad!

[Crafter]

At least you have a great sense of humor!!

I am 32 and getting braced next wednesday. I am not sure if I want the braces put on or not. I really never cared too much about my overbite (is not that bad, actually) but when I see pictures of myself from the side that is a whole other story. I hate the way I look like a little critter!! With teeth stiking out.

Last monday I go spacers on and although I don´t think I experienced actual pain, my front lowers feel weird ever since. Like they kinda "tickle" from the inside... (I have no idea how to explain the sensation) and the first couple of hours if I pushed them with my tongue I could feel some sort of "crack sound".

Eating was weird because I can't really chew properly (and I don´t have braces yet!!!) so I have to chew more lightly, swalling less than my standard of chew pieces.

I also have some degree of resentment against my mom who took me once to the ortho when I was 11 but the Doctor was not there, and she never rescheduled the appointment.

[shekhinak]

HappySmiles,

You're right, it seems that most adults do get obsessed with cleaning the braces OK, I'll definitely add that as a stage for adults getting braces.

I now carry around with me enough cleaning supplies to start my own dental office, and I'm in the bathroom at least 4 times a day scrubbing away at the wires and brackets. On the bright side, I can now better understand my cat - and how he can spend all day long grooming himself.

[gramma2xander]

I also have a hard time eating, if anything at least I will be skinny when the braces come off.(still have about 2 years)