Getting Braces Tomorrow

[Sandista]

Hello out there!

My name is Sandy and I am from the U.S.A. (Minnesota). I am scared to death of having to get braces. I am 33 years old and have very straight teeth- no braces as a child and I've never even had a cavity, only 3 wisdom teeth pulled and that was a breeze!

The problem resulted from the use of an NTI splint to help with my excessive teeth clenching & associated TMJ issues over the past 2 or 3 years. There is a whole long story about this, which I will not get into or I will bore everyone to death.

I just want to know if anyone has any words of wisdom for me as I get myself mentaly prepared for my new "look" for the next 8 months or so. I will be getting ceramic braces on both uppers & lowers and will have to deal with the rubber bands as well.

So far, from everything I have read, it seems like the worst part is going to be the X-rays (those things they make you bite on always make me gag) and the molds, although those lip/cheeck stretchers look mighty intimidating!

Can you please give me some peace of mind so I can sleep tonight? I would really appreciate it!

Thanks so much. I hope to be chatting with all of you about my new "metal mouth" more tomorrow!

[cwatt1]

Hi Sandista, and welcome!

Well, there are LOTS and LOTS of us here who are going the process of being braced. Yes, it can be a bit of an inconvenience, and there's that period of adjustment where your cheeks, lips, and teeth are trying to figure out what the heck you've got attached to those teeth! But you get used to that and the braces become part of you. After a while you don't even think about them too much

As for me, and, I think, for the majority of the regular posters here, we are excited and proud to be taking a positive step to improve our smiles, our looks, and our general health.

I think it's quite natural that people who find out all of a sudden that braces are recommended are a little intimidated, and tend to worry. But it's really a minor inconvenience in the grand scheme of things, and if you stay positive and treat the process as something you're giving yourself as a boon to your overall health, you'll have a very successful, and even exciting, journey. If you spend some time reading the posts here, you can sense the excitement we all feel as we notice small movements in our teeth!

X-rays and molds, really aren't a big deal -- just try and be still and relax. It's over in a flash and it's quite painless. As for the lip stretchers they use when they bond your braces to your teeth, that feels a little weird, but it isn't painful at all. I do suggest you use plenty of lip balm the day you get your braces on since you'll have the lip stretchers in for a hour or so (at least in my case it was about that -- I imagine it varies by person.)

Best of luck to you! Just try and view this, as I mentioned, as a positive experience, and it will be You'll find lots of support here, too, so feel free to post with questions or concerns! And be sure and check out, if you haven't already, the section on the board geared to braces newbies!

[Sandista]

Thank you KK & CWATT1 for your sound advice! I feel better about it and my ortho said my entire appointment should only be 1 1/2 hours total (including the icky, gaggy x-rays, molds & braces).

I will keep you posted as to how ti goes!

[Sistermadly]

Best of luck, Sandy! I've been braced for five days and it's been quite an adjustment, but I know it'll be beneficial in the long run. We're here to offer support!

[lulu]

I hope your appointment goes well for your braces, Sandista. I had mine put on yesterday. Hooray that we're part of the club now!

[Sandista]

Hi All,

Thank you for your support and kind words! I was braced yesterday and really made it worse in my heads than it really was. The orth had me try the rubber bands yesterday to try to close my open bite, but at the end of the day I had a really bad migraine, so we have decided to hold off on that for a week while my choppers adjust to the braces.

I already went back in today because I popped a braket loose (don't know how it happened because I has very little to eat yesterday and everything I ate was soft and I pretty much gummed it down. I just told the ortho I missed his blonde jokes from yesterday and wanted to come back to visit them and hear more jokes - they have a very fun crew there!

So far, my teeth are a little tender, but mostly to the touch or when I try to bite down, but not to the extent that I even need to take any pain killers. I must have a resilient mouth!

The office I went to had an X-ray machine where you didn't have to use those things they make you bite on that make you aga - it was really cool and only took about 5 minutes! The trays they used for the molds were really big and made me aga a little, but it wasn't too bad and was done & over rather quickly. The lip stretchers were no big deal either - what a fashion statement though! I think that would make a great scary halloween costume.

So, now I sit at my desk at work with mostly ceramic braces (uppers & lowers) - I have no brakets on my last molars and 1 metal bracker on each of my 2nd upper molars and only 4 clear brackets on the bottom 4 front teeth. It's funny though, nothing hurts or rubs and the metal ones are actually more comfortable then the ceramic ones (the ceramic ones feel like I have bowling balls attached to my teeth, which I'm sure I will get used to evenually). I don't feel the metal ones at all and I'm guessing it's because they're about 1/2 the size of the ceramic ones.

Anyway, I will keep you posted on my progress and I think I'm going to start a tally on how many brackets I will end up popping from now until the braces are removed.

Have a good day everyone & good luck to all of you who were recently braces or who are getting braced soon!

[Sandista]

Hi KK,

I definitely keep my oral hygiene excellent - I'm 33 and have never had a cavity in my life & would like to keep it that way. Not sure what brand the ceramic brackets are, but they are pretty rough, I have dental wax on my bottom 3-4 teeth because the inside of my lip is a little irritated. otherwise they're not too bad, they just feel HUGE! I can't feel the metal ones at all, except an occasional poke from a hook in my cheek when I smile, but nothing too bad.

I drink a lot of water (8-10) 8 oz glasses per day (about 2 1/2 litres). What does the salt water rinse do? I have seen you mention it to others, but was not instructed to do that by my ortho. They provided me with a dental kit and gave me a tube of fluoride to use as well (I also use a fluoride rinse) along with all of the other necessary goodies. I have also discovered Super Floss which is my new best friend! Much easier than using a threader. I ordered some lip guards from Dentakit.com and am looking forward to giving them a try too.

Thanks for everything!

Sandista

P.S. What's the weather like in Australia this time of year? In Minnesota it has been very dry (way below normal for rainfall) and very hot - about 90+ degree farenheit - YIKES and very humid!

[Sandista]

Hi KK,

I will definitely try the salt water rinse - it certainly can't hurt! I've gargled it before when I have had a sore throat and it was soothing for that, so I can imagine it will help with the braces irritation as well.

I also have encountered one more issue. The tooth they fixed the bracket on is pretty tender (to be expected), but it is so tight up against it's neighboring tooth that I cannot get dental floss through it. I was able to use a little dental pick to massage the gums and dig out anything near them gumer, but I can't squeeze any floss through the bottom portion of the tooth. Any advice on how to handle? Should I contact my ortho or should I do what I can now and wait a couple days for it to move a bit to try again

On a seperate note.....

Wow, the drought there sounds really bad. We can still use outside wter taps, but if we water our lawns, it must be every other day. I know it seems weird about the humidity that it's so dry, but I think we get the humidity because we have so may lakes - I would guess the heat in the air causes the water to evaporate into the air which causes the humidity. Winters on the other hand are the polar opposite - my skin gets so dry my hands can look like a old lady's hands if I don't keep putting lotion on them. Not so pretty.

We had a bit of a catastrophe last night in Minneapolis. At 6:00 pm, the Interstate 35 West bridge that goes over the Mississippi River between Minneapolis & St. Paul collapsed. Many cars & people went into the river. So far 4 deaths have been confirmed and about 75-80 people were injured and they estimate about 20 people still to be missing. If you have not heard about it, you can go onto www.people.com - there is an article about it on their front page. Also, you can log onto www.kare11.com, which is our local NBC news station and they have provided coverage. it was pretty scary, because I teach at a college in Minneapolis, not too far from where this occurred and one of my students had crossed that bridge about 10 minutes before it collapsed. Thanksfully everyone I know is accounted for & safe. Very scary though.

Well, I have to get back to work. Hope you have a good day!

[Sandista]

Hi KK,

I will keep trying to floss - I can get through at the top near my gums with my superfloss (best invention ever!), so I'll just keep doing what I can. If it continues to be problematic, I'll call my ortho and see if I need to do anything else, but I'm guessing if I can't even get floss through, not much else is getting in there either, so I should be okay. Thanks again for all of your words of wisdom - looks like you have been braced for awhile, so I bet you know the ropes quite well!

Chewing is getting a little easier and I really haven't needed the dental wax. Still a little tender when I bite down, but I'm a teeth clencher (part of the reason I need braces in the first place) at night and even with my new nightguard, I still find myself clenching a bit (which is supposed to be eliminated over time with the use of this nightguard) and I'm sure that is contributing to my sensitivity. Ill keep chewing and testing myself a bit, but I'm not going to push too hard too fast either, as I do not tolerate pain very well. The nice thing is so far I haven't needed any pain reliever except for the 1st day. We'll see how things go on Wednesday when the rubber bands go back on to start working on correcting my open bite.

I can't believe that the bridge collapse made international news! My husband works with some people in India and Israel and a guy I work with has friends who live in Hungary and they had all called to make sure their respective friends and co-workers were okay. Though tragic, this accident could have been so much worse - I'm thankful more people weren't killed or severely injured. Thank your for your kind thoughts - I know that it would mean a lot to those who have lost loved ones.

Best,
Sandista

[Sandista]

My ortho knows all about the clenching and has provided me with a mouthguard that is supposed to help me stop this habit. Will I ever be glad when I do!

I will definitely continue to provide him with updates, but he said it will take about 3 weeks before I notice a significant difference. Pretty typical when starting/stopping any new habit - 3 weeks is they key to developing new habits or stopping bad habits. I just have to continue to be diligent in my treatment, and I am determined to do so. I have lost over 50 lbs in the past year, so if I can do that, I can certainly do this too!






Take care!
Sandista

[Sandista]

I finally got floss through that pesky tooth today! Ya gotta love PROGRESS.

Although, my bottom front teeth must be on the move because they are starting to hurt like there's no tomorrow.

I did a salt water rinse and will keep doing that regularly until the sensitivity starts to subside.

I'm pretty giddy about finally being able to floss that tooth though (wow, I need to get a life)! LOL.

[Sandista]

I bought a big tube of Sensodyne the day before I was braced. it works wonders!

I started the rubberbands again today to help close my bite. I'm a little sore, but nothing that Aleve hasn't been able to control for the most part. No pain, no gain! Now I just need to learn to talk with these things. I almost sounds like I've had a few drinks or something.

They're hooked to my canines, so it's such a lovely view and Saturday is going to be very interesting. I'm going to an amusement park with my friend and since I can hardly open my mouth to talk, screaming on a rollercoaster is going to be very challenging.

[TLB in Minneapolis]

Hi Sandista-

It's nice to hear from another fellow Minnesotan. I hope your braces are not feeling too huge and bulky anymore. I've had mine for about 3 months and it took me a solid month to get used to them. My teeth are really starting to look straight and it is exciting. The Superfloss is great but it started shreading on my brackets so I switched to Crest Glide Threader floss. It's a little more expensive but it works really good. I have 3M Clarity on top and metal on bottom. What kind do you have? I'm close in age to you too, I'm 32 and at first I felt really self conscious with braces but now I notice so many people our age with braces that I don't care anymore.

This last week has been so eventful here. I am glad your students are okay. I too, know many people who used to cross that bridge everyday. It is so sad and tragic that this happened. The only good thing about it is that is united this community and hopefully infastructure everywhere will be checked for safety so this never happens again.

Where is our rain? Our lawn is so brown!! Very crazy summer. Best of luck to you on your braces journey...

[Sandista]

Hi TLB,

My braces are definitely starting to become less annoying. Talking is becoming easier and I am noticing the braces less & less. Hopefully they won't pose a problem when I have my passport photo taken soon (I'm going to Paris in April which is about when the braces are due to come off! - YEAH!!! Thakfully I have all ceramics except for a few metals in the back, but you don't notice them unless I give a huge cheesy grin! not sure what the brand of ceramics are - I never asked, but will ask in Spet during my 1st adjustment. I'm also getting used to the elastics. They're on my canines so they're very visible and I look a bit like a vampire when I smile, but I don't care. If people have a problem with it, it is theirs alone, not mine. I don't have the time of day for people who are that petty.

My front teeth are pretty sensitive and I'm starting to notice some gaps (nothing huge), but I can definitely see some movement, which is a good thing. I tried to use my sonicare toothbrush this morning and even on its most gentle setting, it hurt like hell. I think I'm going to stick with the manual toothbrush for the time being - I always brush for more then 2 minutes anyway, so I know I'm getting them as clean as I can. I'm sure as time passes, things will get better and my teeth will be less sensitive.

I'm going to Valleyfair today so it should be interesting riding the rollercoasters without being able to open my mouth wide to scream. if I do, I know those elastics will snap my jaw back shut! That should be entertaining for my friend - she hasn't seen me with the braces yet.

How about that storm early this morning???!!! No damage to any trees in my yard, but some of my patio chairs were blown into the yard a bit, but nothing damaging. I couldn't go back to sleep until the storm passed a bit because we have aluminum siding and the rain, wind & hail was SO LOUD! At least we got some very well needed rain!

I hope all of your friends and loved ones are safe & accounted for from the bridge collapse. One incoming freshman at my college lost her mother from the collapse - very tragic. I'm so thankful it wasn't worse though, but it is so sad that it had to come to this before out lawmakers decided to review the safety of the bridges and propose more stringent codes. Hopefully this will be a wake up call.

My husband and I used to cross that bridge every day when we lived out in Roseville and worked in the western suburbs. We have lived on the western side for several years now and haven't crossed that bridge for a very long time, but scary to know that if we had never moved, that could have been one of us. It definitely makes you count your blessings.

Good luck with your journey and I look forward to chatting with you soon!

Sandista