ibraces (eating, speech, visibility etc)

[Jay Tea]

I have read just about most of the comments posted in each topic and also a lot from other forums. I am getting ibraces (lingual braces) soon, my orthodontist said that these ones were better then the other tradition lingual braces even the new smaller traditional lingual braces. My ortho is a bit of a lostie as he doesn't communicate very well with his workers. Just generally he is a bit lost but he is a nice guy. He said he could do what ever for me even invisalign (though he didn't really think it was the best choice as other appliances would work for me better) which a previous orthodontist wouldn't even talk about also he wouldn't talk about linguals to me and he didn't even do full only half. My new ortho has everything and even cheaper then the half at the other ortho then full at the one now for full lingual!! He said he could get my ibraces from texas where they are made for 1k cheaper then if he got them from germany the other brand (incognito) same braces though.

I would like to know if or when you are able to eat meats and chicken type foods as I need to be on a high protein diet?
I have read so much about speech and I know everyone adapts to them differently, but how long till after you get them does your speech settle down to becoming normal again?
Also are ibrace fully invisible because they are gold in colour which is shiny and some other people said they come over the top of the tooth which would make them visible right? Also are the wires very visible if you have gaps?

Thanks ladies and gentlemen boys and girls

[lionfish]

As Meryaten says, the brackets are 100% invisible. The wire will be visible if you have gaps, but only you may notice it!

As for speech, it took me around 4-6 weeks to be satisfied with my speech; I daresay others found my speech quite acceptable in a shorter period than that. We tend to be harder on ourselves than others are (on us).

Food wise, go with fish and chicken in the short term. Anything casseroled will be good; like curry it tenderises meat, chicken, etc. You will be able to return to a regular diet within a short period of time.

[ibraceface]

i have 4 extraction gaps and you cant see my ibrace wires at all!

[Jay Tea]

I guess everyone has to take it at their own pace as it will be a different experience for each person. So if you are to cook the chicken etc you would not be frying up hard chicken breast straight away, so things like boiling it eating the soft peices and stuff.

Lionfish when you say go with fish and chicken short term, how long is short term is that like the first few months or longer?
Thanks for your food ideas and advice greatly appreciated! Have any of you guys had any trouble eating meats after you got braces at any period?

thanks

[lionfish]

If you casserole the chicken (stew it for around 45 minutes to an hour with veggies of your choice), it will be tender. Probably more so than if you boil it.

For me 'short term' was about a week. The week after I got my uppers, I was invited to a greek restaurant and was confronted with calamari, lamb, chicken, you name it. Yep, it was chew city. It was a bit challenging at the time, but gave me courage to keep at it.

My advice to you is to start off with some soft foods, then experiment with something more substantial and see what you can tolerate. Just feel your way, you'll soon find out what you can and can't do.

I have had no problem eating meat of any kind.

[EmmaDee]

Hello Jay Tea,

as everyone else said, I'm sure each of us have a different experience, but mine is encouraging, so far, so I'll try sharing.
I've only had my upper iBraces on for 13 days and NOBODY noticed anything, ever (not even on day 1), even though I have pretty big gaps.
I THOUGHT I have a lisp, but nobody else did and by now I talk PERFECTLY fine again and 4 days ago started eating everything JUST LIKE BEFORE.
The first 8 days were harder, I like my protein, too, so made protein powder smoothies in the mornings (+bananas, milk, fruit sorbet) and blended my lunch (boiled chicken and vegetables), so it was more like baby food, but slowly started chewing again and today I'm having breaded chicken breast with mashed potatoes and even really tough little pickles (with no problems).
Good luck to You!

Emma

[EmmaDee]

Hello Jay Tea,

as everyone else said, I'm sure each of us have a different experience, but mine is encouraging, so far, so I'll try sharing.
I've only had my upper iBraces on for 13 days and NOBODY noticed anything, ever (not even on day 1), even though I have pretty big gaps.
I THOUGHT I have a lisp, but nobody else did and by now I talk PERFECTLY fine again and 4 days ago started eating everything JUST LIKE BEFORE.
The first 8 days were harder, I like my protein, too, so made protein powder smoothies in the mornings (+bananas, milk, fruit sorbet) and blended my lunch (boiled chicken and vegetables), so it was more like baby food, but slowly started chewing again and today I'm having breaded chicken breast with mashed potatoes and even really tough little pickles (with no problems).
Good luck to You!

Emma

[EmmaDee]

Hello Jay Tea,

as everyone else said, I'm sure each of us have a different experience, but mine is encouraging, so far, so I'll try sharing.
I've only had my upper iBraces on for 13 days and NOBODY noticed anything, ever (not even on day 1), even though I have pretty big gaps.
I THOUGHT I have a lisp, but nobody else did and by now I talk PERFECTLY fine again and 4 days ago started eating everything JUST LIKE BEFORE.
The first 8 days were harder, I like my protein, too, so made protein powder smoothies in the mornings (w/bananas, milk, fruit sorbet) and blended my lunch (boiled chicken and vegetables), so it was more like baby food, but slowly started chewing again and today I'm having breaded chicken breast with mashed potatoes and even really tough little pickles (with no problems).
Good luck to You!


Emma

[EmmaDee]

Sorry Guys,

Didn't mean to post 3 times, was getting an error message...


SORRY

[Jay Tea]

Hey Emma thanks for sharing your experience and advice don't worry I had that error thing as well lol. It's good to know that no one notices them even if you do have gaps. Wow so after 13 days you can speak normal that's great and after 9 days you could eat what ever. So really it is only a short phase you have to go through. Protein shakes for sure
Are you getting full ibraces? Are you able to bite down like do your back molars connect properly? thanks heaps mwah

[EmmaDee]

Hey Jay Tea,

Glad I can help a bit. This place saved me from labial braces, so I owe it big time
Yapp, I'll have FULL iBraces. Had the top on for 15 days now and will be getting the bottom next week, on Tuesday.
So far, I can bite just fine, having croissants, bagels for breakfast, with no problems (it was harder the first few days, when trying to chew, as the bite seemed to have changed a bit.., but it's OK now). I don't expect it to be easy with the bottoms on, next week, but it shouldn't take more than another week to adjust to those, too.
And it's really SO worth it, with nobody noticing a thing...
even with no positive changes so far (the gaps seem to be getting a bit wider actually... ), keeping the end result in mind should help us all get through the tougher first days...

'keep Your feet on the ground and keep reaching for the stars'
Emma

[BlahBlah]

When u getting them on JT?

[Shayetet]

so i'm considering getting lingual braces and the provider in my area uses iBraces. I haven't made a formal appointment or anything at the ortho yet until i've finished doing a little bit of research on my own. I had metal braces from age 14-16 and didn't have a very pleasant experience due to what I feel was a mild case of incompetence by my ortho at the time. Maybe some of you who have or are getting iBraces can answer a couple of questions?

1. Molar Bands: I had 6 of these when I was younger and remember the banding/de-banding being one of the more painful parts of the treatment. Is there such a thing with linguals?

2. Elastics: Also had a couple before, what happens when you have linguals?

3. Appliances: It seems that I've always had some type of tongue thrusting that was never treated and probably helped ruin the 2 year investment when I was a teenager. I have a friend who is wearing a permanent tongue thrust appliance as part of her treatment. She will be getting braces in a couple of months to help straighten out the rest. If an appliance like this would be needed, would it integrate into lingual braces? (I know her appliance is held in by 2 molar bands so perhaps this is can also be partly asnwered by #1)

4. Retention: So after the magic happened before I had to wear retainers for sometime. I'm assuming the same holds true when the lingual treatment is over with, but if not, what comes after?


Thanks in advance! Maybe i'll be sharing my story in a couple of months!

[lionfish]

Hi shayetet,

I had linguals on top and a mix of ceramics/metal on the bottom.

To answer your questions:

1. I did not have molar bands.
2. I wore lots of elastics. My ortho glued ceramic buttons on all my upper premolars so that I could wear box elastics, up and down. He also inserted a couple of hooks on the upper wire behind my canines so that I could wear triangles from the upper canines to lower canines/first premolar. I understand that folks who do linguals on both arches are equally able to use elastics; I'm sure someone will come out of the woodwork and explain that.
3. I don't have a tongue thrust problem, but there are people on this board who do and who have/will be wearing devices to control that. Braced Again (Ken) is one who comes to mind.
4. Yup, retainers are still part of the deal.

Good luck with it all.