Couple of Questions

[Defiant93]

Hey everyone - I've just gotten my top braces on yesterday. I'm 21 and I have standard metal ones on the NHS. It was about six hours after I got them put on that they started to ache - beginning with the molars.

Anyways, I'm petrified of either breaking the wire or pinging the brackets off. I have a fairly thin wire to start off with. Has anyone had any experiences with this?

Strange separate question but it hurts when I press some of my teeth at the back or front with my tongue - does it hurt in the direction that the tooth is being moved, or against?

Thank you :)

[jaime]

I know nozzlenut has had some wire breakages. Hopefully he/she chimes in here.

I wouldn't be too worried about breaking the wire or the brackets off. First of all, they're probably stronger than you think. Second of all, I'm sure most people have some kind of little blip at some point in their treatment. It's generally not a big deal. I've eaten everything the orthodontist has advised against (except gum) and none of my brackets have ever come off. My wires once came out of both molar brackets on my right side because I was eating some brownies with a hard crust...I didn't even notice it had happened. Long story short: stuff will probably happen...nothing to worry about.

To my knowledge, your teeth don't ache depending on the direction they are being moved. They will ache regardless. Sometimes a random tooth will ache, but none around them, and it might only last a day, or 3 days, or a week. I've had my braces for 10+ months now and the pain has been very random at times.

[LillyS]

Hi, I'm also 21 and have recently got braces on the NHS. Your teeth do tend to ache a bit at various points during the process but things change all the time. They will probably feel a bit better after a few days, I recommend pain meds.

As for breakages, keep away from very chewy and hard foods as they can pop brackets off. And with a starter wire been quite thin and flexible it's quite easy for it to pop out of the molar tubes but don't worry too much about this, it happened to me a few times, I managed to put it back in with tweezers!

You'll get used to your braces after a bit and learn what's what with them. Good luck, this forum has been an ocean of wisdom for me(I'm a double surgery candidate too).

[Nozzelnut]

I've had a couple wire breakages when they were using thinner wires. Nothing lately with thicker stainless steel wires though. Mine would break right at the bracket from my teeth moving/bouncing slightly and wearing on the wire. Both were in the front in a similar place; might have been off by one tooth.. I had 2 breakages total. Easy enough to fix and not a big deal. It would usually take a couple weeks for them to wear through after adjustment.

If you have any crowns on your teeth, the bonding cement doesn't stick too well to that and those brackets are prone to popping off. Again; not a big deal and you're not the first person to have it happen. Just might be a pain getting to the ortho to have them fix it if you live a few miles away.

[newbite]

I've only had one bracket come off and it was very early in treatment when my teeth were very crowded. It wasn't a big deal, I didn't even know it came off until I saw it shift slightly when I was flossing (the wire was still holding it tightly against my tooth even though the cement bond was broken). I had it reattached within a few days. The only time it can be a problem, my understanding, is at the very end of treatment. Then you have much more to lose if your teeth shift and it can extend your treatment time.

[Defiant93]

Thank you guys, the pain has eased around 50% since the end of the first day/second day. One of my front teeth still seems to hurt unfortunately, but the molar and pre-molars on one side have almost eased completely - making eating (partially) possible! :) I think I can feel a difference already, it's minute but noticeable.

I ate a curry yesterday (one of the mushiest foods I can find) and heard a snapping sensation on one of my molars. Turns out there was a piece of egg shell in the ready meal - yuck! Needless to say I was relieved that it wasn't a piece of my tooth or braces.

Also noticed a couple of hooks on my upper canines. Anyone had any experiences with those? They look like a piece of the wire pokes out of the top of the o-rings.

[stephcsun]

Hey congrats on starting the journey ...don't worry too much about breaking the brackets or wire they aren't so easy to break off. those hooks you mentioned are just there incase you need rubber bands latter on to adjust your bite.