Floss doesn't fit between my teeth

[oldperson]

I got braces a few days ago to fix my two impacted canines and overbite, and i've discovered that flossing is impossible, even on my lower teeth with no springs once I thread the floss under the wire, it won't actually fit between my teeth. Is there some way to fix this? I've heard people talk about WaterPiks, although I don't think they clean between the teeth but I'm not sure. For anyone interested the two springs are over where my two upper canines should be and obviously they make the teeth around them difficult to floss. Help would be much appreciated.

[Prometheus]

Have you tried "Glide" floss? It is made from thin teflon so it will get between even the tightest teeth. The water pic is great just to remove the large pieces of food that get stuck. It generally isn't a replacement for actually flossing, but it is still nice to have..

[whitney555]

When I use floss threaders, I don't actually thread it through the wire, I thread it straight through the base of my teeth by the gumline so that I can skip the step of forcing the floss into the space between my teeth. It's generally easier to pull the floss out of a tight space than to push it into one (and less painful on your gums). That might be an option for you depending on how crowded your teeth are and how much hardware you have.

When I first got my braces put on, I also had a problem with extra glue from the bracket application migrating in between a few teeth. I LITERALLY could not floss between those teeth because they were glued together. I think after about a week I managed to floss it loose after I discovered the threading at the gumline technique. If you're having trouble flossing ALL of your teeth though, this probably isn't what's happening to you. It only happened to me in like two spots.

Good luck!

[sirwired]

x2 on Glide. It's what other dental floss aspires to be when it grows up.

And you can also buy "Glide Threader Floss", which is a little single-use packet, where one end of the floss has been melted or something so it's stiff. Heck of a lot easier to use then those eyelet-things.

[oldperson]

Thanks, I did try threading it at the gumline although even there, it's too tight. Although I did get some Glide floss and that works, just barely. Hopefully once everything settles in place it gets better, because I did only get them on 2 days ago now.

[DrJasonKTam]

It isn't uncommon that as the crowding unravels at the start, that the teeth get pushed together even more tightly as they try to move past each other. There is also the possibility that some of the resin for bonding the brackets might be impeding the flossing. Give it until your next visit to see if it improves. If not, you might want to speak to your doctor because both tightness from teeth being pushed against each other and glue could both be factors that prevent your teeth from getting straight. Good luck!

[Shelleyt]

Will glue in between teeth actually keep them from progressing? I am 12 days in and My front two top teeth are still stuck together- along with my right incisor to the middles and all four of my center lower teeth. I can't get floss in at any point and it is definitely from glue and not movement, because it has been like this from day 1. I can feel with my tongue that there is rough sediment in between the affected teeth.

I called my ortho and they seemed unconcerned- said it will break off eventually if I keep trying to floss and if not they will take care of it when I come in 3 weeks. However, I have seen no movement so far so I am worried this is impeding my progress.