What are your worst braces symptoms?

[Chilkat]

the inside of my cheeks are scarred. I still can't bite with my front teeth as they feel weird and sensitive top and bottom. And my teeth now look stained.

[nightowl12]

I got my spacers off yesterday and metal bands placed on molars and finally the wire. It took me two weeks to get used to the brackets themselves and eating...and I feel like I have to start all over again! A little pain when chewing but also feels like something is moving back there when I bite down? It's an odd feeling

[whitney555]

Relearning how to eat and talk was pretty awkward, but the worst part by far was all of the cuts and sores inside my cheeks and lips. All of my brackets except for the ones on my incisors have posts and hooks on them for elastics, and for the first couple of months two of them would keep cutting my lower lip until i had big gashes there. I went through wax like crazy, but because the cuts were so deep my lip kept catching on the posts whenever I talked/smiled/ate. I only resolved it by switching from wax to little wads of cotton stuffed between my lip and bracket so that they finally had a chance to heal fully without reopening. It was only after about five months in that I could go wax/cotton-free without any pain :(

[Bracefacekris]

I'm enjoying the process so far, I think it's pretty cool and interesting, but I can think of a few inconveniences.

1) Bite guards- I can't get a good bite which has made me revaluate what I eat. Not a bad thing as I've gotten pickier, choosing healthier options to make the chewing process worth it.

2) Food getting stuck in the wires in the back of my mouth. I could never stand having food stuck in my teeth and still find myself trying to use my tongue to get stuff out. Ill do that and come back with a bloody, scraped up tongue.

3) Front tooth sensitivity- can't eat all those crunchy and gummy things I used to love to eat which leads me back to the first point. I'm more picky with my food choices and have lost some weight, so kind of a bonus ;)

[mriegs22]

I'm 3 days in and have woken up with a completely swollen upper lip. I thought the tension pain was bad but man these cuts are something else. I'm constantly wondering if this will actually be worth it in the end.

[waltzpeony]

For me, it is the initial stages of being unable to bite into food and finding that the bite doesn't close entirely (there is constantly a space between the upper and lower rows of teeth) which takes some time to get used to. And biting into the side of the cheeks when eating, and that caused ulcers which are painful and last for days. New ulcer would appear whenever the precious one healed. Also sleeping with lips open as they are unable to close fully when lying down - resulting in dry lips.
Lastly would be having a tired lower jaw as I find that the bite doesn't match exactly.

[BettyWhyte]

The worst part for me at first was the dry mouth/chapped lips. Now my lips have cut that runs the length of my braces. I had to put wax
On to cover all of my braces and that only adds extra pressure to my teeth but I'll take that over raw lips.

[Grix]

Hello.
The worst symptom I am having is intermittent heat/warm sensitivity in one tooth. There is no abscess, no one can tell me why this is happening.

I had something similar the day after my braces were installed. It was the last tooth the brackets were installed on and just the thought of brushing it made me hit the ceiling the sensitivity was so high. After some research (because the internet is so great) I was convinced my dentist and orthodontist had clearly missed a cavity that I needed filled. I called the orthodontist requesting a debrief of my x-rays. They told me to relax, it was just the pressure, take some pain killers and in a few days if it did not go away then to come back. Luckily it did go away (not brushing a section for a few days was gross) but I am concerned how things will be after my first adjustment. I mean the pain was simply outrageous and almost brought me to tears when I tried to brush.

I am going through this at the moment, gee it hurts, even using the Pickster hurts straight away. I may need to avoid this area for a while I think. Even when I take a deep breathe in there is sensitivity there.

[FlowerPower]

Not so much pain, but I dealth with soreness. The worst aspect of this is talking. I have ceramic uppers and I can't fully pronounce some words and I sound like I have something in my mouth...I mean, I do...but still. Also, the thought of the brackets popping off every time I eat or bite into something has me paranoid.

[SoulfulRetreat]

Yikes! No solid foods after a week? I am supposed to get my braces on April 3rd, I am trying to be prepared for the soreness and pain.

[FlyByNight]

I had mad cuts at the back of my mouth because they never cut the wire short enough. It bled almost every day and it looked like ground beef back there.

[SoulfulRetreat]

I haven't gotten my braces applied yet, but will be in about a week. Reading questions and responses like these are so helpful because I am trying to realistically know what to expect. Thanks!

[ElizabethMae]

I'm only on day 3, but so far the worst is the little nubs on the inside of the molar bands. They are so sharp against my tongue (thanks a lot narrow arch) and I have dental wax perpetually on the right side one.