Do your teeth rest on top of each other with braces?

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#1 Post by **hadfield** » Mon Jun 01, 2009 4:07 pm

Just wanted to see if this is the same for everyone else. Before braces my teeth rested on top of each other comfortably with my mouth closed. Now with braces (6 weeks) I would have to clench my teeth to actually have them resting on top of each other and it would be uncomfortable. So now it feels the most comfortable to hold my jaw open (mouth closed) with my tongue slightly supporting my upper jaw. Is this the same for everyone else? Will this mess up the alignment of my jaw? Or do my teeth eventually adjust to it with braces and I will be able to comfortably close my mouth again? Did I explain that right. Anyway, what do you think?

#2 Post by **I love my teeth** » Mon Jun 01, 2009 8:08 pm

hi Hadfield-

I am also 38, mom of 2

I guess I sort of feel the same way, my back molars no longer touch, my initial contact is a bit further forward, and for the most part I am most comfortable in the same position you are!1

I did go in to get a pokey wire clipped earlier today and asked the tech, she verified and throughout treatment you always feel sort of off, nothing to worry about, continue to bite as normal as you can, only a problem if you are biting down right on a bracket.

hope that helps!!
-christine

#3 Post by **newsboysgrl777** » Tue Jun 02, 2009 7:51 am

I sort of feel this way, too...but it seems to have gotten a bit better over time (I've had my lowers on for almost 2 months now). The only thing I would warn about is that if you put your tongue forward like that, it may develop into a habit called "tongue thrusting" and that has its own set of issues. So that's why I chose not to do the tongue thing and just kind of let me teeth 'hang open' (with my mouth shut) instead. If you do a search on this site for 'tongue thrust' or 'tongue thrusting' you'll come up with some threads on it that may explain it better.

Good luck!!

#4 Post by **Megan11** » Tue Jun 02, 2009 8:25 am

I believe I read somewhere on here that when your teeth are properly aligned they are not supposed to touch one another when your jaw is at rest. My teeth also used to touch before and do not now and I have wondered the same question. I believe its normal though, for now anyways.

#5 Post by **I love my teeth** » Tue Jun 02, 2009 8:57 am

Megan11-

that is very interesting----I knew my teeth were bad, but when they start to move to "normal" and it feels so strange, you really get a feeling for bad, bad really is!!!
glad to see it's seems like its a pretty normal feeling for all of us!!!

#6 Post by **jxds** » Wed Jun 03, 2009 9:30 am

mi bite keeps changing all the time, so some times they touch, some times they don't...