10 Things Your Dentist Will Never Tell You About Braces

So, after six weeks of fun, I feel fairly well initiated into the braces "lifestyle".  And just like labor and delivery, there are things that NO ONE will ever tell you.  You just have to experience it for yourself!  Without further ado...here's my list of things no one will ever tell you about what getting and having braces is really like.

1)  When your dentist/orthodontist puts braces on, he or she will need to hold your tongue in place using a "tongue retractor."  Reason being is that they need to keep your teeth very dry to make the brackets adhere.  This torture device -- I mean, tool -- didn't work for me.  It hurt to get into place!  I have a very small mouth, so maybe that was the problem.  Truly, I think the problem is with the guy (or gal) who designed the darn thing.  If they can't fit that in your mouth, they'll use a large, soft rubber circle (looks like a huge bracelet) to prop your lips open.  No pain involved there.  I'd highly recommend you ask for that instead of the dreaded tongue retractor.

2) It doesn't matter what you eat, stuff is going to get stuck in your braces.  If you eat a salad for lunch, I guarantee you'll find a piece of lettuce entwined in your back teeth later.  Don't even get me started on how pasta -- or an entire chicken sandwich -- can hide out for hours in your braces.  Gross.  Bottom line: bring a toothbrush to work and make sure you brush after lunch.

3) Your lips/cheeks will be stuck inside your brackets every morning when you wake up.  It's not pleasant, but as your mouth dries out at night, your lips and gums seem to find their way into your brackets.  For me, it's my lower lip.  Your best bet?  Make sure you put a bunch of dental wax on at night to protect those areas that are most susceptible to being pinched.

4) Your bite will change. I've gone through stages where I suddenly feel that nothing "matches up" anymore.  Meaning, when I bite into my food, my teeth don't feel like they're meeting properly.  I've bitten the heck out of the inside of my cheek a couple times. The reason for this is that your teeth are moving and shifting.  And, the top and bottom aren't always going to align perfectly as you transition to your new smile.  A few days later, I'll adjust to my new way of eating.  Take smaller bites than you did before braces and chew carefully.

5) I've said it before and I'll say it again -- dental wax is the only way to survive. As you get more adept at applying it, you'll use less and less.  Buy stock in the stuff and don't skimp!

6) Your teeth will ache randomly and then they'll be fine a day later.  I can only chalk this up to the fact that they may be adjusting to their new place -- or they just may be shifting slightly.  Take some Tylenol or Motrin (with food) and wait it out.  
 
7) You'll have to learn to floss a whole new way.  Because of the wire going across your braces, you won't be able to floss like you used to.  Instead, your dentist or orthdontist will give you special floss that can fit under each wire.  You'll need to do each tooth individually.  No one will tell you this before you get braces, but the whole maintenance and cleaning of your mouth takes a LONG time at night.

8) Speaking of, brushing your teeth is downright disgusting and challenging at the same time.  You had NO idea how much stuff really was stuck in your mouth.  Every time you spit out some toothpaste, a bunch of food particles will come out too.  Of course, that's the goal of brushing, but before you had braces, you never "stored it for later" either. It's also a bit tricky to brush because you don't want to pull on the wires or brackets.

9) If your toddler gleefully tosses her blanket over your head and then pulls it off quickly in a game of peek-a-boo, make sure you're not laughing out loud with your teeth showing.  It's very probable -- and downright likely -- that a spare thread from the blanket will get caught in your front brackets and blow your mind with pain and she whips the blanket away.  Ouch. Sorry. No solution to that problem here.

10)Your teeth won't seem like they're changing much at first, and then suddenly you'll realize that your mouth looks just a bit different.  Take photos and keep track of your progress. It makes a lot of the pain worth it!

Six Weeks in Braces

Hi all,

Just wanted to check in with the official weekly update!  Today, I'm celebrating (is that the right word?) 6 weeks in braces.  Yes, that's right, I've spent the last month and a half carefully choosing foods that won't destroy my braces (or my mood) when I take a bite.

So, what's new with me?  Well, I had one bracket fall off last week after eating a Milky Way.  (Oops.)  But, my dentist and his staff were able to repair that in just under 20 minutes and I was on my way out the door.  To put it back on my tooth, they dried the tooth thoroughly with their air tool, placed a bit more of what I swear tastes like Crazy Glue and then held the bracket in place for a minute.  Afterwards, they cured the bracket with a tool that has a blue light at the end.  (I'm sure there's a more technical term than that -- haha!)  Lastly, they added a couple of fresh "donuts" to the brackets around that area and sent me on my way.  (If you'd like to know what donuts are, you might want to search back through my blog -- I've mentioned them before.)

Mental note -- don't bring your five-year-old with you when you go to the dentist.  She was on top of me (almost literally) gaping into my mouth while the dentist worked.  And, being the smart kiddo that she is, she asked A LOT of questions.  Thank goodness for my patient dentist, Dr. Joe Ramellini!

If you're in the Maryland area and are looking to talk with someone about the Six Month Smile, I've been having a good experience with Breton Bay Dentistry.  (And, no, I'm not being paid to do this!) Thanks,  Dr. Joe!

The photo below is a bit different than the ones I've shared previously.  Reason being is that I wanted to show progress on the teeth on my lower jaw.  I still see a lot of crowding, but it's getting better!

Six weeks in my Six Month Smile braces!  Straighter teeth are giving me something to smile about!

Loose braces bracket -- time for a tune-up!

I was just eating lunch when I felt something funny in my mouth.  (And no, the mayo on my Panera Bread sandwich was perfectly fresh!)  If you have braces, you may know where this is going.  Apparently, I had loosened one of my brackets and it had flipped over backward.  Not necessarily the most comfortable feeling.  So, I've called my dentist and am headed in this afternoon to for a quick fix.  All part of the fun of having braces, I guess!  I'm sure they'll need to remove the wire and then take the loose bracket off in order to fix it.  Keep your fingers crossed that this is a quick and painless fix!

Five Week Comparison Photos with Braces

Sitting at work this morning, someone looked straight at my smile and said -- your teeth have REALLY straightened a lot in the last few weeks.  Can I just tell you how nice that was to hear?  So, of course, I had to break out my cell phone and take a quick picture.  Here's my five and a half week shot compared to the day I got my Six Month Smile braces put on.

What do you think?  I think we're seeing progress! Weirdly enough, even the staining on my front teeth seems to be lessening a tad.  These are un-retouched photos.  (Hey, if you can't be honest in your own blog, where can you be?)

Here's me today, at 5.5 weeks into my braces adventure

Here's me just moments after getting my braces on. 

Fresh Donuts? Yup, I got 'em on my braces!

Today, marks the 5th week of my adventure into the world of braces.  I visited with my dentist and instead of changing out the wire like I expected, he gave me "fresh donuts"...something that greatly interested my five-year-old.  Donuts for braces aren't quite as tasty as the Dunkin variety, but they do add additional tension.  (For those of you who are curious, donuts are small round pieces that go around the brackets.) They were a bit uncomfortable to put on, but not bad. All in all, my visit took about 20 minutes.

The verdict?  Some of my molars are closing together nicely and my front teeth are slowly moving into place. Woohoo!!

So without further ado, here are the 5 week shots:

I love that you can hardly tell I'm wearing braces!

And the close-up.  The bracket on my front tooth isn't lighter than the rest, but I took this photo in a room that had a bit of sunlight glinting and it showed up in the photo.

Getting a New Braces Wire Tomorrow!

If you can believe, and I can barely, tomorrow marks my 5th week in braces.  I have an appointment to get my first wire changed out, and I have to admit that I'm a bit nervous.  After all, last time I sat in the dentist's chair, I left feeling a bit...tied up.  Anyway, I have an idea of what to expect -- and I'm also excited because I've heard that you can definitely start to see some movement in the second month.  Woohoo -- bring it on!

I'll update with some new photos tomorow as well as give an update on how the appointment went.  Hope all of you considering the Six Month Smile braces are getting something out of this blog!  It was great to hear from one of you who is...makes this whole blogging 'experience' worthwhile for me too! 

Week 3 -- Braces you can barely see -- and a new hair 'do!

My new 'do!

So, today marks week three of my adventure into the land of brackets and wires.  I'm doing well!  I'm not experiencing much pain at all -- probably due to the large amount of dental wax I still use. 

Since I'm in a "makeover" mode, I chopped many (MANY!) inches off my hair and have a whole new look.  I was able to donate my hair to Locks for Love, which makes and provides wigs for those going through cancer treatment.  I feel cooler (and lighter) and left the salon with the feeling that I've helped someone else.  By the way, can you see my braces?  Probably a little bit, but my guess is that they're not the first thing you notice!