teen in great deal of pain

If your child is in any stage of orthodontic treatment, this is a place to connect with other parents in your situation. Please note: this is a forum for adults only -- kids may not post here!

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arrrbee
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Aug 16, 2006 8:41 pm

teen in great deal of pain

#1 Post by arrrbee »

my 15 year old son had braces applied on Monday. He's got a metal bar on the top and bottom and a rubber band on each side. He's been dosed up with advil as much as he can take without it being harmful but he's still in pain. My son is a typical guy and rarely ever cries but he cried yesterday because of the terrible pain he was in. He can't even eat solid foods. So far all he's eaten is fruit smoothies and creamy soups.


What do I do for him or tell him to do? Is there anything he can do besides sit there and wait it out?

arrrbee
Posts: 2
Joined: Wed Aug 16, 2006 8:41 pm

Thank you

#2 Post by arrrbee »

The pain is from the pressure


We will try the salt water rinse


I appreciate your feedback

Smiley77
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#3 Post by Smiley77 »

Hi there, don't know if this will help as I am a total newbie to braces, but my ortho told me that my wires are heat activated and if I ever needed a break from the pressure to hold cold water in my mouth.

He also told me that if I am feeling brave and want to get things moving to hold warm water in my mouth, which I have been doing.

I notice that he is on about day three of braces, which was my worst day. I am now on day 4 (I think, have to see ticker lol) and the worst is definitely over! The insides of my mouth are heaps tougher and I barely feel any pressure at all any more.

Tell him to keep his chin up, it is hard but it is worth it :)
7 extractions 19 July 2006

8 spacers put in 7th August


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bbsadmin
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#4 Post by bbsadmin »

If he is still in a large amount of pain after several days, you should discuss it with his orthodontist. Perhaps something can be adjusted to make him more comfortable.

Most people can't eat solid food for several days (or even a week or so) after they get braces. If your son has a bar across the top of his mouth, then he has some sort of appliance which is making the experience more difficult.

I agree about the cold foods helping to ease the pain temporarily.

He can also try Ricinol PRN mouth rinse, which might help to ease the irritation.
I'm the owner/admin of this site. Had ceramic uppers, metal lowers ~3 years in my early 40's. Now in Hawley retainers at night!

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Gennel
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#5 Post by Gennel »

I'm a mom wearing braces with a daughter who is also wearing braces. I know how terrible it is to see your child in pain or any discomfort :(
It is totally normal to be on soft foods only for a while. Some people feel well enough to eat most solid foods after a week. My ortho told us the day we got braces to: Take Tylenol every 4-6 hrs NONstop for 5 days straight.
Don't wait for the pain to start . It's only been 2 days for him and it can be very painful for some patients. My 14 yr old cried for several days because she could not cope with the discomfort. She had shakes,pudding,mashed potatoes for about 9 days. Right now he probably does not care if you tell him that this will pass soon. My nephew got braces a month ago and he did not want to eat for almost 2 wks. I suggest the warmwater salt rinses at least 3-4 times a day. Also get a waterpik. I could not use my electric brush for almost 1 month because my teeth felt tender when I pressed on them.

He will feel better soon, I promise. Did he have any extractions? Did he just get regular braces or did he need an expander or any other devices?
I'm just trying to figure out if the pain could be from something else besides the braces...

Gennel

fins
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#6 Post by fins »

Poor thing...I hope he's doing better now. FYI...I had pain almost every time I had an adjustment. I always had a lot done however, new archwires, elastics, etc., etc. I found that I could pretty much count on eating soft foods for about 5 days and then I was ok with the discomfort (or pain). Even though you think it will never end, somehow, the pain does stop....and it's not uncommon to wake up at night from the pain either, I did that quite a bit. Ice cream really does seem to take the edge off the pain, at least it helped me.

As someone else said, the waterpik is great. Use it with warm water. There are some mouth rinses that are good for canker sores and braces...if that ever becomes a problem. I never really had to deal with my mouth getting torn up too much, so I was lucky in that respect but I always had pain from the pressure.

PreppyTomboy
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Location: Miami,Florida

What i did

#7 Post by PreppyTomboy »

Wow, that sounds painful, and don't worry, it's normal and it will go away in a few days depending on how easily his gums adapt to the braces. What I did is buy a canker sore liquid and apply it all over my mouth. That put my mouth "to sleep" and I didn't feel it. Ibuprofen also works if his gums are inflamed. Make sure he does salt water rinses at least twice a day, the more the better. Hope his pain goes away!!

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