Metal Mouth Message Board

Yeah, I was thinking her program was a bit of overkill (and expensive!). I'll stick to the waterpick and sonicare, with daily flossing - it seems to be working so far and so there's probably no need to change things. I also rinse with fluoride daily (I live in Portland, which has non-fluoridated wat...

I've been reading about Dr. Ellie's oral routine (closys rinse, brush, listerine rinse, fluoride rinse, along with xylitol throughout the day) and I'm curious if anyone has tried it. If so, what results have you seen? For example, has your hygienist noticed a change? I'd be willing to try this if it...

This may be a dumb question but do I need to use an interdental brush if I use a sonicare toothbrush with an ortho head. When I brush, I brush (1) angled toward the gums to the extent I can, (2) angled toward away from the gums and toward the brackets on one side, and (3) angled toward the brackets ...

I had a sensitive tooth as well after I got my braces 10 days ago. I use a sonicare toothbrush and it would make me jump when I got to that tooth. That lasted only a few days and now it doesn't hurt at all. Yeah, the flossing thing is killing me too. I love flossing but 15-20 minutes of flossing is ...

I'm so paranoid about my gums and bone loss with these braces on and that has been enough to scare me straight. Who knew it would take getting braces to finally get me to not want to smoke. Ha.

Yes. A coworker just told me he's jealous and wish he had the courage to get them. I really wish I'd done it sooner.

And when I was a kid/teenager, I was jealous of others who had them because my teeth were crooked and we couldn't afford them. It feels good to finally have them. I feel lucky.

Thanks everyone! I feel a lot better. I thought maybe my ortho was maybe taking some sort of shortcut. At my next appt, I'll ask her and see what she says about her strategy and post if I learn anything interesting.

Hi everyone. I tried searching this topic and couldn't find anything (maybe I'm not using the right terms). Anyway, I just got my braces on last week and my ortho didn't put brackets on the last molars, top and bottom. I mentioned something to the assistant and she said that they might go on later. ...

Don't mean to hijack this thread, but this is developing into a good conversation. Thanks for your comments, Nana. It takes a great deal of courage form most adults to make the decision to get braces. Gut-wrenching, as you so rightly put it, especially the social aspect. But there's another way to ...

39. Wish I'd done it sooner...

Hope it went well and you're not in too much pain. I just got mine on Tuesday and my mouth already feels so much better. Even went out to dinner with friends last night. :)

I was curious about this too. I just got my braces this past week and the ortho prepped my teeth and placed the brackets. The assistant then put the wire on. I don't recall the ortho coming back to check. My ortho is also due in December but has assured her patients that the assistant will be able t...

Yeah, the interference with eating is my biggest issue with braces. If I lose a few pounds, though, it might make this worth it.

I told a few people I was planning on getting braces and they all thought I was crazy (I'm 39 and my teeth are not super crooked but I have issues with a couple of teeth that are getting damaged due to my bite). I felt like I had to justify my decision. I don't care though - this is about me, not th...

Eek, I hadn't considered this. I just got braces about 5 days ago and I'm pretty sure I have a nickel allergy (I've pretty much stopped wearing earrings). I haven't had any allergy-type symptoms so I thought I was okay, but now I'm worried this will be an issue later. Keeping my fingers crossed...