Question for veteran elastics wearers

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#1 Post by **newsboysgrl777** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 9:42 pm

I've been wearing my elastics (at night only) for a little over a week now and although semi-uncomfortable, it's really not too bad. However, I have a question about how it feels tonight. I just put each of them in and I have to say that the left side feels much tighter than the right side. It's sort of like I feel more pressure on my lower jaw (for lack of a better way to describe it) on the left than I do on the right. That being said, in your experience, do you think this might be normal, or do you think maybe one of the elastics was just a little more 'stretched out' than the other?

Mostly I ask because when the technician first put the elastics on me in the office and I wore them home, they didn't feel tight at all...then I put those same ones back in that night, simply because I had only worn them for about half an hour and thought it would be a waste not to use them again. Well, the next night, the next set of elastics felt tighter than that first set and have ever since, although I've gotten more used to them (mostly what I notice is how my jaw/teeth feel the next morning, as opposed to how the elastics actually feel). So I thought maybe those first elastics were either 'looser' (like a different 'guage' or however they're sized), or if they were just more stretched out from putting them on/taking them off twice? Just haven't noticed this kind of thing before, so I was curious.

#2 Post by **newsboysgrl777** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 9:42 pm

I feel like I totally rambled that question out (and yes, it really was only one question), so if it doesn't make sense, I can definitely try to clarify, but I think you can pretty much get the gist of it. I know there are questions people ask that I know the answer to now simply from having experience, but those were the same questions I had asked when I was new, so this could be just another one of those questions.

#3 Post by **Lela** » Fri Sep 18, 2009 11:48 pm

My elastics are not always uniform in thickness so one will feel tighter then the other sometimes.
My guess would be that the first pair did get stretched out a bit and were looser as a result.
What configuration are you wearing? Any chance you are hooking them on the wrong hook and making them tighter that way?

#4 Post by **uvraise** » Sat Sep 19, 2009 6:47 am

NBG, I have had mine for just about a month and have found that there is a slight variation from one application to the next. Also, when you put them on, make sure both sides are just around the hooks and no getting caught up on the bracket. I notice that mine sometimes get hung up on the same area as the lig. And, sometimes the way I hook them on. I have three points to hook across on top and two on the bottom, I'll hook across the top first, then down to the first bottom, this one is tight, then from the second bottom point back up to the top, is not as tight, so i have to adjust the band between the two bottom points to equal out the pressure from top to bottom on both sides of the same elastic. I think that makes sense??? I hope I haven't confused you more!

JOHN