Extremely frustrated after 3 days of braces

[chell]

Hey all,

I was braced 3 days ago (braces + little permanent rubber bands that are in 24/7 and don't get replaced by me) and I already feel like getting braces was a mistake. I knew going in that I would never achieve a perfect result due to several other problems with my teeth and that it might be a little uncomfortable at first but I feel constant pressure on my teeth, eating hurts, no matter what I eat or how careful I am tons of food get stuck in my braces. My evening routine has gone from 15 minutes to 2 hours (yes, I use a floss threader and those little brushes)...

I'm supposed to do this for 2 years? I already hate my braces and I think that living with crooked teeth might have been the better option...

Sorry but I just had to vent...

[mollycat]

Hang in there! I'm 2 weeks in and it is still getting better each day. The first few days, I couldn't floss and barely could brush because my gums were so sensitive. I used a water pik to get the worst of the food out, and I think the warm salt water I used in that also helped my gums. I'm still figuring out how to floss in a reasonable length of time (just got threaders and some floss with a stiff end that is easier to thread through).

I don't know what you usually eat, but you could use this as an excuse to try some new (soft) foods. I treated myself to pudding for the first few days. My front teeth are still sore, but I've gone from not even being able to bite through a banana to eating one without thinking about it. My molars were the first to feel ok with eating. 3 days in, I had trouble with pasta that would be fine now.

Good luck!
Molly

[Nozzelnut]

Take some Advil or Tylenol (whichever you prefer) to take the edge off the aches.

Question about the rubber bands; are they the spacers in between the molars?

[chell]

Hey guys,

thanks for the replies! I'm not sure what the rubber bands are. I think they're using them to close my extraction gaps. They're very small and whitish/translucent. They're not in between molars.

Food-wise I've found any form of bread to be a disaster. Ends up all over my teeth. Blueberries are also bad. I got so frustrated today that I just ate through the pain, even the curst (silly I know).

I spent over an hour again on my oral hygiene routine (little interdental brush, flossing with floss + threader, brushing). I'm at a high risk for cavities (when the dentist first saw me he thought I was drinking coke all day!) as it is and the ortho commented that I have some decalcification on 6 teeth or so...

I've been taking ibuprofen (I know it slows down treatment but it's all I have and the pain was excruciating today) but I don't want to keep having to do that. Life is going to suck for the next 2 years...

[djspeece]

Braces definitely require a big adjustment. I had significant second thoughts as well. Now that I am nearly 75% done (hopefully) and can say that it does get easier, but there are always little aggrevations from my perspective. I particularly hate the mess that accumulates in the braces when eating. I have become somewhat accustomed to it, and try to make a game blasting out debris with a waterpik "Take that, lettuce! Have fun in the sewer!") I'm not really normal, I know.
I prefer ibuprofen and related NSAIDs for pain control because it targets specific biochemical mediators associated with dental pain. I seriously doubt it impedes tooth movement in recommended doses (my ortho recommends it, so that's good enough for me.) Give yourself some time to come to terms with the braces, or of course to hate them with all your might. Either way. Hopefully you'll come to live with them. Best of luck to you!

[sirwired]

Certainly don't shy away from NSAIDs because they might theoretically slow down treatment. That statement is directed more at people that must take large doses constantly for arthritis; not a statement that it should never be used by orthodontic patients. (In fact, if you can get your Dr's permission, doses over the OTC level are likely to be very helpful with braces pain.)

Either way, the pain should subside soon; it just takes a few days.

[owira]

I rinse rinse rinse a lot before I even start my nightly or morning routine.. it does get better .. its a learning process .. but it will be worth it in the end.. well that's what I tell myself lol

[Bracedforthewedding]

I went through these same feelings when I got my braces in Feb.. but once you start seeing improvement, no matter how small, its totally worth it... I had quite a bit of space on top and seeing the gaps get smaller is totally exciting!!

Hang in there. It will be TOTALLY worth the time and money investment!!

[TMJJill]

I had tons of movement during the first month. The first week was the hardest to adjust to.

Your hygiene routine will get easier. You will get faster. It is a learning curve. I found Glide threader floss to be helpful. If you struggle with the threader flosses, you might try an orthodontic flosser. The floss is on a plastic fork-like device. The orthodontic versions are flat on ones side where the floss attaches and it fits under the wire. I supplemented the other flossers with this when I needed the easier route. (I was in casts and splints for much of my treatment.) I used the CVS and Dentek brands, but they worked like these: http://www.dentakit.com/plackers.html.

I also highly recommend investing in a WaterPik. It really helps get at those chunks of food that catch on the braces. When my braces came off, I got my teeth cleaned and they hardly had to do any work at all.

Hang in there.

[lexieplexie]

Hey there. I completely understand how you feel. This Friday i will reach my 2 month mark with braces. Its amazing the changes that have happened in only 2 months. The first week is always the worst. I remember the day after getting mine i attempted to eat chicken with rice, i was so hungry because i only had porridge earlier in the day. There was no way that was going to happen and I just sat there staring at the food bawling my eyes out feeling utterly helpless. I lost 5 pounds after one week in braces and was seriously thinking about having them removed. But i endured and after a week and a half I was back to eating solids. I gained my weight back and except for a random tooth that may hurt every now and again, I really am fine. The first ligature change was horrific during the procedure because my teeth moved so much but it only hurt during the change. I actually was able to eat solids the next day without any issues. Just be brave and know that it will get better. Trust me.

[beckyboo0205]

Hey you are 5 more days in? Now how are you doing? Better?

[Norrie]

Oh man, I was a total wreck for the first week or two that I had braces. I was like, 'WHAT HAVE I DONE TO MYSELF'. But trust me when I say that it gets so, so much easier. I think that you need to:

* switch back and forth between Tylenol and Motrin for the next week, or until you're really comfortable.

* resign yourself to eating things like oatmeal, mashed potatoes, soups, and soft stews for the next few days to a week. You WILL eventually eat like a normal person again, but the first week is a time for drinking lots of chocolate malts and feeling sorry for yourself. By the time a month has gone by, you'll be eating like a champ.

* (maybe most importantly) get a WaterPik and use it twice a day. Trust me on this. I hesitated, because I didn't want to spend the $40 and because I'm lazy and because a million other excuses. My mom finally got me one for Christmas, and I waited a month before even touching it (see? lazy). But then once I did? OMG, why did I wait so long?! It totally changed my life. It a) got my mouth much cleaner than it's ever been in my life and b) cleaned out all of the food stuck in the brackets like a total wizard and c) reduced the amount of time that I spend on my teeth. Now I blaze through my morning and evening routine.
Also, there are special flossers called spam spam spam (I believe). My daughter uses them for her braces and LOOOOVES them. They are fairly expensive for what they are, but they keep her teeth looking great.

Go ahead and wallow in misery for a few more days, because that first week really does suck. But I promise that it gets better. Just keep yourself comfortable and well-fed with soft foods, take meds to reduce pain, and maybe even take a nap or two if you can sneak them in. It will all be okay.

[tamiddavis]

Trust me, it gets better! I've only had my braces for about a month now, and I can honestly say things have gotten almost back to normal for me. While I can chew my food, and even carefully chew some hard foods, i still can't bite into anything with my front teeth. For the first week of having braces I was brushing my teeth like 5 times a day, thinking I had to completely clean them after every meal or snack, but I quickly learned that was over kill. I suggest getting toothpicks! Eat whatever you need to eat, and after words just take a minute to pick out the chunks with a toothpick. Then brush at normal times you would have pre-braces.

[chell]

Hey guys,

thanks for your encouragement and advice! Since you've been so kind to me I feel like I owe you an update:

To sum it up the pain has subsided completely. I no longer have that feeling of constant pressure on my teeth and I'm starting to be able to eat normally. Sometimes I actually catch myself not being aware of the metal in my mouth!

I've got myself a Waterpik and boy does it make a difference. I still use the little interdental brushes afterwards to make sure I've got everything out but most of the time it's only a tiny piece or two. I'm getting better with the floss threader as well. It still takes me about 30-35 min but that's better than two hours. I've switched over to the Sonicare DiamondClean as well. I'm not sure it does a better job that my manual toothbrush but I think I'm very thorough (I spend way longer than 2 minutes). I have some white spots on my teeth (unfortunately my front teeth) but I think they're old (from a time when I didn't take good care of my teeth).

To sum it up it has already got a whole lot easier. Getting food stuck in my braces whilst on the go is my main gripe at the moment. I usually end up going to the bathroom, locking myself into a stall and using a small mirror + interdental brushes to get the food out.

I can't say I've seen any movement yet (I'm deliberately not taking any progress pics... knowing myself I would end up obsessing over each and every millimetre of movement).

The next (and first) adjustment is a month away so we'll see how that goes. When they put the braces on the ortho remarked that I had decalcification on 6 or 7 teeth (those *must* be old as I'm very vigilant with regards to my oral health these days) and my main fear is that they'll find more next time.

Oh and before I forget the wire actually popped out of two brackets (my fault... happened during flossing). Took a trip to the ortho to fix it (5 min fix for them) but everything's ok now.

Thanks again for your kind words. They made a difference.

[Ciara]

So glad to hear this! It really does get better and I'm totally unaware of my braces 90% of the time now. I still HATE food getting stuck, though.