Metal Mouth Message Board

I have an appointment to have a gate closed that has opened approx 1 week after a wire change. This is the fourth time in as many months. I only notice them open when my teeth start looking atrocious.

Is this a common thing with self-litigating braces? This is including doing the right thing by not eating hard/sticky foods.

I'm supposed to be 8 weeks from having my braces taken off and my teeth look woeful, my orthodontist is away so all I can hope for is for them to stick a rubber band around it and hope for the best.

This experience is leaving me feeling rather depressed at the moment.

The tech should be able to close that gate, it seems like a simple thing. In fact if you read the thread "Confess Your Orthodontic Sins" you'll find some real reprobates who open and close their own brackets at will! Best of luck to you.

I've heard people talk about opening and closing the gates at will also.

I'm able to open a particular gate... sometimes 1 or 2 brush bristle got stuck there and I managed to open the gate and remove them myself.

No biggie unless the wire is obviously loose and out of the gates.

[quote="djspeece"]The tech should be able to close that gate, it seems like a simple thing. In fact if you read the thread "Confess Your Orthodontic Sins" you'll find some real reprobates who open and close their own brackets at will! Best of luck to you.[/quote]

Hahaha , reprobates. I saw that, too and wondered why in the world anyone would do that.

Well I'm due to get them off tomorrow and Lo and behold!!!! I noticed a bottom tooth has become slightly crooked and the gate is open. I am so disheartened by this whole experience. They open after every freakin time I have the wires changed unless I have power chains. If they tell me they won't take them off I am saying yes they are - I feel I could go around this merry go round for the rest of my life at this point...I have an appointment, they change the wire, the wire pops out.

Really ticked off right now and want to cry.

I'm due to have a baby any day now and they needed to be off...

Also re last time I went back and they closed the gate. Did I mention I live an hours drive from my orthodontist? So it's not an easy thing I can just quickly "swing by" for - it takes over two hours out of my day. I have zero faith in self-litigating braces after this experience. I'm so careful with food and the wire comes out every time.

what type of self ligating braces do you have?

I have the H4 type and havent had any trouble with them so far but its been a 2 weeks though

I have the Damon self ligating braces and I've never had a problem with them opening. For the past year it's taken at least 5-10 minutes during each wire change to pop them open. So painful =(.

Gbr45 wrote:what type of self ligating braces do you have?

I have the H4 type and havent had any trouble with them so far but its been a 2 weeks though

I actually can't remember! Mine wasn't a problem at the start with the thin wires, they seem to have become an issue with the thicker wires and as time went on...I'm wondering whether they were just opened and closed so many times it loosened them or the wires are just too thick. So infuriating!