What To Expect With Braces
Getting braces is a common experience for adults, children, and teens. Even though this is all new, there is no reason to be anxious about the placement appointment. Your braces might feel a little funny at first as your mouth adjusts to wearing them, but within a week or two, you’ll get used to them and shouldn’t feel a thing.
Getting Braces at Shin Orthodontics
At Shin Orthodontics, we use appliances and wires that exert very light forces to decrease any soreness associated with orthodontic treatment. Some patients may experience a little discomfort the first few days to a week after their braces and wires are placed; however, they gradually adapt to the changes associated with orthodontic tooth movement.
How are Braces put on?
Your orthodontist will clean and dry your teeth. After your teeth are cleaned, your orthodontist will apply bonding glue to the front of your teeth and attach the brackets to them. The archwire will then be placed in the brackets and secured with tiny rubber elastic bands.
Keep your braces clean.
Oral hygiene is vital when you’re wearing braces since it is slightly harder to clean teeth and gums while wearing braces. That’s why we recommend brushing your teeth four times per day (once after every meal and then again before you go to sleep. Also, you’ll want to floss daily. If you’re having a hard time getting the floss around the archwire, you can use a dental tool, such as a floss threader, to help. Braces also tend to wear down a toothbrush faster, so you may need to replace toothbrushes more often while your child undergoes orthodontic treatment.
What can you eat?
Certain foods should be avoided because they could break the wires off of the braces or get stuck in the teeth and braces. The food to avoid includes sticky and gooey foods and hard and crunchy foods. Hard foods can sometimes break the brackets and wires of your braces while sticky foods can tug at the brackets and wires, often loosening them.
Dealing with Discomfort
It can take some time to get used to having braces. After the braces have been placed or after they’ve been adjusted, there will typically be a few-day period where you’ll experience some discomfort or soreness. One of the most common complaints is that the brackets can rub against the interior of the mouth.
- Stick to eating soft foods for the first few days.
- Avoid acidic food and drinks as they can aggravate any sores that you may have in your mouth.
- Apply orthodontic wax to the parts of the brackets or wires that are irritating your mouth, covering these areas of your braces will help to keep them from rubbing.
