Braces Experience

 

You may notice something different about me? I am finally brace free. I thought I would do an experience post for all for you who either have braces or are getting them soon. I got my braces off the NHS because I had a large overbite with overcrowding.

Before getting braces I firstly had a bar across the roof of my mouth to hold my teeth in place. Then I had to have 4 molars out to make room for my teeth as I had overcrowding. The actual process is quite painless as you are giving a needle to numb your mouth, but the actual need does hurt quite a bit. Afterwards you feel like you have a thick lip which is amusing for a while.

I got my brace February 2013, so I have had them for roughly 22 months. Usually the time frame for braces can be between 18-24 months, however that can be shorter or longer, it depends on your teeth. It's a weird sensation at first but over time you do get used to it and it can take a while to get used to them. The process of getting them on is painless. They just apply glue to your teeth and apply pressure to the bracket, then they attach the wire. Overall you will just feel quite a lot of pressure on your teeth not so much pain. Your orthodontist will tell you what you can and can't eat however I still ate some of things they tell you not to eat and it had no effect on my brace but that doesn't mean I am telling you to go and eat chewing gum or something with your braces! You have to look after your teeth when you have braces and brush them as you would normally but make sure to get in between the brackets using a tool your orthodontist should give you.

You have to go back every 5-8 weeks to have your wire changed, once you get it changed to a tighter/thicker wire you will feel a lot of pressure on your teeth for the first few days and you may have to stick to eating soft things like soup ect. After you get used to going back and to your orthodontist you will get used to the change and will feel it less and less. You also get the opportunity to change the colour of you brackets each time you go! I think I tried out most colours there!

In my experience the bottom braces were more painful compared to the top as you bite down onto them. So when I first got my bottom braces I did struggle to eat solids for a few days, however again you get used to it and it  may be different for different people.

I got the bar across the roof of my mouth off after about six months and I noticed the gaps slightly closing. It is a slow process but the end of the road really is worth it.

Throughout your time with braces you may break some of you brackets off. That is no problem, when you break them off it can feel weird. But if you just book an emergency appointment with your orthodontist they will just attach a new bracket with the dame process as putting on your whole brace.

I then got rubber bands. The hate of my life. I attached them to the top of my brace to the bottom on either side of my mouth. I had to take them out to eat, and a lot of the time when I was talking they snapped. It almost feels like you cannot open your mouth. The reason I had them was to bring my bottom jar forward to reduce my overbite.

When you start getting towards the end of your tome with braces you will hardly even notice them. You will start to notice a big difference in your teeth. I went from coloured brackets to clear as I got to about August 2014.

The taking off of your braces again is a weird sensation  as you have become so used to them it feels weird to be without them! The orthodontist used a small pair of pliers to clamp off the brackets which is quite painless there is just a lot of pressure. Then they scrap the glue off which was uncomfortable. You lastly have to have a mould done for your retainers which is unpleasant and cane make you gag. You get the retainer a few days after you have had your brace of to keep your teeth in place. you wear them when you orthodontist will tell you to.

Your teeth will almost feel naked without the metal between your teeth an mouth. to me they feel almost slimy! The whole process of braces if definitely worth it for the difference it makes to your teeth and I am so happy with the outcome.