Braces are now on - OUCH!!!

[Guest guest]

Hi Everyone,

Well, I did get my braces on Thursday. I know I have seen many of

you getting your braces on, still I really did not understand how

much they HURT!!! Part of my problem with them may be that since I

have a really really deep bite, they had to put a small " ledge " (my

OD called it something else, but I can't remember the name right

now) behind my two front teeth that stop my bite from going beyond

the point where they would sheer off the braces brackets if my bite

went too deep. The result is that the only place my teeth even come

close to touching is on that very itty bitty ledge. So forget

eating! I have a new understanding of the difficulties that people

with open bites experience all the time. It is awful! I can't eat

anything that has more than the consistency of mush. My tongue,

which has been always before been a prisoner in my mouth that is too

small and with too deep a bite, has no clue how to mobilize food in

my mouth. I come fairly close on the right back molars, but I still

can't even " chew " boiled veggies small enough to swallow. I am

having to chop up spagetti!!

My teeth are sore, which I was expecting, and the insides of my

cheeks, where there are little poles in addition to the brackets,

are raw - I also expected that. But my tongue, which is already

pushed back into my throat due to the insufficiency of my lower jaw,

is now even further back due to the ledge behind my two front

teeth. And it hurts! What little movement it has is compomised by

that ledge. It is raw too. I grind my teeth on that ledge, and

that hurts!!

Anyway, sorry to rant here about it, but while I thought I was

prepared for the braces and getting used to them, I really wasn't

prepared for this!! I am not eating, just so I can avoid the pain

of using the brush to clean them out. My mouth is so small, and

pulling my already sore cheek back and trying to fit the brush

inbetween the wires is killing me.

Do you have any suggestions? Have you had this before? Please

share with me how you coped with it. I know some of it will get

better as my tissue becomes toughened, but the chewing and inability

to move the food bolus is going to be something I have to deal with

eventually. Can you help?

Hugs,

Fran