My first adjustment- Week 4 in braces!

My first braces adjustment was scheduled for the 26th June 2016, but ended up happening on the 18th June when I went to have my broken brackets repaired for the second time.(More on my broken bracket drama in this post.) I’d read horror stories about adjustments but I can safely say mine was relatively pain and drama-free. He replaced my ligatures, making my ceramics look extra bright and sparkly 😀

He also made replaced my top and bottom wires with a thicker one. They did feel ‘tighter’, I suppose, but I didn’t feel a tremendous amount of pressure as some people have described. The whole thing took about 15 minutes and it was done. By the time I had my first adjustment, I had mastered chewing and was back to eating solid food with no problems. This was short-lived, unfortunately. After the adjustment, it was back to the dreaded yoghurt and soup, as my teeth did ache for a few days. Like before, this ache was totally bearable guys. Didn’t even need painkillers. My next adjustment is 22nd August 2016, where I would have reached the 9 week point. I can’t wait- mainly because I can’t wait to express my concerns to my orthodontist about the fact that I DON’T SEE ANY MOVEMENT.

Don’t get me wrong, I know these things take time and changes are slow and subtle. I’ve had so many fellow braces wearers tell me it’ll be a while before I see any movement- but I’ve also seen so many people say they say changes in days- and really noticeable changes by week three or four of being in braces. Why can’t I be one of those people? I started this blog some time into my treatment- so it’s actually my seventh week in braces right now- and my teeth look exactly the same as when the braces went on. I’d be lying if I said that wasn’t demotivating. It makes me feel like I’m going through all of this for nothing right now- all I dream of is being able to envision myself with the teeth I’ve always wanted, but while I’m seeing no movement I can’t even picture it. I feel like that’s why I’ve been so negative about them, even though they’re all I’ve wished for my whole life. I’m excited and longing for change, which is manifesting as impatience and feeling like they’re not doing anything. The only glimmer of hope that I have is that the wire itself has straightened out across my brackets compared to when it first went on- I’ve read this a sign of tooth movement so hopefully that’s true!? How quickly did you guys start seeing movement? Please leave comments and let me know!

Life

I jumped forward to present time there for a second, because I really needed to let that frustration out. But let’s rewind back to where I was at 4 weeks. I’d learnt to accept that this was life for the forseeable future and began to get used to them. I stopped bringing them up to everyone I spoke to, and I’d learnt to position my lips over them comfortably. I had been avoiding eating out at all costs before this point- to be honest I favoured not eating at all over getting shit stuck in my braces and having to sneak off to brush my teeth. Some people may not get that, but eating just wasn’t worth the hassle to me- so most of the solid food eating I did when I was at home.

I was still incredibly insecure about the braces- all my friends had seen me in them by this point, and had all reassured me it was all in my head and they weren’t noticable- but no matter how many times I was told that it went through one ear and out the other- I knew they were there and so did every single person that spoke to me. I still felt so ugly. I had bought tickets for a festival with my friends, and as much as I would have rather not have gone to such a big social event feeling the way I did, I kind of had no choice. I also knew that it would be ridiculous to lock myself up for a year because of braces and that I’d have to go out eventually, so there was no time like the present. I prayed no guys would speak to me- my fear was that they’d be attracted to me until I opened my mouth and they saw my braces- then they’d make their excuses and run a mile.

I did feel a bit self conscious at the festival- but there were so many people there that I didn’t feel focused on or the centre of attention, so I was able to kind of forget about them as the day went on. I was only really reminded of them when someone spoke to me- the first guy that approached me was tall and quite good-looking. It was like I was on mute. He made friendly conversation, and I really did try to put the braces to the back of my mind and just be me, but my heart was racing.

Has he noticed them yet? He’s going to regret talking to me. This is going to be so awkward.

Imagine those thoughts racing through your mind, combined with your heart beating 100mph, trying to seem cool and have a normal conversation. It was hard. I’m not sure if it was my shyness, or my braces that put him off, but he did make his excuses and leave 5 minutes later. I was mortified- but not too bothered. The right person for me would have tried to make me feel comfortable instead of shy, and wouldn’t have been shallow enough to be put off by my braces.

A few guys tried to speak to me after that incident, and I was OK with them. Once I got the first encounter out the way, I have to say it got easier. You know what else helped? Since I got braces- this might sound weird- but I feel like I’m in a special community of people and we’re all going through the same thing together. I suddenly had this radar for fellow braces wearers everywhere I went, and I noticed soooo many at the festival. Every time I saw someone else my age in braces, it was kind of comforting- I felt less alone. (I know it’s silly to feel alone as so many people wear braces, but in your own groups of family and friends where you are the only one, you really do feel it sometimes!) I saw so many people around my age and older in braces, letting loose, having fun- and it inspired me to just forget about them and do the same. So that definatley helped.

Not only was this the first big event I attended with braces, it was also the first time I ate out in public. There was no way I was going to even attempt to brush my teeth at a festival, but I had to eat, so even though I could have died for a burger and some fries, I opted for some potato wedges instead- I knew they wouldn’t cling to my braces and they were easy to cut into bitesize pieces and eat carefully.  It went well!

TIP! Never eat a meal without a bottle of water handy. Every couple of mouthfuls I take, when I can feel food getting stuck, I take a gulp of water and swish it around my mouth. It really helps with loosening trapped food from your brackets. Your tongue is another great tool. Check each bracket for any trapped food particles with it, and if you catch one, use your tongue to push it out of the bracket. For trickier pieces of food, the tongue and water make a great duo!

So that’s what I did! I had my best friend check my braces after and she confirmed there was no food stuck, and that was that. By the end of the night, I was really letting loose and really trying to put all the self-consciousness to the back of my mind. And it started to work-  for the first time in 4 weeks I was beginning to feel like myself again.

In my next post I’ll be shedding some light on my experience with dating as an adult brace face, cleaning tips and my favorite sore teeth recipes and go-to foods!

Thanks for reading, and see you next time

SJ XO