gfiws

Hi and welcome to this forum gfiws!

This is the section where people keep blogs, so it's a good place to start.

In the main forum we have sections for people to introduce themselves and in the braces section you can post questions, comments etc for people to respond to.

It's great that your treatment has started. By your post, do you mean you don't yet have archwires in your brackets? if you don't, then your teeth won't yet be moving, because it takes the archwires to move. Once they're in, the fun part starts. Brackets are bonded to our teeth ... and no matter what brand/style/colour/shape/material etc, they all do the same thing, and that's stay bonded to our teeth. The teeth can't move, as the that's not the job of the brackets.

We need a skilled ortho using archwires (which fit in the brackets) to get the teeth moving. There's no such thing as 'tightenings' anymore. This was a term that was used in the very 'old days', when every tooth had a metal band around it and the piece of metal that was threaded through these bands had to have each end tightened to force the teeth to move. Luckily those days are long gone and the archwires are now designed with 'memory', which means they're already in a shape of a 'perfect' arch and they'll keep working to get your teeth in that shape. During your appointments with your ortho, also known as adjustments, your ortho will check that things are progressing as expected. S/he may add or remove things ... for example powerchains, elastics, new archwires, springs etc. Plus it's a great time for you to ask questions about your progross etc.

It's important that teeth move slowly. If teeth are forced to move quickly, there's a risk that the roots will become smaller and eventually those teeth will fall out. So our ortho's are also help to keep a check on this. Plus we have the responsibility of making sure we do as we're instructed and not to 'overdo' anything that might put our teeth at risk.

If you do have the archwires are in, then they will be slowly be loosening and moving your teeth. First the visable part of the tooth moves and then the root. Often this is the slower part of the treatment, but necessary to help keep the final placement stable.

The archwires will keep working till your teeth are in a 'perfect' alignment, so be confident that if your appointments are three or more months apart, these archwires will still be working ... and maybe for many months after that.

Teeth ache for many reasons and hopefully you'll adjust quickly and your mouth will feel fine again. Chewing is a great way to help reduce any aches in the mouth.

Keeping well hydrated by drinking plenty of water is great for our bodies and helps our mouth cope with having braces. Also using wax generously on any brackets that rub is a great way for the mouth to toughen without getting sores.

Most important ... make sure your oral hygiene is excellent! Plus ... make the committment now to a lifetime of retainer wear, so your teeth will always stay where they are when your treatment is over!

Good luck!