spugbrap’s blog

As many people already know, I had braces for a second time, and just got them off about 8 months ago. Because I’ve had braces twice, and especially since one of those times was as an adult, I’ve got plenty of advice that I’m more than happy to share. A friend of mine got braces last year, and we’ve had numerous discussions about tooth/mouth pain, problems, effective care and cleaning methods, good/bad habits, etc.

I’ve posted a couple of our instant messaging conversations, before, and it seems like at least a few people have benefited from this information, so I’ve been meaning to post some more. These transcripts have been edited to keep my friend’s identity anonymous, but other than that, they contain real questions and concerns from someone else who had to get braces as an adult.

These questions/concerns are not unique–nearly everyone worries about many of these things when they get braces, which is why I think other people can benefit from reading these discussions. Do YOU have any questions, comments, or tips regarding braces? If so, please post it in the “Leave a Reply” section, below .

Now, for part 3 of this series of tips for people with braces (also check out part 1 and part 2, if you haven’t read them yet!):

• Session Start ([spugbrap]:[friend]): Wed Jan 24 08:53:07 2007
• [spugbrap]: so, used to the braces yet?
• [friend]: Hi Dave. It’s a little better but I still can’t chew anything. The general discomfort has gone away but when I chew and put pressure on teeth it is uncomfortable and it feels like other other teeth get so much pressure. This Thursday will have been a week and I am hoping after that things start to normalize a little.
• [spugbrap]: ah yes that reminds me of some times when pressure was in uncomfortable places. like my top right canine tooth would touch a bracket on the front of one of my bottom teeth, making it so i could not completely close my teeth together without feeling like i was a) putting to much pressure on the bracket, and b) going to chip that canine tooth
• [spugbrap]: that got better within a few days. or i at least adapted my eating style around it somehow.
• [spugbrap]: i also remember when i first got the braces this time, i felt like all my teeth were so loose that any time i felt too much pressure on them (especially when THEY were applying pressure at followup appointments) i felt like my teeth were just going to fall out/break/etc.
• [spugbrap]: but nothing bad has happened. i was truly afraid though.
• [friend]: Eeek. That is almost how I feel when I chew, like I am loosening them or something. But it must just feel that way and these ortho. people know what they are doing. I can’t believe how much my teeth have moved already. I always thought that the tooth movement would be so slow that I wouldn’t even notice. So far I only have them on the top because she wanted to try to get my bite aligned first before putting them on the bottom. Now, I am glad about that because that will be even worse.
• [spugbrap]: ahh yeah they do move amazingly fast at first. the phase i’m in now is kind of a perfecting/finishing touch kind of thing, so it’s been several months now of waiting for a few stubborn teeth on one side to move ever so slightly, using rubber bands (which reminds me, gotta put one on!).
• [friend]: Are you suppose to wear them all day?
• [spugbrap]: at this point, yes
• [spugbrap]: for one or two months i only had to wear them at night.. i think because i was being so “compliant” and wearing them most of the time, the teeth moved more than she’d anticipated, so she had me change the rubber band configuration and just do it at night. now i’m back to all day again. it amazes me how they know just what type of rubber band type and configuration to use, and which types of wire-holder-on-ers to use (little rubber bands on each bracket, or a “power chain”), etc.
• [spugbrap]: for a while i had to use 2 different types of rubber bands, in different shapes on each side. that was fun.
• [friend]: Oh wow, that sounds like another hassle. I know it is wild how they have this down to a science.
• [spugbrap]: like i’d have to use a thicker/heavier one on the right side and connect the hook on the back of my back top tooth to the hook on the front of my bottom 3rd tooth, then use a lighter-duty rubber band in a trapezoid formation on the front on the left side. hehe. crazy stuff. but it worked. and it only took a couple tries to get the hang of putting them on.
• [friend]: Oh wow, that is interesting. I’m assuming that it is hard/strange to talk with the rubber bands in too? The other thing I thought of is having to wear a retainer afterwards. But I heard you can get those is clear without the wire. Did you have to wear that 24×7 when you were little or I mean when you had these on the first time?
• [spugbrap]: it’s not hard to talk with rubber bands in. i mean i guess at first it was a little weird because it was pulling my mouth shut. but you get used to it, and rubber bands stretch a little bit over time (i think), so the longer you have one in, the less annoying it is..
• [spugbrap]: as far as retainers.. i will wear it/them religiously this time. i did not wear mine when i was younger. i couldn’t breathe with it in, but either they didn’t care/understand that, or i didn’t speak up enough about it.. and eventually i stopped going back for followup appointments so they couldn’t even nag me about it.
• [spugbrap]: i don’t remember how much i was supposed to wear them before (i think there were two) but i’ve always had breathing issues and one of them was just too much in the way of breathing through my mouth, somehow
• [spugbrap]: but not wearing my retainer back then is probably the #1 reason why i had to end up getting them again. and i’ll give up and go for dentures or something before i’ll get braces AGAIN. hehe
• [spugbrap]: besides, i won’t be able to afford braces a third time, either.. i’ve got 3 kids, and chances are they will all need braces at some point (particularly because both of their parents did), and that will be a lot of money right there!
• [friend]: Yeah braces are expensive and it strikes me funny how the Ortho. insurance isn’t very high because the insurance companies know that now a days that most kids will get braces. Well hopefully thought after you finish treatment and get your retainer, you will be in good shape.
• [spugbrap]: yeah it was ridiculous how they only covered like what $2k or something!? and i think i still have to pay over $5k out of pocket.. at least the ortho does monthly payment plans with no interest or anything!
• [friend]: We must have different insurance because mine paid only $1K. I paid 30% down and then monthly payment plan for the rest totaling out to $7k. It is expensive, but then again Ortho’s usually only get a patient once a lifetime, not like the dentist where you go the rest of your life, I guess they need to make their money somehow. Well good to hear more info. about your experience. Thanks for sharing. I’ll let you get back to work, but on another day I am really curious to find out from you what I should expect at my first adjustment appointment. It is not until March 1st, though. I can’t believe that 6 weeks is March already.:)
• [spugbrap]: you’re right, only $1k. i forgot.. it’s been a year and a half since i looked at that stuff, after all. :)

First of all, I’m getting my braces off this morning! I’ve had them since June, 2005. My orthodontist originally planned on two years, but I managed to get them off a couple months off early for good behavior. I wore my rubber bands religiously, to the point where she said I was her “most compliant patient ever”. In fact, for the past 2 weeks, I haven’t had to wear rubber bands, and I kept feeling like I was doing something wrong. :)

I will have to wear retainers after getting the braces off, of course, which I know is not going to be fun. Not wearing my retainer when I got my braces off the first time (~14 years ago) is most likely a big reason why I had to get them again. I had trouble breathing with my retainers in, which is why I didn’t wear them then. But, since I did work so hard to be compliant and take care of my teeth and stuff this time, and since I don’t want to ever need braces again, I will try as hard as I can to wear the retainers this time.

Anyways, in honor of my completion of my treatment, I’m posting some more questions/answers from another conversation with my friend who recently got braces (the same friend from my previous braces tips post). I’ve already got enough material to make about 5 more blog posts, so this is just the tip of the iceberg. For now, this is just a copy of our conversation. Later, I may consolidate all the specific questions/answers into a list.

• [friend]: Oh man, you were right Dave. Flossing is a major pain in the butt. I went to target yesterday and bought the Crest Glide Threader and brush picks. I tried flossing with the Glide Threader and then tried what the ortho. gave me to compare. The way the ortho showed me with that threader thing was really really hard. The glide threader was much easier.Thanks for tip. A few of my teeth though already have gotten so tight that I couldn’t get floss through and was worried about using too much muscle. Hopefully tonight I will have better luck. I am miserable today. Eating feels impossible and painful. I haven’t eaten since yesterdays breakfast so I just went to Starbucks to get a latte for at least some calories. I’ll have to think of some shakes or smotthies that I can make at home.
• [friend]: I hope this initial discomfort goes away so that I can eat soon.
• [spugbrap]: what about some slimfast or something (presumably reasonble caloric content, with vitamins and slightly filling)?
• [spugbrap]: i probably ate lots of soft junk food
• [spugbrap]: i dunno
• [spugbrap]: :)
• [friend]: That’s a good idea. I just thought of that on the way back from starbucks.
• [spugbrap]: lots of jello, yogurt, pudding, ice cream, etc. is probably what i ate
• [friend]: Do you remember how long it took before you could eats pseudo-normal again? I imagine after each tightening it is like being back to square one.
• [spugbrap]: no i don’t really remember
• [spugbrap]: but after each appointment you get used to it more quickly. i mean i go in and get adjusted nowadays and i’ll go next door to five guys and eat a burger and stuff..
• [spugbrap]: early on adjustments probably made me uncomfortable for a day or two. but you really get used to it
• [friend]: One other question I had- Have you had trouble with parts of the clear braces getting discolored? I like red wine and am scared to drink it.
• [spugbrap]: nope
• [spugbrap]: i’ve eaten/drank everything, including red wine, kool-aid, cake with frosting that stained kids faces, etc. no worries. if concerned, do a quick rinse with some water in the bathroom sink sometimes.. it doesn’t have to disrupt your normal life, just do it while you’re in there.
• [friend]: Well that is reassuring that you could eat a hamburger afterwards. Oh I am glad to hear that you haven’t had problems with discoloration. That makes me feel better because I had googled that and read all of these nightmare stories about turning yellow if you drank tea, red wine, etc. Well I’ll save some of my other questions for another day so that I don’t bombard you. Hopefully I will get past this miserable stage. Thanks again.:)
• [spugbrap]: oh btw i have seen one thing get discolored.. the little tiny rubber bands that hold the wire onto the brackets.. but those get changed each time you go in.. so do your red wine drinking closer to your appointment dates. hehe
• [spugbrap]: i was never concerned enough to try to modify my behavior at all.
• [friend]: Ortho. suggested to get white instead of clear but I went with clear. I guess if bad I can switch. Yeah your right about that wait until the few weeks before.
• [spugbrap]: i suppose at least the first time, so you can see if any staining happens. as i said, it’s so minor i only worried about it briefly, but never tried to figure out why it was getting discolored, and the little rubber bands get changed and it’s fine. i didn’t know there was a white option for braces?? i think that might have looked funny on my teeth, they are not the whitest teeth to start with. not horrible, but at least showing the effects of normal wear and tear. :)

A friend (who requested to remain anonymous) contacted me last week, and said that they just got braces. Knowing that I’ve had braces for a while, they asked me some questions, and I provided some answers/advice. The following is a log of our IM conversation. I decided I had enough to say about the subject that it was worth putting out there so that others might potentially find it helpful some day. I don’t claim to know everything about orthodontia, but this is my second time having braces, so I do have a bit of experience.

• [friend]: Hi Dave.
• [spugbrap]: hey
• [friend]: Do you mind if I ask you a few questions about your braces?
• [spugbrap]: sure
• [friend]: Help!! I had always thought about getting braces the last 15 years and I just got them put on this morning. Now I am totally freaking out, because they feel so weird and awkward. Does the awkwardness go away?:((
• [spugbrap]: so this is your first time?
• [spugbrap]: this is my second time around
• [spugbrap]: so i may not have had as much awkwardness this time, and i can’t remember way back then
• [friend]: Yes it’s my first and I am freaking
• [spugbrap]: but certainly you get used to it. couldn’t tell you how long it will take though. but you don’t really have a choice, so you will get used to it. :-/
• [spugbrap]: and at first you will want to follow their eating guides religiously (it seems like you’re pretty careful about your eating anyways).. but eventually you’ll learn your real limits.
• [spugbrap]: i recommend Glide Threader Floss for flossing. and i am a hardcore proponent of flossing, since i’ve had a lifetime of fillings and then suddenly stopped getting cavities like ~7 years ago when I started flossing, switched from regular soda to diet soda, and started brushing morning and night. i’ve only had like 3 cavities in the past ~7 years, which is way better than how it used to be (like 3 every 6 months when i’d go in for my cleaning).
• [spugbrap]: flossing with braces is a pain in the ass though. but these floss thingies i’m recommending are good because they a) don’t shred when they encounter hooks/hardware, b) are way easier to use than trying to tie actual “floss threaders” to regular floss (like my ortho showed me initially)… only downside is the cost, like $4.50-6 for a box of 30, and i use 2/day.
• [spugbrap]: oh now i remember the awkwardness. at least some of it.. from 1.5 years ago when i got these on.. felt like my lips stuck out or something. and felt like my inner lips/cheeks were always catching/rubbing against stuff.
• [friend]: My eating is good during the week but on weekends I eat all sorts of bad chewy candies and stuff. I know they recommend brushing after each meal but that is hard, you don’t do that do you? They gave me some weird floss thing that you have to thread regular floss through. It looks really hard. Is that the Glide threader you are talking about? I’m going to look for that in the store. I am writting it down. Glide Thread floss that comes in a box. Thanks. How long do you have to wear your braces for? They said I will have to go every 6 weeks to get tightened. Does that hurt?? Yes!!! That is exactly how I feel. I feel like I am wearing a mouth protector that the football players wear. So please tell me that goes away a little. They gave me wax too. Have you had to use that?
• [spugbrap]: another useful thing is a water pik (sp) thing… good for those days when i really really don’t feel like dealing with flossing. just shoots water out a little tip and you can adjust how hard it sprays.. i forget how much it cost, i think like $50 maybe?
• [spugbrap]: um i’ll answer you questions in turn. justasec
• [spugbrap]: yes weird floss thing you thread regular floss through was a pain, and i was really happy to find this glide stuff. i tried the braun or oral b or something box of threader floss things that’s called like “super floss” or something. that stuff just gets shredded betweeen my fillings and my braces. pointless for me.
• [spugbrap]: so definitely the glide
• [spugbrap]: the box says “Crest Glide Threader Floss” (30 single-use packets)
• [spugbrap]: upc is 037000469742 if you wanna look it up online somehow. :)
• [spugbrap]: i found a couple websites with dental supplies cheaper than stores. and more obscure stuff that i couldnt’ find in stores.
• [spugbrap]: like something called an “end tufted brush”. i got one initially with my little kit they sent home when i got the braces on. but they didn’t have any more when i asked them later on, and i couldn’t ever find them in stores. eventually i managed to somehow find what it’s called, and found them at dentaldepot.com.
• [spugbrap]: haven’t looked for a place to get those glide threader floss boxes online. but i need to, because stores are inconsistent with their pricing and inventory.
• [spugbrap]: and there’s a new glide product with a box that looks almost exactly the same, but it’s not *threader* floss, it’s just single-use packets of regular glide floss.
• [spugbrap]: i don’t brush after every meal. i brush before bed and when i get up. during the day i often use Brush Picks.. little plastic toothpicks. to get the easy to pick stuff. because it bugs me having food stuck in my teeth/braces. they’re pretty cheap.
• [spugbrap]: i have to have my braces for 2 years, that’s the original estimate. i’m at about 17 months at this point, and am hoping to get them off early for good behavior.
• [spugbrap]: i’m her most “compliant” patient ever, apparently. i wear my rubber bands as directed, most of the time. that will probably come later for you as well.
• [spugbrap]: i go in every 6 weeks too. it may hurt for a day, maybe 2. it either stops hurting or i get used to it pretty quick. back when i had my braces the first time, i remember getting somewhat desensitized to mouth pain of all kinds. i could still feel pain, but i didn’t dwell on it, and could pretty much ignore/get over any pain they dished out. :)
• [spugbrap]: hasn’t been too painful this time. in fact, i even told my ortho that at some point, questioning whether i should be using tighter rubber bands or something, because it wasn’t hurting enough. hehe. i want to be done, so i’m willing to deal with some amount of pain if it will let me be done faster.
• [spugbrap]: yes the feeling like you’re wearing a mouth guard goes away/you get used to it/etc.
• [spugbrap]: i’ve used wax a few times, but it’s kind of a pain to make it stick AND stop the poking.. it’s hard to tell them as i’m leaving the chair though whether there’s anything poking me. i run my finger around the ends of the wires and all around to see if anything catches in a painful way… that’s how i figure it out now. because before i would say “no it seems fine” then i’d go home and notice the end of the wire poking my cheek, and that would get all irritated and swell up, causing it to get poked even more.
• [spugbrap]: mouth sores heal pretty fast. that’s what everyone says, and it’s true. it doesn’t seem like it, but even in the presence of foreign objects poking you, your may heal up and just get used to it. if not, call your ortho and go get the wire end clipped off more/better/etc..
• [spugbrap]: i think that addresses all your questions so far. hehe
• [friend]: Thanks Dave. I will note down the Brush Picks also. You really provided a lot of great information. The tip about trying to feel any wire things when you are there sounds good. Well I guess I can do it.:-<
• [spugbrap]: glad to be of help. thanks for coming to me, it was nice to share what i’ve learned. i guess i am kind of an expert since this is my second time. hehe
• [spugbrap]: and feel free to ask anything more wheneever.
• [friend]: Alright, I will. Thanks
• [spugbrap]: btw would you mind if i blog this whole conversation, if i replace your screen name with something generic?
• [spugbrap]: i’d like to post it so that info is out there for others who it could be useful for.
• [spugbrap]: so i’m going to post my info in any case. but it would be quicker/easier to just post the whole conversation, so people who just got braces can see someone else’s initial fears/questions, and relate.
• [friend]: Sure, as long as screen name is gone. You’re right it might help other, especially older adults like me that get braces and then freak a little.
• [spugbrap]: yeah hehe well the money (and the second time thing) is a big motivating factor for me to be good this time and do what they tell me to do!

1. go to http://www.dentist.net
2. find the product you want
3. enter in address bar:
   javascript:void(document.onmousedown=ra)
4. firefox web developer toolbar:
   Forms | Display Form Details
   Forms | Make Form Fields Writable
5. edit text input named ‘price‘.
   click ‘add to cart’ button
6. laugh

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Of course, I would not really proceed through checkout with any cart created inappropriately, but it was fun to play with a little bit.

Ordinarily, I’d contact a company to let them know about a gaping security hole like this, but…

1. I’m still bitter about them crippling my browser
2. My blogs don’t have very many readers
3. I’m confident that they would catch even the slightest modified order parameters, because, “We are Fraud Smart and pursue fraudulent orders to the full extent of the law.” (from checkout page)

I’m 28 years old, now, with a mouth full of fillings, and I’m still learning new things about how to take care of my teeth. Here are a few things I’ve learned about dental hygiene over the past few years, that I wish a dentist had told me about a long time ago (and wish I had listened to):

• Floss Every Day
  A lot of people think that flossing is just to remove big pieces of food from between your teeth. So if you floss one time, and no pieces of food come out, it was pointless, right? Wrong.
  • Don’t think you need to? Smell the floss!
    The other purpose fo flossing is to scrape germy residue off the sides of your teeth, which is something you may not be able to see. The thing that finally made me a believer in flossing was when a dentist had me use a piece of floss between some teeth, then *SMELL* the floss. If it stinks, you’ve removed germs from between your teeth, and it proves that flossing was a good idea after all. That was kinda gross, but very effective!
  • Find the right brand/style for you
    Another thing is how difficult flossing can be, depending on how close together your teeth are, and what brand/style of floss you’re using. If the floss is always getting stuck and/or shredding, you may want to try a thinner, stronger floss, like my personal favorite, Crest Glide floss. Ever since I learned about Glide floss and tried it, that’s the ONLY kind I like.
  • Start kids flossing early, so it’s a regular part of their night-time brushing
    It’s easy for kids to start flossing nowadays, with various fun-shaped “flossers” available. Kids don’t even have to deal with wrapping floss around their fingers, which can be challenging for anyone, especally young children. I’ve got Oral-B Stages Disney Princesses and Toy Story flossers for my 2-year-old daughter and my 6-year-old son, respectively, and they use them every day. Until they get good enough at doing it themselves, I recommend taking turns… With my daughter, for instance, she does it herself first, then I do it.
• Avoid Soda
  Everyone should know this already, but I want to share some things I’ve learned more recently. Regular sugary soda is just plain evil. Diet soda is better, but still contains an awful lot of acidity, which can damage your teeth over time (I have first-hand experience with this phenomenon). Something interesting that I just learned last year, though, is that if you must drink soda, you should try to use a straw whenever possible. That way, the soda doesn’t have to go through your front teeth while you’re drinking it. Wish I’d known that sooner, as I’ve been a soda addict for a long time.
• Maybe Use a Strong Fluoride Mouthwash
  If your teeth are weak and very prone to cavities, like mine are, and/or the enamel is eroded away pretty bad, you may want to ask your dentist if you should use a mouthwash such as Colgate Phos-Flur or Colgate Fluorigard. These are available at many grocery and drug stores, and contain a much higher concentration of fluoride than other mouthwashes/toothpaste/tap water/etc.
• Don’t Brush Too Hard
  Brushing is mainly just to polish, not to scrape. If your toothbrush-holding knuckles turn white at all when brushing, you’re brushing too hard. This can wear away the enamel and make your teeth more sensitive and cavity-prone.

It’s too late for me to ever have good teeth. I think they were weak to start with, and I’ve ruined them over the years, by drinking large quantities of soda daily for a long time, eating too much candy, brushing too hard, not flossing, etc. So, at this point, all I can do is try to prevent them from getting too much worse. Since I switched from regular sodas to diet sodas and started flossing daily about 4 years ago, I’ve only gotten 1 cavity. Before that, I always had 1-3 cavities at every dentist appointment. I also lost 20-30 pounds by switching to diet sodas*, which was not my intention, but it was a nice side effect.

* Results probably not typical, and were based on switching from about eight 12oz cans of Mountain Dew/day to eight 12oz cans of Diet Coke/day.