Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to just remove the damn brace?

54 replies

TeenageAngst1 · 12/10/2018 11:54

Feeling awful. DD14 had a brace fitted yesterday and hates it. She has a removable top brace and says she can't talk properly and can't eat. She has a fixed bottom brace and now has an ulcer from it rubbing. The treatment is on the NHS and so needed. I am trying to talk sense into her and telling her to give it a few days, see how it goes, loads of people have them, etc. But she is such a drama queen that the whole family is stressed. Feel like marching back to the orthodontist and asking for them to be removed (although won't obviously). Dreading the dramas over the weekend. Please can you share your brace experiences so we can get through this...

OP posts:
ImperfectTents · 12/10/2018 12:11

Do you have the wax to apply when it rubs? She will get used to it and it I'll make an enormous differnce. Stick with it

Feellikeimthemaid · 12/10/2018 12:12

My DD1 is 19 now and had an extremely bad overbite, recessed lower jaw and unaligned teeth. She had her first brace fitted just before she started secondary school but it wasn't a traditional brace per se, it was this thing that fitted inside her top jaw with these two plastic bits that came down and sat behind her bottom teeth. It was removable for eating and the purpose was to encourage her lower jaw to move forward. The first days were horrific because it rubbed and she really struggled to talk properly. I was terrified she'd be bullied at school but that didn't happen and within a short time her speech was clearer.

DD had to wear that for the first year or so and then she moved on to a traditional fixed brace cemented to her teeth.

After several years she is now brace free but has to wear a retainer every night to keep the teeth in place. She has a beautiful smile and is now proud to show her teeth.

I remember every time the brace was tightened we had a few days of grief because it hurt to eat, but we'd just prepare her softer things to eat that didn't require chewing.

It's important for your DD to give her mouth time to adjust to the brace but if it continues to hurt after a while then it may be worth getting it checked to ensure the fit is perfect. She's probably also self conscious and will need lots of reassurance. I hope she perseveres because the results are worth it.

dentydown · 12/10/2018 12:12

Is there anyway you can get hold of dental wax to cushion the rubbing.
My son lived on slimfast for a week until his teeth adjusted!
The orthodontist should sell dental wax (it’s cheaper off amazon in the long run through) which prevents rubbing, plenty of painkillers, plenty of soft foods

Feellikeimthemaid · 12/10/2018 12:12

I should have added, my daughter had that wax too and would apply it when the brace rubbed.

jellybeans44 · 12/10/2018 12:14

I had a removable brace when I was younger and felt exactly the same as your daughter. I took mine out and didn't put it back in, and to this day I regret it so much. Please tell her to persevere, she will completely regret it when she's older if she doesn't.

TeenTimesTwo · 12/10/2018 12:15

Dental wax.

Keep the brace in to eat, soup and finely chopped favourite softish food (eg sausages for DD2), chat while eating to distract.

3 days needed to adjust.

Fruitbatdancer · 12/10/2018 12:16

I cried for 2 days every 6 weeks when they tightened mine as a 15 year old.

Things that helped:

  1. ice cream
  2. good pain killers
  3. my dad felt so sorry for me he went and bought me a kitten 🐱 Grin

Essentially bribery. Reminders how beautiful I’d look in years to come didn’t help. It does get easier (till they tighten again) but good pain killers a must. It can be extremely painful.

Fruitbatdancer · 12/10/2018 12:18

Ps we called the cat toofy!

ribblerobble · 12/10/2018 12:18

I had removable braces, 'train tracks' and headgear at various times from school years 7-10 at a time when they weren't common that young. Yes, the removable one made talking difficult (but only initially) and the general ache took time to get used to. I refused to wear the headgear outside of the house.

But you do get used to it all.

I have had friends have braces much older and just glad I got it sorted out early (and for free). My teeth would be awful without the work and wonky teeth really stand out nowadays.

SassitudeandSparkle · 12/10/2018 12:19

My DD is due to get the 'train track' braces after Christmas and I am dreading the tightenings Sad Already checked with her school about painkillers!

Mehaveit · 12/10/2018 12:22

Braces are rubbish at the start BUT it's essential to keep going and your mouth will get used to it.

The80sweregreat · 12/10/2018 12:23

My eldest son was like this : took a while but it is worth it ; you could try to just empathise the way her teeth will look at the end of it all? They do work miracles those braces!

I can sympathise ; I'm pleased ds2 didn't need one as he would have been the same as your dd!
I Hope it works out for her.

Gemini69 · 12/10/2018 12:26

Don't get the Brace removed.. the pain will ease and she will get used to eating with it but you DO need the Dental Wax .. she will endure the same pain every month after getting it adjusted.. so the Wax is definitely needed and painkillers... I think its around 48 hours after' fitting' the pain lasts and 12/24 hours for adjustments... then things calm down... but her inner mouth does suffer.. Wax will help with this too

I do wish her the best of luck... but the end result is so very worth it Flowers

Doghorsechicken · 12/10/2018 12:26

Braces are painful at first. I still have scars on the inside of my cheeks where they used to rub when I first got them. But your mouth soon hardens to it. Even when they tighten the braces it only hurts for a day or 2 afterwards. She really needs to stop being dramatic, we are so lucky to have the NHS! If she has problems with the orthodontist I always asked for the trainees. They were always more gentle and their work is checked over by someone experienced afterwards. I always found the most ‘qualified’ orthodontists to be like butchers wrenching your head about like you don’t feel pain. Think they get so used to their job they forget you’re human!

Pepper123123 · 12/10/2018 12:27

I had a fixed brace for two years and then a removable one.

I regret not keeping my removable one in soooo much. All the hard work with the fixed brace, all the suffering and I let my newly perfect teeth move back into wonky positions.

She won't believe you when you tell her she'll regret it, but sadly she probably will.

AnotherCareerThread · 12/10/2018 12:27

I had braces for 3 years and hated them.
But I'm so glad I was forced to go through with it.
As a teenager you only care about the here and now so promises of future reward (ie not having awful teeth) weren't an incentive.
Plenty of sympathy and pain killers.
Do not let her remove them.

ittakes2 · 12/10/2018 12:28

I had a brace as an adult, first 24hrs is the worst she will begin to feel better. The whole principle is they tighten them so teeth move which is why its so uncomfortable. Ulcer sounds painful though - would call orthodox about that.

BrownPaperTeddy · 12/10/2018 12:29

Put the wax on where it is rubbing.

The rest will get better after a few days. It is always uncomfortable to begin with and again when they adjust it but really, it's just something that you have to put up with.

Good luck and maybe give her some simple pain kilkers.

Pixie2015 · 12/10/2018 12:29

Stick with it will get better after first week - genigel is amazing for sores (can get it from larger boots) wax is a must for sharp wires - the ulcer and pains will settle and she will see a difference in few months - I am paying for mine private and over 3 thousand pound so tell her to use this opportunity whilst she has it - also they are becoming fashionable- good luck x

PeasAreGreat · 12/10/2018 12:31

Dental wax and painkillers. Soft foods for a few days.

I had braces for over a year and I remember the first 48 hours vividly. I remember laying on the sofa crying in pain.

The first day is the worst, and every time you get them tightened they will ache for a day or two. But would I do it again if I had to? Absolutely!!! I know so many people that hate their teeth and said they didn’t want to get braces when they were offered them, and they regret it so much. They have now paid up to 3k privately to have them fitted and the pain is no different when you’re older. It’s a pain worth getting through.

Mumof1andacat · 12/10/2018 12:31

Stick with it. Best thing having braces. My teeth look so much because of it. I had braces (train track style and removable) from 11 to 17. Yes it hurt when put on and when it was tightened. Dental was helped and I found Nurofen better for pain relief. Speach improves after a week or so.It's all worth it.

possumgoddess · 12/10/2018 12:33

My daughter had train track braces fitted when she was a child and she had a plate as well and had to wear a thing on her head at night with elastic bands. It was obviously uncomfortable and for the first week or so she had difficulty talking but she persisted and now, as an adult, she has the most perfect smile. Try to encourage her to stick with it, it is worth it in the end.

hopefullyhelpfully · 12/10/2018 12:34

Stuck with it. DD 13 howled (also a drama queen!) but the pain lessens after a few days. Also the surgery gave her stuff to put in the braces where they rubbed- like a hardening wax thingy. Quite effective while they get used to it.

Original poster
TeenageAngst1 · 12/10/2018 12:42

Thank you so much for the words of encouragement. We do have some wax but she is at school at the moment (although keeping me up to date how dreadful it is via the phone) so will need to wait for her to come home. I didn't have braces and so wish I had them as a teenager. We are lucky we have our NHS to fix these problems for free, would cost about £3k if we had to pay!

OP posts:
mrsfee · 12/10/2018 16:53

I wasn't the biggest fan of my fixed braces, top my bottom, in my teens. my bottom teeth have more of less stayed in place, thanks to a fixed retainer behind my six front teeth. My top teeth have shifted loads and I'm hoping to be able to afford work to fix this in the next few years. Stick with it!!

Swipe left for the next trending thread