If you guys remember in another video though we've talked about how braces cause teeth to move and the way teeth move is by causing a little bit of inflammation around the roots, and that's how tooth movement works. If you want to learn more about that I have plenty of videos that talk about it, but when you first get your braces on, a couple of hours after you get your braces on you might experience a little bit of discomfort. The best way to describe this is that this feels a lot like your teeth are bruised. And you know how bruises are - they don't hurt but they're kind of annoying and they're uncomfortable whenever you press on them. It’s just like this with braces! When you bite on something when your teeth are initially moving it's going to be a little bit uncomfortable but this pain doesn't last forever. It's like getting a ball in motion. When you first start with orthodontic tooth movement, it's probably the worst because the teeth are just starting to move. That's why spacers and the initial wires are the ones that cause a little bit more discomfort than later on in treatment. This is because those periodontal ligaments that are surrounding the teeth are initially starting to move and that can cause a little bit of discomfort! The best way to managing this pain is by eating cold food or taking any medication you usually take for your headache. I recommend Tylenol because it actually helps orthodontic discomfort and doesn’t slow down tooth movement, like many other anti-inflammatory medications do!

In these early few days with braces you might also have a little bit of cheek discomfort and that can be caused by the brackets sticking out and the fact that your cheeks aren't used to them! You have to realize that the tissue in your mouth is really thin and early on when the cheeks don't know what this metal is, they can get caught on and it can snag and cause a little bit of irritation. This doesn't last forever, though, because throughout treatment your cheeks thicken up and they develop little calluses, that will eventually go away!

Let’s briefly review the things you can do to help with the cheek/gum discomfort from braces. There are three main things that you can do to decrease this gum irritation

One of the preventative things you can do is to use wax on any brackets/wires that are sticking out and causing irritation. I have a video that teaches you how to use dental wax but, briefly, what you want to do is roll some generic dental wax into a ball and form it around your braces after you dry them off with something like a paper towel. What this will do is make it so the parts of the braces don't poke your cheeks and create sores. Generic orthodontic wax is great but sometimes is a bit difficult to adapt / keep on your braces so if you want to try something a bit stronger, I always recommend my patients give Gishy Goo and Ortho Dots a try! They are a bit pricier, but they are definitely great!

Another way of managing discomfort to your cheeks is gums is to rinse with warm salt water. This is because those areas that are irritated by the braces can sometimes become ulcerated and you don't want bacteria to grow in those little ulcers and cause even more irritation! The warm water and salt will help clear the areas of these sores and help them heal quicker!

I recommend always having some topical anesthetic ready when you're about to get started with braces! If you have sores developing, make sure to dry the area of the sore and apply a bit of Anbesol! It will make you feel so much better and significantly improve your braces journey!

I hope you found some of the tips and tricks that I mentioned in this post useful! If you want to learn more about managing the discomfort caused by braces check out this video which answers the question of "Do Braces Hurt" in a bit more detail or this video, where we talk about "How to Manage Braces Pain".