Rubber band

Went in for my orthodontic appointment again a few weeks ago. I got my teeth cleaning done too. I got a different hygienist today because my regular hygienist was not available. There was no probing though but as usual the cleaning session wasn't that pleasant :( But at the end, the hygienist told me that my teeth are healthy.. and the titled wisdom tooth on my lower left side was far straightened up. And that was when I learned that the wire was attached to that tooth also! I didn't know that, I thought we were going to leave that tooth alone and would be straightened up later on when I got an implant that would help fix the position of the tooth. I asked if the gap on my lower right side was closing because I felt the progress was very slow. She (the assistant) told me that it did because there was poking wire that indicated there was movement. But I think she consulted with my orthodontist and he suggested rubber band. So today I had the rubber band to help close the gap. She asked me to hold a mirror while she showed me how to put the rubber band and on which teeth. During the first week it was very painful. I couldn't stand it, all I wanted to do was to take out the elastic and not wear them at all. My teeth and gum were also sore. I didn't feel like talking. It took at least one week before I got used to it. I was told that I need to wear this elastic all the time, I can take it out for brushing my teeth and eating, but need to put it back on afterwards. And also I need to change to a new elastic 2-3 times a day. She gave me a bag full of rubber bands, contains 100 of them! And this time I was prepared to tell her I wanted to try soft pink color, but she already put on the pearl white before I got the chance to tell her that. So maybe next time.

 

rubber band will help move the teeth to close the gap

Products I use

I'm not sure about the other towns/states, but where I live, there's no specialty store that sells orthodontic items. I can find regular wax at some grocery stores, but never other things like toothbrushes. I find that perplexing. However, in this post I'll make the list of items that I use ever since I have my braces. I buy most of these online because I can't find them at the stores.

First, this is the floss that I'm using. You can find this at most grocery stores out there. It's very easy to use. It has a stiff end that makes it easier for you to control during flossing. I also love the soft spongy floss that's thick enough for wide gaps.

Next is silicone wax. The one that I use is called OrthoSil. Your teeth/braces needs to be dry and you also need to use dry fingers to apply this wax onto the affected area. It gets tricky sometimes, but I find them stay put better than regular wax. I always buy Orthosil from dentakit.com

Last but not least, this is the toothbrush that I use. Its brand is GUM. The V-cut bristles are soft and I love holding on the thick rubber grip while brushing my teeth. Most orthodontic toothbrushes out there that I find normally have really thin 'body' and without rubber grip or anything causing it a little uncomfortable to hold and have bigger chance of slipping off my palm - I had to take a good grip with any other toothbrushes. Again, I always buy the GUM orthodontic toothbrushes from their websites. I also have the travel size toothbrush with the same brand name.

Having said that, the first time I got my braces on.. my orthodontist gave me this set of orthodontic items that I would need and it included a Plak Smacker toothbrushes which I like to. But you can only buy Plak Smacker's products in large quantity (min 144 pieces), and I highly doubt I will ever use up all 144 by myself. I suppose I can always buy them, take what I need, and resell them on eBay or something.

A year!

Progress after 12 months (lower braces)
6 months (upper braces).

Teeth are aligned better, progress of closing gap is quite slow. But every month when I come in for my braces tightening appointment, I can tell that it's moving because just within 1-2 weeks, the wires (both upper and lower braces) start poking my cheek again. The poking wire gets quite painful and uncomfortable at times. I can always come in to get the poking wires trimmed, but I never did because of my busy schedule :(

As for the color of the chains I usually go for the pearl color. But sometimes I forgot and eat curry, then the chains will get yellow stains, very unattractive. So this time I go for bold color: silver! Ha. I went for bright pink color before too, worked pretty great and didn't get stains - from what I can remember.

the gap that still needs to close
(extraction date of this tooth: August 26, 2010)