Orthodontic patients all have one thing in common: they all learn to adjust! This is true during treatment, and after it's over, too!
It's not uncommon to feel frustration with the orthodontic treatment process. Just when you get used to one change, you have to adjust to another one!
First, you adjust to wearing your braces, and to the way your smile has changed. You adjust to new eating habits, new oral hygiene habits, and the new way you look. And, you have to adjust to how your mouth feels after each adjustment appointment… Good grief.
But, you take comfort in the fact that it will all eventually comes to an end, and you'll have a beautiful, straight new smile to show for it. And hopefully, you’ve become more adaptable as a result (not a bad life lesson, really!).
Once your braces are off though, you'll have to go through a final set of adjustments. These are some of the ways you’ll have to adjust to once your braces come off:
Eating will feel weird
Eating felt pretty weird and uncomfortable when you first got your braces, didn't it? Well, it’s going to feel just as weird and uncomfortable eating without them once they’re gone, too! You’ll be able to do all the things you couldn't do during treatment, like biting into an apple, or eating corn on the cob. Sweet freedom!
You’ll be able to chew treats like gum, toffee and peanut brittle again, and eat a salad without half of it remaining on your teeth afterwards. Your mouth will also just feel a bit off as you eat, at first. But you'll enjoy that dietary freedom!
Calluses
During treatment, the insides of your lips and cheeks formed calluses as a result of constant friction with braces over the months of years of treatment. These will still be there when your braces first come off, and they'll feel a bit weird until they disappear.
Brushing & Flossing
Your oral hygiene will be a lot less time consuming! While a thorough oral hygiene routine should always be a priority, you'll no longer have to spend loads of extra time cleaning out all the nooks and crannies of your braces, and you'll be able to brush and floss like normal.
Discolouration
You may find that your teeth have developed some discolouration during treatment, and are now darker in the places that the brackets were not attached. To remedy this, you may want to undergo a course of teeth whitening treatment to even out your smile.
More Appointments with your orthodontist… and another orthodontic appliance.
That’s right, you’re not done with us yet! After your braces come off, you’ll have to attend a few follow up appointments with your orthodontist that he can make sure that your retainer fits properly, and your results are being properly maintained.
And on that note, you’ll be prescribed a retainer to keep your teeth in their new positions. And on THAT note…
Settling
Now that your teeth won’t be held in place with your braces, you’ll have to wear a retainer full time for a while, since your teeth will have become loosened during treatment. In the months and years to come, you’ll still need to wear it periodically (usually just at night).
Straight teeth!
The day your braces come off is a pretty thrilling one. You’ll finally be able to see how even your new smile is! It’s a big change that will change the appearance of your whole face.