Anyone ever have a mouth expander and/or braces?

[MichelleCarmen]

How painful is the expander when it''s turned with the little tool?

How sore was your mouth after you had braces put in and how long was it that way? My son will only have them on the four front top teeth.

He gets his expander in about a month and then the braces a few months after that. The dentist already gave him a list of foods to avoid, so what is left for him to enjoy? Apparently apple sauce and oatmeal are his main courses for the next year!

(oh and maybe some mashed up peas and bananas.)

 

[Italiahaircolor]

I had braces...

I was never on a really restricted diet. I ate soft food when I''d get them tightened...but thats because the pressure was pretty intense for me for the first couple of days and chewing was hard--however, different than your son, I had a full mouth of braces. But after that, once the pain wore off, I''d eat normally. I of course avoided gum, popcorn and other foods like that, basically the things that could get trapped in my brackets. But steak, chicken, pasta, burgers...no, I never "went off" that stuff.

I am only aware of children needing expanders before braces to create the room for the teeth to comfortably move about...I don''t think the two coincide. Back in the day, expanders were put on the roof of the mouth and a key was turned every day slowly "breaking" the roof of the mouth...but that was like the stone age of cosmetic dentistry and I''m sure things have changed. If that''s the case, I would think that you might need to be aware of his food choices so that he''s not over working his mouth. But once the braces on, I''d follow his lead and see what he feels like eatting, I mean it''s only 4 brackets!

 

[Maisie]

My eldest son has had braces for the past two years. He is 19 now. His mouth is really sore for a couple of days after the braces are tightened but then he is ok. He just takes mild painkillers until the pain eases off. He isn't allowed to eat anything that might stick to his teeth or braces. He was also warned to brush his teeth properly or there might be stains after he has the braces removed.

I should say that Tom has his brace tightened at the hospital.

 

[swingirl]

Both my kids had expanders and I was the one to "crank" them. My biggest fear was I'd drop the key down their throats so I attached a longer cord just in case (I never dropped it anyway). The first few times I cranked open the expander it hurt. This is when you are initially pulling apart the soft tissue. But after a while (a week or so) they claimed they didn't feel it. The ortho recommended a little Tylenol but we didn't need that.

A few times my daughter said it hurt (Ough ough ough while I was in the process) and I just eased back doing a quarter turn instead of a half turn. No biggie.

My kids had two sessions: several weeks of expanding, then we waited for a few months to heal and reevaluate, then expanding again. Then the expander was left on for a while longer for everything to heal up. It made a world of difference in their treatment and allowed enough space for their adult teeth to come into their proper positions. No teeth needed to be removed because of the extra space created.

I did not restrict their diet. No gum or sticky candy but they ate normal food. Mashed potatoes for the first few days but after that they ate everything they wanted too. We doubled up on the hygiene appointments because keeping it all clean is a challenge. I helped with the brushing A LOT!!

 

[oobiecoo]

I had terrible crooked teeth and a huge overbite so I ended up having braces for 9 years!!! The only 2 things I recommend staying away from are gum (it gets all tangled in the braces... not fun) and popcorn or like cracker jacks. I popped a bracket off a back tooth by eating cracker jacks once. It was at night so the only thing I could do was buy some wire cutters and just cut the wire off so it didn''t poke me all night. The ortho didn''t seem too upset about me cutting it off.

My teeth were usually sore after getting them tightened, some times were worse than others. However, I always found that biting into hard foods actually helped them feel better because of the pressure that was being put on them. Your son might want to try eating hard, crunchy foods to see if it works for him. Just no popcorn!

I don''t have any experience with having an expander.. I just had head-gear and rubberbands so I can''t comment on how much that hurts. Good luck to him!

 

[DivaDiamond007]

I had top and bottom expanders - at separate times - and also a mouth full of braces. It wasn''t too bad - I think I was in treatment for about 2 years or so. Unfortunately, my adult teeth have now shifted (especially on top) and some are starting to get gaps. I''m really self-conscious about it and hope to have it "fixed" someday. Good luck to your son on his orthodontics!

 

[dutchflowers]

I had an expander (and headgear and braces) when I was a teenager. I''m now in my early 30s. I don''t remember the expander hurting at all. Nor did I have any unusual food restrictions. My mom couldn''t handle cranking it every day, she thought she was going to drop the little key down my throat - so I did most of my own cranking. The expander created a 1/2 inch (temporary) gap between my front teeth. Not fun when you are in 7th grade.

But, all the orthodontic worked paid off and now I have great teeth!

 

[Miranda]

Hi MC.

Both of my boys have braces right now and one has (for one more week) a jaw expander. When I turned it, it didn''t hurt. He says he only felt pressure. I wore a latex glove when it was time to turn it because I got a better grip of the key. Our key was attached to a rubber line with a hole for the finger so I never worried it would drop down his throat.

When the braces are put on the teeth are sore for a day to a few days. Have him take Advil if he''s really uncomfortable. Biting down will likely hurt. Avoid pizza! Even though it''s soft, it hurts to eat.

Our orthodontist is pretty lenient about foods. Avoid too much sugar, hard candy, tortilla chips (though my boys eat them verrrrry carefully), bubble gum (minty is fine), and popcorn. When cooking pasta, avoid spaghetti noodles! They get stuck in my son''s expander and gag him. So pleasant to hear a kid gagging and retching at the dinner table!

Be sure you have a water pik to clean between the jaw expander and the roof of his mouth. Gross stuff collects there! And as others have said, help him brush. Teeth with braces are hard to keep clean!

 

[iheartscience]

I had braces for 5 years. I used my pacifier until I was 4, so that''s to be expected, I guess! I didn''t have an expander (I literally and figuratively have a big mouth!) but I did have to use elastics to pull my teeth down and towards the back. I ate pretty much whatever I wanted and I made sure to brush really well so I didn''t have stains when I got them off. And the pain was totally manageable-I don''t think I even took aspirin once.

My teeth have been great ever since then-no real shifting like you sometimes hear about. My retainer actually still fits if I jam it in there.

 

[lyra]

My oldest daughter had the upper expander. Although the final outcome was great, and it was medically necessary due to her jaw structure, she said it hurt a lot for a long time. I hated having to crank it, it made be feel sad to be inflicting pain (but I kept calm and didn't let her know about this). Good luck. It's worth it and needs to be done. I remember she couldn't speak clearly for the first while too, and playing the clarinet was very hard.

PS. she didn't have a restrictive diet as such, just things to avoid. She ate fairly normal meals.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Italia - apparently my son''s ortho is in the "stone age," as he''s using the expander to spread his top palette.

Thanks everyone for your responses. Sounds like he''ll be okay. He''s not allowed to eat popcorn, nuts, doritos (poor guy). He can have meat, but it must be cut off the bone, which I already do for him.

Oh, and yes, it IS only four brackets, but my insurance won''t cover anything that is broken because of us not following the rules. I was given an itemized list of all the possible ways the braces will break and how much it''ll cost us to pay to fix those mistakes! lol Eh. Ranges from $70-300. If I catch my son eating popcorn he is up-the-creek!

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Ah, Miranda! Yet another use for the latex gloves! hehehe I will try that.

I also like the idea of the string around the cranking key. Thanks swing girl. A string will make it cord will make it less likely I lose the key

 

[cammy85]

I had a palatal expander when I was in elementary/middle school for a few years to widen my upper mouth. I do remember feeling pressure when I was ''cranked'' but never any real shooting pains or anything acute. I also remember eating all the no-no foods. Resulted me in getting half a peanut wedged between the roof of my mouth and the expander for the better part of 4 hours and me trying to use a bendy straw to shove it out.

It was a little uncomfortable, but I don''t ever remember it being particularly painful... other than the gap-tooth grin I had throughout middle school! That was painful to look at

 

[Haven]

I had braces for a few years in junior high and high school. My teeth were a bit sore after tightening, but I just want to say that it was all worth it! I love having straight teeth now, and I'm really grateful that my parents scrimped and saved to put me in braces.

I ate whatever I wanted when I had my braces, including biting whole apples and corn on the cob. I was really obsessive about keeping them clean, so some foods were more annoying than others as far as getting stuck, but I never had any problems. He'll get a feel for what he can and can't eat after a few months.

I didn't have an expander, but one of my best friends did and she used to let me turn the key. She never complained that it hurt, but she was a tough one.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 8/27/2009 12:44:35 PM
Author: cammy85
I also remember eating all the no-no foods. Resulted me in getting half a peanut wedged between the roof of my mouth and the expander for the better part of 4 hours and me trying to use a bendy straw to shove it out.

lol!!!

 

[Miranda]

Date: 8/27/2009 11:55:33 AM
Author: MC
Ah, Miranda! Yet another use for the latex gloves! hehehe I will try that.

I also like the idea of the string around the cranking key. Thanks swing girl. A string will make it cord will make it less likely I lose the key

Haha! You and I have such love for those latex wonders!

 

[dragonfly411]

MC - I have first hand experience for both.

I had both.

The spacer/widener is going to be the least fun part. If they do it the same then it is cranked open periodically with a key to widen his jaw. It''s mostly sore painful, and feels like heavy pressure, but nothing excruciating. I do suggest giving him a treat of sorts after... if he doesn''t cry or get upset as they do it (my family did toy horses for me, I never once made a PEEP hehe). He''ll have trouble with noodles at first with it... but he''ll get used to it after a few days. I suggest the first day doing foods that won''t get trapped easy. Mashed potatoes, pudding, mashed carrots, I even did baby food the first few days to get used to swallowing with it. I think they require certain days within the first week.

Braces REALLY aren''t horrible. I DO recommend keeping the wax on hand, as they sometimes can rub your lips and that''s annoying mostly. He really SHOULD follow the no gum rule... umm and let him get the colored bands...they are so much fun haha. I really didn''t have much pain or annoyance with my braces... I had to take a little extra time brushing my teeth to make sure they got nice and clean.

If they want him to wear a retainer after.... make him do it. My mouth is mostly fixed but my canines went crooked again.

 

[OUpearlgirl]

I had an expander... That thing was awful. The pain wasn''t unbearable or anything, but I definitely went running when my mom showed up with the key. My biggest complaint was that food got stuck up in it. It was disgusting.

I''ve had braces 3 times. They usually hurt pretty bad for a week or two. Then you get used to them until they are tightened again. I avoided sticky foods and also sandwiches. Bread got stuck in the braces and it was so embarrassing to eat in public!!

 

[cammy85]

the other thing i remember - i had a lot of trouble talking initially with the expander in. I nearly had a lisp. Maybe its just me, but that sucker takes up a lot of space in your mouth!

also, I agree with keeping the wax handy for braces.

I had braces, a lip bumper and the expander. Oh what joys. And once they were off i had a retainer glued into my bottom teeth. Once I hit 20, i got tired of it and made them remove it. So my bottom teeth are a little off, but that was so hard to keep clean.

 

[sunnyd]

I had an expander and braces. The expander hurt a bit, but was more annoying than anything. It gets in the way of talking and eating BIG TIME. Say no to sandwiches, is all I can say. Those were the WORST because everything gets trapped between the roof of your mouth and the expander where your tongue can''t reach.

Just have Tylenol on hand when you do the cranking (if he even needs it) and he should be fine.

 

[OUpearlgirl]

Oh also! I don''t know if it''s been mentioned or not.. But with the expander, a water pick is your BEST FRIEND. Seriously. Those things made it much easier to tolerate!

 

[LtlFirecracker]

I had braces for 4 years. I am not sure I had an expander, but I had head gear to pull my teeth apart (for all I know they are the same, but they don''t sound like it from what other people are describing). I had a tooth grow in the roof of my mouth, so I needed lots of work to space the the teeth and than move the tooth back into place.

The braces really hurt after I put them on (I think I even resorted to baby food) but things would go back to normal about 4-5 days into it. Tightening would sometimes hurt, but not the way when I first put them on. The first few days of the head gear (which I only had to wear at night) were really painful, but it went away after a few days too.

During the process, I hated the whole thing. But when I got them off at 13 and saw perfect teeth, I was really happy and felt like the whole thing was worth it.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Everyone - thanks for all your suggestions! I appreciate it everything. My son is a tough little guy and I know he'll try and keep a straight face while the expander is being tightened. . .it's now (after reading all your posts) the food part more concerning me. . .trying to get him to brush his teeth while he's at school. Maybe it'll help that a couple of his friends are also getting braces. We live close to the school, so I'll just stand outside his classroom door before lunch recess every day to be sure he cleans his expander. He'll love that.

Today, we're stocking up on a bunch of the no-no foods as a last-minute junk-food fest. Doritos and Fresca (normally, the kids aren't allowed to drink pop). Maybe I'll get him some carmels!

 

[geckodani]

Okay, I had an expander, and it was one of the more painful things I''ve ever had in my mouth.

That said, we found out years later from another dentist that he had us turning the key twice as often as he should have. *sigh* It sucked.

 

[sunnyd]

FWIW, I never brushed 3x a day, so he should be fine.

Add super flavorful food to the junk list too! I was so hard to taste anything when six of your upper molars were covered in glue.