So you finally took the plunge and started your teeth straightening journey with braces.
I remember when I finally made the decision and lets be honest I did because of face masks.
Yep, facemasks covering my mouth everywhere I go made the decision to get braceses not so intimidating.
Now it took some time but I finally got used to them and learned how to best take care of them.
Here are the best products I’ve found that help me with my braces.
PAIN MANAGEMENT
Everytime I go in to change my bands I experience the tightening of my braces. On one hand I love that tightening feeling because I know its working.
However on the other side I need to get through the day without slowing down due to the pain. SonI generally take 2 Advil 200mg
and it generally does the trick. The pain is supressed and I’m good to go.
For those who prefer Tylenol
I’m sure that is just as good.
MAINTENANCE
Not sure how your orthandontist sent you home on your first day with braces but mines sent me home with a bag full of goodies. From floss, to brushes, toothepaste and more.
Toothbrush
In general a regular tooth brush that I love is the Oral-B with the rubber bristles on the side.
I can feel it getting into the braces as much as it can. However, flossing especially with a floss brush definitely gets the gunk out inbetween which I’ll talk about later in the article.
Some people use mechanically brushes which im sure work well. I’ve just never been brave enough to use one on my braces.
Floss
Im not a big flosser, I know it’s necessary but it can hurt already sore teeth. The floss that ive found most comfortable for me is the Listerine Ultraclean Dental Floss.
It’s gets the job done and thats what we need.
Water Flosser
A better tooth but more expensive one is to get a water flosser. Its basically a machine that pushes water between your teeth and braces and slides all that gunk out. The one that works well is the MOSPRO Portable Oral Irrigator
Its is more of an investment but that one time purchase can carry you through your entire braces journey versus buying floss every few months.
Sometimes my othrodontist will ask if i need more floss, and I always say yes! and voila free floss!
Mini Brush
My absolutely favorite braces product is these mini brushes. I got my first one from the othrodontist and once i used it, I went straight to Amazon for more. It’s the Interdental Brush.
The first time I went back to the Ortho to get my braces tightened I was surprised when he said my teeth were really clean. I was so overjoyed on the inside and I knew it was due to those floss brushes.
I keep them in my bag for when im out and about and I use them every night along with brushing my teeth.
Whitening
I personally use a whitening toothpaste when brushing my teeth, because when these bad boys come off I dont want a mouth full of yellow bricks.
I think any good whitening toothpaste would be suitable but like
Mouth Rinse
I like to keep listerine in my bag when I’m out and about. If I’m eating out, once im done I will excuse myself to the restroom. Using a floss brush I’ll clean out any left behind gunk and then I use the Listerine Mouth Wash as a rinse. Its a quick and easy way for my teeth get a quick freshing up before I continue on with my day.
Wax
I’ve tried a few times with using and never got the hang of it. The Ortho Assistant has tried to give me some pointers but its just isnt my thing. I did once get it one and it stayed for about an hour before slipping out.
Wax was made to prevent the wire from scratching the inside of your mouth. I the begining this happened alot for me and when I was using the wax I used
It’s similar to the one provided to me at the Orthodontist office.
I will say overtime the rubbing in my mouth stopped. Partly i believe is because the Ortho assistants started bending the edge of the wire and cutting it smaller. Now I have now scratching at all so I don’t use the wax.
Having braces can be tough at first just getting used to it. However with time and Im sure by the time they come off that grateful feeling will kick in when we see our beautiful teeth!
