20 March 2019

Taking Care Of Your Teeth After Braces

Taking Care Of Your Teeth After Braces


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For 2 long years of my life, while I was a teenager, I had braces. 

Back when you're 14, the idea of braces makes your skin crawl, especially if like me, you also had glasses. Let me just say- 'geek chic' does not apply to this combination. 

I soon warmed to my braces and I definitely don't regret having them as they sorted out the gap between my teeth beautifully. 


Also, I think braces are more accepted nowadays, with more adults getting braces and retainers as well as kids and teenagers. 

The want for straighter teeth seems to outway the 'brace-face' stereotype. 

After people get their braces taken off, however, is a different story. I know of a number of my friends who ended up having to get braces put back on a few years down the line as they didn't look after their teeth, and they told me how much they regretted that. 

I, on the other hand, was a teeth goody-two-shoes, making sure I took the best care of my teeth so as not to go through the hell of getting braces put on (and taken off) again!

You may think some of the tips below are obvious ones, but I can't tell you the number of times I've forgotten to do some of these things or put off doing them for months! So if it's a little kick up the butt when it comes to keeping those teeth looking exactly like how they looked when you had your braces off, then take a look below. 


FLOSSING


Have you ever had your dentist shouting at you for not flossing? I've been there, done that, got the bleeding gums from them having to hack away at the buildup between my teeth to prove it. 

Flossing is one of the habits that I try and stick to as much as I can throughout the week as sometimes I can find I've completely forgotten to do it for a month! 

To help me remember, I leave my floss right next to my toothbrush so I see it when I put my toothbrush back. Think of it as a continuation of those little brushes you had to use to clean in between your braces. 

Don't think you need to be stuck with normal stringy floss- there are some fab oral irrigators out there from Panasonic out there that are like pressure washers for your teeth!


 WEAR YOUR RETAINER


No excuses. The simple fact of the matter is, if you don't wear your retainer when you get your braces off your teeth will go back to the way there were! 

Yes, I know it can be a bore to have to clean them every day and wake up with your teeth feeling weird from being encased all night, but in my opinion, I'd rather go through that than have to have braces put on again. 

Your teeth take a while to settle back into place so I would wear mine every night for at least a couple of years after had my braces off. 

The trick to telling if your teeth are still moving about is after a couple of years to not wear them for a little while and if they start to ache after a week or two then you need to keep wearing them. 

Mine will now only ache after a couple of months, so I just make sure I wear mine every now and again to keep on top of them. 


STAY ON TOP OF YOUR DENTIST APPOINTMENTS


There are some people who are petrified of going to the dentist (if this is you, then please let me know as I'd love to understand why) and I know it's not the most comfortable experience in the world, but in some ways I'm even more petrified of my teeth going back to the way they were!

Book yourself now (yes, go on, right now) before you forget again and then after your appointment, be sure to book in your next one while you're at the dentist. 

I try to go every year unless my dentist tells me otherwise as then they can catch anything before it gets serious. 


LOOK AFTER ENAMEL AND SENSITIVITY 


In more recent years, I've discovered that my enamel isn't the best thanks to my dentist pointing it out to me. 

Enamel is the hard surface that covers your teeth and protects them from decay, and if your teeth are prone to poor enamel or sensitivity, then try to add in products that will help build it back up. 

I've switched over to only using pro-enamel toothpaste to help my enamel, as well as drinking through straws when having things like fizzy drinks and juice so that the acid doesn't sit on my teeth. Just think about carrying on the tradition from when you had braces but instead of staying clear of fizzy drinks to avoid that horrid square staining on your teeth when they came off, just pop in a straw to stop staining in general! 


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Let me know if you have any tips for helping look after your teeth, and make sure to comment if any of these have helped give you the dental kick up the butt that you needed!


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12 comments

  1. Hey, Georgie, I really found your post useful- I'm wrapping up my Invisalign treatment now, and am definitely looking for best practices to maintain the smile I've obtained. I noticed as well that my enamel is not the best it's ever been- so a pro-enamel toothpaste might be in order.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I am one of those who hates going to the dentist due to plenty of negative experiences as a kid. That includes rude and impatient dentists and lots of pain.

    I had to go through several root canal treatments as a kid too, and in the end they decided on surgical removal. I have no idea what they did to me while I was asleep but afterwards I was traumatized and had recurring panic attacks and more for years and years to come. (I still have to deal with some of that now after over 20 years...)

    I absolutely HATE going to the dentist. But I go because I do NOT want the past to repeat itself...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh wow, so sorry to hear about that. I guess it can really be hit or miss with dentists, you either get a great one or a horrible one!

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