I realized there’s no gold medal for powering through unnecessary pain.
That’s so true. I used to think I was just being whiny, but those little cuts add up fast. And yes to the wax drama—I swear half of it ended up stuck to my tongue instead of the bracket. The Niagara Falls saliva phase had me laughing. I thought I was the only one drooling through math class...
Funny you mention the “powering through” thing—honestly, I get where you’re coming from, but sometimes I think a little discomfort is just part of the process. I tried to tough it out at first and, weirdly, it made me feel more in control. Granted, I caved and used wax eventually (and yes, it ended up everywhere except the bracket). Maybe there’s no medal, but I did get some weird sense of accomplishment... not sure it was entirely pointless. Anyone else feel like that?
I caved and used wax eventually (and yes, it ended up everywhere except the bracket).
That wax struggle is too real. I remember thinking, “How hard can it be?” and then finding wax in places I didn’t know existed. Honestly, I get that sense of accomplishment you’re talking about. Sometimes just making it through a tough day with braces feels like a win, even if it’s a weird one.
- 100% relate to this:
“Sometimes just making it through a tough day with braces feels like a win, even if it’s a weird one.”
- Wax never stays where it’s supposed to. I swear it ends up on my tongue or stuck to my cheek more than the bracket.
- Deep bite pain hit different for me—felt like my teeth were trying to eat themselves. Buck teeth was more about rubbing on lips.
- Both suck, but at least with deep bite, the wax sorta helped with the constant biting on brackets... when it stayed put.
- Honestly, just surviving the first few weeks felt like a badge of honor.
“Wax never stays where it’s supposed to. I swear it ends up on my tongue or stuck to my cheek more than the bracket.”
That wax struggle is so real. My kiddo had deep bite too, but honestly, the wax didn’t do much for her after the first week or two. She’d put it on, and five minutes later it was gone—usually swallowed, I suspect. We actually found that a tiny bit of orthodontic silicone (the kind swimmers use for earplugs) stuck better when things were really rough, especially at night.
I will say, though, with buck teeth, she complained more about her lips getting sore and chapped. The brackets would rub and chap her skin way more than with the deep bite phase. Maybe it’s just how her mouth is shaped, but for us, deep bite pain was sharp but short-lived while the buck teeth phase just dragged with this constant irritation.
Surviving those first weeks really does feel like an achievement... but I’m not totally convinced deep bite is always worse than buck teeth. Both have their own brand of misery.