Haha, marking progress on the mirror... that's actually pretty clever. Do you really think pizza crust is the ultimate braces challenge though? For me, it's been apples—seriously, how does anyone bite into those without feeling like they're risking their brackets? Also, has anyone noticed that orthodontist appointments seem to stretch out longer each time? Or maybe that's just me zoning out in the chair...
Pizza crust and apples are definitely tricky, but honestly, nothing compares to caramel candies. I learned that lesson the hard way about two months into my braces journey. Thought I'd be careful enough, just gently chewing on one side... nope. Ended up popping off a bracket right before a holiday weekend. Let me tell you, emergency orthodontist visits are NOT budget-friendly—lesson learned!
As for your point about orthodontist appointments feeling longer each visit, I've noticed something similar. At first, I thought maybe it was just me getting impatient or zoning out too, but then I started timing them (yeah, I'm that person). Turns out, they actually do take longer as treatment progresses—at least in my experience. My theory is that adjustments get more precise and detailed the closer you get to the finish line. My ortho spends way more time checking alignment and making tiny tweaks now compared to earlier visits when it was mostly just wire changes.
Speaking of marking progress on mirrors—I've never done that exactly, but I did start taking monthly selfies from the same angle. It's pretty motivating when you're feeling stuck in braces limbo to scroll back and see how far you've actually come. Makes those painfully slow months feel a bit more bearable.
Now I'm curious though: has anyone else found creative ways to track their braces progress besides mirror marks or selfies?
I totally relate to the caramel candy disaster—been there, done that, and yeah, emergency visits are no joke on the wallet. About tracking progress, selfies never really worked for me because I always ended up forgetting or getting lazy halfway through. Instead, I started keeping a little braces journal. Nothing fancy, just quick notes every few weeks about how my bite felt, any noticeable gaps closing, or even random stuff like "finally ate chips without pain today." It sounds kinda nerdy, but honestly, reading back through it months later was surprisingly satisfying. You get to see all those tiny milestones you completely forgot about.
One thing I've been wondering though... does anyone else notice their bite feeling weirdly different depending on the time of day? Mine always feels tighter in the mornings and looser by evening. Curious if that's just me or a common thing.
Yeah, your bite feeling different throughout the day is actually pretty common. Teeth naturally shift slightly due to pressure from chewing, talking, or even grinding at night. Mornings usually feel tighter because your jaw muscles relax overnight... totally normal, but still kinda weird, right?
"Mornings usually feel tighter because your jaw muscles relax overnight... totally normal, but still kinda weird, right?"
Definitely relate to this. When I had braces for my underbite, mornings were always the strangest—felt like my teeth shifted overnight. Hang in there, it does get better eventually... promise.
