Totally agree about the “naked” teeth feeling—my son kept running his tongue over his teeth for weeks and said it felt so weird. We had some gum puffiness too, but honestly, gentle brushing and a water flosser made a huge difference for us. I think the hardest part was getting him to actually floss every night… those habits are tough to build after braces. Sensitive toothpaste is a must, but I’d add that using a super soft toothbrush helped with the soreness too. It does get better, just takes patience.
That “naked” teeth feeling is so real—my daughter kept saying her teeth felt “slippery” for weeks. She was obsessed with running her tongue over them, like she couldn’t believe they were actually hers. The gum puffiness was a pain, but we found that sticking to really gentle brushing (especially around the gum line) helped the most. I’m with you on the water flosser—total game changer for us. Honestly, getting her to floss was like pulling teeth (no pun intended), but once she found those floss picks with handles, it got way easier.
One thing I’d add: we had to watch out for those clear retainers. She’d sometimes forget to clean them, and then it was back to sore gums again. Sensitive toothpaste was a lifesaver, but sometimes even that wasn’t enough, so we’d just take it slow and let her mouth chill for a bit.
It’s definitely an adjustment period, but it does settle down. Feels like a big deal at first, but it gets routine pretty fast.
