My kiddo’s had braces for almost a year, and honestly, tongue scrapers just seemed like more hassle than help for her. She complained about the same soreness, and I worried about her scraping too close to the brackets. We switched to a soft toothbrush for her tongue and that’s been way gentler. Have you tried mouthwash made for braces? Her ortho recommended one and it really cut down on the weird taste.
That’s interesting—my nephew had a similar issue with tongue scrapers and his braces. I always wondered if they’re really necessary, especially with all those wires and brackets in the way. The soft toothbrush on the tongue sounds much safer. Did your ortho mention anything about using alcohol-free mouthwash? Some mouthwashes seem to irritate more than help, at least in my experience...
I totally get the hesitation with mouthwashes—my ortho actually recommended alcohol-free, but even those sometimes left my mouth feeling weirdly dry. I’ve stuck with gentle brushing and just water rinses most days. Honestly, I’m always worried about spending extra on products that might not even help.
Totally get not wanting to throw money at fancy rinses that just leave your mouth feeling like the Sahara. I’ve tried a bunch—some of them sting, some taste like a chemistry experiment gone wrong, and yeah, dry mouth is real. Water and gentle brushing honestly do more than people think. If it works for you, why mess with it?
I hear you on the dry mouth thing, but honestly, I found that just water and brushing didn’t quite cut it for me as a smoker. Here’s what I do: first, brush gently like you said, but then I use a super cheap saltwater rinse—just warm water and a pinch of salt. It costs basically nothing, doesn’t burn, and somehow leaves my mouth feeling fresher than any of those store-bought rinses. Maybe not for everyone, but it’s been a game changer for my morning breath.
