That “chipmunk cheeks” phase is so real—my daughter went through it, too. Wax is great when it stays put, but yeah, it’s gone by morning half the time. The gum trick actually isn’t the worst hack in a pinch (though our ortho side-eyed us for it). We found that silicone ortho wax stuck better than the regular kind, especially if you dry the bracket first. Hang in there, it does get easier once the mouth toughens up a bit.
Hang in there, it does get easier once the mouth toughens up a bit.
For real, that first month is rough. I remember waking up feeling like I’d been chewing on gravel all night. The silicone wax was a lifesaver for me too—regular stuff just disappeared as soon as I ate anything. Honestly, after a few weeks my cheeks kinda just gave up fighting and toughened up. It’s wild how fast you get used to it, even if it feels impossible at first.
I totally get where you’re coming from—those first few weeks were brutal for me too. What helped was rinsing with warm salt water at night, and I’d sometimes tuck a bit of sugarless gum over the worst spots if wax wasn’t cutting it. It’s awkward, but it kept things from getting raw. Hang in there, your mouth really does adapt quicker than you’d think.
Never tried sugarless gum for that, but I might have missed out. I mostly relied on the orthodontic wax, but honestly, it kept falling off if I drank anything warm. Did anyone else find the salt water rinse only helped a bit? For me, the real game changer was switching to a super soft toothbrush and brushing after every meal. Not sure if it helped with the cheek pain directly, but it seemed to cut down on irritation overall. Anyone get those weird ulcers that just won’t go away?
Ulcers that hang around forever are the worst. I actually found dabbing a tiny bit of liquid antacid (like milk of magnesia) right on the sore helped it heal faster. Also, biting down gently on a cotton roll at night kept my cheeks from rubbing so much—felt weird but seemed to help. The wax always melted off for me too if I had soup or tea... super annoying.