You have had your consultation appointment, your mouth has been mapped, and now you are just waiting for the day when you will get your braces on. You might want something to do to consume all of that nervous energy! Luckily, there are a few things you can do to get ready for your braces.

Visit the Dentist

Hopefully, you can get a good cleaning from your hygienist before those braces get fixed onto your teeth. Of course, you will be doing an excellent job with your home care and going to the dentist regularly during the course of your treatment, but you won’t be able to clean under those brackets for a couple of years. Plus, your dentist can make you aware of any issues that should be resolved before the braces go on, as well as offering personalized home care tips. You might even need to have your wisdom teeth removed ahead of time.

Clean Out the Pantry

For the most part, you will still be able to enjoy your favorite foods–or at least a close modification of them. However, there are some foods that you should avoid because of the damage they do to brackets and wires. Think hard, sticky, and sugary. Hard foods include nuts, crusty bread, pizza crust, corn chips, very crunchy cereal, and hard candies. The worst sticky foods are candy: taffy, caramels, tootsie rolls, toffee, and more. Finally, you don’t have to eliminate sugar completely, but you should keep it to a minimum. Braces can exacerbate tooth decay and make cavities more difficult to treat. 

Stock Up

After cleaning out your pantry, you can stock up your medicine cabinet. Items you might find helpful for life with braces include a Water Pik, ibuprofen, orthodontic wax, mouth numbing gel, and mouth sore rinse for when you first get your braces on, as well as tightenings. Additionally, you will need floss threaders and an interdental toothbrush. You might also want to stock up on your favorite soft foods. The first few days after getting your braces on will be a bit rough, so this is your chance to eat all the ice cream, jello, and pudding that you ever wanted! 

Now that you have visited the dentist, rid the pantry of the forbidden foods you can’t otherwise stay away from, and stocked up on essentials, you are all set for those braces! Just be sure to take a quick picture of how you look now, so that you can bring it out and compare when your treatment is done and you are sporting that perfect smile!

If you have any more questions about braces or how the process works, click here. And remember, you can always contact us at Sonneveld Orthodontics to talk over any concerns.