Diaries of a Domestic Goddess

When parents hear the words, “you may want to consider getting your child an appoint with an orthodontist”, they probably cringe. Not only is it a TON of money for orthodontic work, but lets face it, it’s a pain in the butt having to hound your kids to follow the braces directions. I’ve already been through braces with my son, now we are embarking on that journey with my daughter. Here are some helpful tips for kids with braces.

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Image via Pexels by Pietro Jeng

Did You Get Multiple Quotes?

If you’re like me, you got many different quotes for braces for your kids. Your quotes probably ranged from $3500 to $6500. Lucky me, my sons braces cost us over $6000. The frustrating part…you pay all this money to fix the teeth in their mouth, yet it does nothing for the actual teenage mouth! I’d totally pay extra to fix that teenage mouth! All joking aside, get multiple quotes.

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Agree with the Treatment Plan

This probably seems obvious, but you wouldn’t believe how some people just go with everything and don’t ask questions. My son had a very narrow jaw and barely any room in his mouth for his teeth. One consultation we went on, the orthodontist wanted to pull 6 adult teeth to make room for the rest of his teeth. That did not make sense to me. The next consultation wanted to use an expander. That made sense to me and we ended up going with that office.

This week, my daughter got braces. She is one of those crazy kids that is super excited to have them! She thinks it’s fun to be able to pick different colors for the brackets. It’s hard to tell in this picture, but she went with dark green. Dark green is the color for her travel soccer team!

Waterpik Aquarius Professional Water Flosser Designer Series, Black, WP-672

Braces are really no fun for anyone involved. They are no fun for parents having to pay the bill and they are no fun for kids going through the treatment. These tips for kids with braces are things I have found, either from my personal experience with braces or from my kids experience, that have helped us get through the different stages of treatment.

Tips, Tips, and More Tips

1. Flossing – Such an important aspect of taking care of our teeth. Probably more so when we have braces. Food gets stuck around the brackets, in between the teeth, and just sit and fester. Not good. The ortho will give you flossers that you thread under the wire to floss your teeth. They are time consuming and really hard to get right. Your best bet…get a Waterpik. They are amazing and work so much better than floss.
2. Mouthwash – There is a mouthwash by ACT that is specifically for braces. It has aloe in it to help soothe the gums. Get it! I found ours at Walmart.
3. Wax – Pick up some dental wax for braces (in the toothbrush section of the store). It takes a bit for kids to get used to having the brackets on their teeth. There will be some rubbing on the gums. The wax helps kids with braces by placing the wax on the area that is rubbing funny.
4. Eating Tip #1 – Soft foods are your friend. The first three days after they get them on and after each adjustment, are the worst. I always got my kids ice cream the first day. After that, soft foods are easiest for them.
5. Eating Tip #2 – If you are eating finger foods, break the food with your fingers into bites or cut with a fork and knife. The last thing you want to do is pop a bracket off or get food stuck in your braces at school. My husband has been making my daughters lunch for school and he cuts her sandwich into strips so it’s easier for her to break bites off.
6. Good Foods vs Bad Foods – It stinks to not be able to eat your favorite things. Make sure to have good foods available. Foods like fruit you don’t have to bite into, soft Nutri-Grain bars, etc. Things like chips, popcorn and sticky foods are no no’s.

Sound Helpful?

These six tips have been super helpful for my kids. Especially the Waterpik. I highly recommend that. At any rate, the hardest part (at least I think so) is getting the kids to not eat the foods that are banned and getting them to wear those rubber bands. I’m really hoping things go smoother for me (and my daughter) this time around. My son gave me a run for my money!

What are your best tips for kids with braces?