Grumbling Kids And New Braces: How To Help Your Children Adjust

Ahhh, the sound of grumbling, grumpy children leaving the orthodontist's office! It is understandable they are unhappy, as most kids do not like the feeling of new braces in their mouth. As a mum whose child is about to get new braces fitted, there are several things you can do to make the first week of braces wearing a lot easier for your children. Follow these tips in the hope there will be less grumbling in your house.

Make sure you have painkiller in the house

Hopefully, your child will not feel any pain after the fitting of their braces, but it is not unusual for there to be a little discomfort in the first three days after the braces are applied. There are two ways you can relieve this issue:

  1. If brace wire tightness is a source of the pain, then give your child a cold glass of water to drink. Brace wire is affected by body heat, so cold water is cooling and helps reduce the pressure.
  2. If the pain is an overall mouth pain, then use age-appropriate anti-inflammatory painkillers purchased from the chemist as these will help to reduce any swelling

Once you are past the pain issue, it's time to teach your child to clean their teeth in a new way.

Make a game of teeth cleaning

Once you have the pain issue under control, it's vital you turn your attention to the way your child is now cleaning their teeth. Cleaning teeth with braces fitted is different because food can get trapped around the parts of the braces. If left in the mouth, this food becomes a party for cavity-causing bacteria to live on. Turning teeth cleaning into a game is one way to get your child on board with getting rid of all food particles in their mouth.

To play the teeth cleaning game, you need a magnification mirror and good lighting. You can get the mirror at a beauty supplies store. After the teeth clean in done, get your child to open their mouth over the magnification mirror. The goal is to find remaining food scraps. The fewer food particles found, the more points your child receives. Once they get to a predetermined score, you give them a prize. Nothing motivates a kid to clean their teeth more carefully than the promise of a new toy!

It will take a week or two for the braces to feel more natural to your child, but when you follow the advice of your orthodontist and use these tips help get you through the initial grumbling period, then there is a good chance you'll make it through without losing your sanity.


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