Let's Talk Pain

Braces Hurt Like Hell

This is a simple fact that I wish someone would have just told me outright at some point.  The second day of braces was just plain torture.  The closest parallel I can draw is the feeling of having all of my teeth slowly pulled out of my mouth with pliers... all day long.  I popped some aspirin, which did nothing at all.  I upgraded to Ibuprofen and felt a little better, but still very uncomfortable.

For a week I could eat NO solid food at all.  When I say solid, I mean literally anything that required my teeth to close down--no rice, no noodles, no soft bread... NOTHING.  If I could not eat it by mushing it with my tongue, I could not eat it.  You quickly start to realize which foods dissolve in your mouth (thank you cupcakes) and which ones definitely do not (curse you Ramen noodles).

Adult Braces Hurt More
It's hard to get clear answers about whether adult braces hurt more than they do on children, but I am going to go with yes they do.  Simply put, a child's jaw is still growing and their teeth often just grew in.  Adult jaws are firmly in place and our teeth have been in much long.  Braces basicaly re

My week 1 diet included:
- yogurt (no fruit or other mix-ins of any kind)
- pudding
- smoothies
- milkshakes
- mashed potatoes
- mashed sweet potatoes (thank you Boston Market)
- baby food (don't judge me)
- muffins/cake (they crumble and dissolve in your mouth), but bread does NOT
- potato soup
- ice cream (no chunks/nuts)

Ice cream is my favorite dessert, but by the end of the first week I was pretty darn sick of it... and pretty hungry overall.  Somehow not chewing just made me feel hungry all the time.  Probably psychological.  

My week 2 diet included:
- overcooked noodles
- softer breads
- some tuna and other chopped meats (still not perfect, but manageable)
- tamales
- fish sandwich
- most foods considered "soft"

By the end of the second week I can eat most foods with the exception of:
- crunchy foods
- french bread
- chicken/steak/thick meats
- chewy foods or foods that require you to bite in (i.e. a hoagie sandwich)

Update:

I would say that within a month I was chomping down on just about anything... including everything listed above.  The only thing I never do, even 12 months later, is bite directly into dense foods (apple) with my front teeth.  I just always have the feeling that I will pop a bracket doing that (which I've never done).