It can feel like a huge deal if something goes wrong with your orthodontic treatment, right? Especially if your braces break! It might freak you out at first, but if you are looking for support, you’ve come to the right place. You can calm down, take a breath, and know that breaking braces is a common occurrence in the orthodontic world.
There are a few steps you can take to keep yourself and your braces safe until you can get the help you need. Dr. Kristen and Dr. Penny share their tips below on what to do if braces break, and are ready to schedule our patients for a quick visit as soon as possible!
Keep reading to learn more.
How Your Braces Might Break
Before we get into the solution, we want to talk about the common reasons why braces might break. The top reason is usually related to food. Have you been trying to chew something hard, crunchy, sticky, or chewy? We know it’s tempting, but it usually only takes one time before our patients understand how important it is to avoid certain food textures during treatment.
Another common, and more painful reason might be an injury to the face, like if you get hit in the face while playing contact sports, for example. Another possibility is if you have been brushing or flossing with a technique that has been putting too much strain on the braces.
It’s a good idea to do as much as you can to avoid breaking your braces, like avoiding certain types of foods, wearing mouthguards, and using the proper hygiene techniques! Despite your best efforts, sometimes breaks just happen! Here’s your plan of action for how to manage if your braces end up breaking.
Your Plan of Action
Here is what we recommend should your braces get broken!
1. Assess the Break
Before you totally freak out, take a quick second to evaluate the damage. What exactly happened to cause the break? And what is happening at the break site? This is where you figure out what is going on–is it a wire that is broken? A bracket? Two brackets? Are the brackets still secured onto the tooth or are they loose and coming off? Is there something poking into your mouth?
After you’ve determined what exactly is going on, you can manage the next steps!
2. Make Yourself Comfortable
Now just help yourself get comfortable. This might mean removing any offending pieces that have broken off completely, or pressing a wire back into place and securing it with dental wax. It might also mean adding dental wax to prevent something from poking you in the cheek! Whatever it means, make sure you are doing okay and your braces are as secure as possible.
3. Make an Appointment With Sawgrass Orthodontics
The next order of business is to get on the phone with Sawgrass Orthodontics! Tell us exactly what is going on and how you are managing it for now. We will schedule you at the next possible convenience, and who knows, it might even be the same day! Just don’t wait around and avoid doing this till the last second–you want to get into one of our offices as quickly as possible.
4. Manage the Break Until Your Appointment
The last thing you will need to do is simply keep yourself and your braces safe until your next appointment! Avoid any activities that might mess with your broken braces, and brush very carefully around the area if need be (don’t skip brushing!). The goal here is to reduce the chance of your teeth alignment regressing, or causing pain to you while it is happening. Soon you’ll be in our office and Dr. Penny or Dr. Kristen will help you get in tip-top shape again!
Learn and Keep Growing
The best outcome after braces break is that you learn how to care for your braces even better and work hard to keep them safe for the rest of your treatment! Small mistakes happen to everybody, so don’t fret. It’s an opportunity to grow and get better at taking care of yourself! Hopefully, we won’t see you back in our office for any more broken braces!
Come to the Best Place for Orthodontics!
If you are still considering whether orthodontics is the right fit for you, then you’ve come to the right place! At Sawgrass Orthodontics, we offer a free consultation appointment where you can visit one of our offices and meet with a doctor about which treatment options might work for you. They can help you get a vision of what your smile could look like after treatment, and walk you through your options.
If you are interested in one of these free appointments, simply give our office a call and let them know! They will get you scheduled soon, and we can’t wait to see you! We are open to new patients in the Sunrise, Weston, Davie, Plantation, and Cooper City areas!
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