Once you are finished getting braces on, you immediately start what is called active treatment. This is the time in which your teeth will be moved into different positions with the help of dental braces. Some teeth will be pulled while other teeth will be pushed. Some teeth need to be pivoted or even tilted. The goal of dental braces is, of course, straight teeth. Active treatment is the time that teeth are actively moved into alignment. The active treatment phase is different than retention, which begins after getting braces taken off.
Active treatment – The first day
Dental braces are a new experience and create new sensations in your mouth—there is no getting around that fact. For the most part, you will experience a feeling of pressure rather than pain. This pressure is from the forces of the dental braces on your teeth. The edges of the brackets, wires, and other objects in your mouth will feel strange and foreign at first. As with most sensations, you will get used to it. Think about your clothes. You felt them when you put them on this morning but you don’t really notice them as you go through your day. The parts of braces are like any other foreign object. If it is a continuing problem, try applying wax to irritating parts of braces.
Active treatment – The first week
Your dental braces may actually cause a bit of pain over the first week. Again, there is no getting around this except to take over the counter pain medicine. The pain comes from the large amounts of pressure needed to move your teeth. This pressure/pain does not last very long and many people say that it goes away within the first couple of days after getting braces on.
Adjustment (Tightening)
Every three to six weeks you will need to return to the orthodontist for an adjustment to your dental braces. The orthodontist will examine your teeth for progress and make adjustments to the parts of your braces to keep active treatment moving along as it should. Often this means that your braces will need to be tightened; at least tightening is how most patients refer to adjustments. The orthodontist will make some adjustments as needed but you will feel a tightening to your dental braces in general (which is where the name derives). As before the pain/pressure only lasts a brief period of time after adjustments.