What Happens the Day Your Braces Come Off

The countdown is over—your ceramic or metal braces are finally coming off. It’s a big day, and while the excitement is real, you might be wondering what our Grand Rapids orthodontists have planned for that appointment.

From prepping beforehand to walking out with a brand-new smile, knowing what happens when braces are removed can help you feel more confident and ready.

Before you take that seat in the exam chair, however, here’s what to expect regarding how long the braces removal process takes and what comes next for your teeth.

What to Do Ahead of Your Visit

Your metal or ceramic braces have worked day in and day out to move your teeth into the ideal position determined by our local orthodontists. Their job is now complete and naturally, there is no longer a need for the various components attached to your teeth.

Related Post → How Long Will I Have to Wear Orthodontic Braces?

That means you’ll be asked to come into one of our orthodontics offices for your braces removal. Fortunately, there isn’t much you need to explicitly prepare for unless your teeth are rather sensitive to having dental work done. If they are, we recommend taking over-the-counter pain medication prior to arriving.

It also isn’t the worst idea if you show up with clean teeth and braces. That way, our orthodontists and staff will have less to worry about in terms of cleaning up after the braces are taken off. What’s one more good brushing session, anyway? It’s the last time you’ll have to do it with your braces on!

How Your Braces Are Removed

Once you’re seated in the chair and comfortable, we’ll start the process of removing dental braces by using special pliers to loosen each bracket. This will leave behind the adhesive used to initially bond the brackets to your teeth but we’ll get to that next. Hearing “cracking” or “popping” sounds during this stage is completely normal and should not cause pain.

With the brackets gone, we’ll move on to removing the dental cement or bonding glue. Because the substance is built to last, we’ll need to scrape your teeth and polish them with the help of a dental drill. This stage is all about making sure the enamel is clean, polished, and healthy.

It’s important to remember that during this appointment, you will also be fitted for your orthodontic retainer. Wearing your retainer as instructed will keep your teeth from shifting back to their original positions. To create the retainer, we’ll take impressions of your teeth. It will take some time for the retainer itself to be ready so we will let you know when you can retrieve it if it isn’t good to go while you’re here.

Time Required for the Entire Process

Luckily, having dental braces removed is much quicker and less involved than when you first got them. That’s because getting braces put on requires careful placement of each bracket, addition of the archwires, and application of all elastic bands.

The entire process should only take about an hour, though it can depend on the patient. If you’re someone who has more to their metal braces, i.e., more components, it may take us a little longer to get rid of every bit of bonding glue.

Note: It’s totally normal for your teeth to feel sore after your appointment. Try to stay away from hard foods and choose softer options for a few days instead. If you have puffy gums, this should also resolve with time but shouldn’t cause any issues.

Cleaning Your Teeth After Braces Are Gone

Now that your braces are gone, it should be much easier to care for your teeth! You can also return to eating all of your favorite foods as long as you keep up with daily oral hygiene. Our orthodontists recommend you continue to brush at least twice a day and floss at least once. Integrating a mouthwash into your routine is also beneficial.

Be sure to wear your retainer how our orthodontists have specified to avoid unwanted shifting of teeth. Over time, you may be instructed to wear the retainer less but do not limit how much it’s worn unless told to do so.

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