Curious About Removing Braces Yourself? | 9 REASONS YOU SHOULDN’T

Curious about removing braces yourself? You’ve worked hard on achieving a better smile over the past few months or years. Now, however, you’ve decided that it is time to get those brackets off of your teeth so that you can get back to enjoying your normal life. While it is common to get frustrated waiting for your orthodontic treatment to be done, you must also understand that there are definite risks involved with removing braces yourself. In this post, we’re going to show you why you shouldn’t. Let’s dive right in.

Removing Braces Yourself, nope.

You may Still Need to Wear Your Braces

• Your teeth may look straighter when you peer into the mirror. However, that does not mean that they are fully settled into the best places to protect your bite. If your teeth are still out of alignment, then you could discover that taking off your appliances leaves you with an unfinished smile.
• Your orthodontist can check out your teeth first to make sure that it is time for removal.

You can Expect it to Hurt

• The brackets are cemented on your tooth, and there may also be specially designed sleeves of stainless steel that fit around some of your back teeth. Trying to pull these materials off of your teeth requires special skills and training. An expert knows how to apply just the right amount of pressure to avoid causing you major pain.
• If you attempt to do this yourself, then you may find that you are not even halfway through the process before it hurts too much to keep going.

You Might Accidentally Pull a Tooth out of Alignment

• The methods used in orthodontic treatment place pressure on the ligaments in your mouth that affects how your tooth roots fit into the jaw bone. During certain phases of your treatment, your teeth are considered to be slightly looser than they would normally be.
• If you try to remove a bracket while your tooth is not firmly held in your jaw bone, it could be pulled back out of its new position. In a worst-case scenario, it is possible to accidentally pull your tooth out of its socket.

You can Chip or Scrape Your Teeth

• People often come into our office with teeth that have been damaged by DIY orthodontic treatment methods. Unfortunately, trying to use your own tools at home often means that damage is left behind such as chips and scrapes that are visible when you smile.
• Once you’ve damaged the enamel, there is not much more that can be done but to use restorations to cover it up. Our tools are designed to carefully lift your appliances off of your teeth without causing any type of damage.

You Could Leave Dental Cement Behind

• We use a special cement to hold the brackets onto your teeth. This cement is meant to withstand things such as acids in your mouth when you eat and the normal forces that are applied as you bite into food. When the brackets are removed from your teeth, we carefully polish the enamel and use more special tools to completely remove the cement.
• If you leave the cement behind, it can be noticeable when you smile. It can also trap bacteria and food particles around it and contribute to cavities.

You Will Miss out on the Next Phase of Your Treatment

• A DIY removal could mean that you are stopping halfway through your treatment plan. In many cases, we use additional strategies to help get your teeth straight such as wearing a retainer afterward. Since you may be embarrassed about removing your appliances at home, you may also end up skipping out on a vital part of your care.
• Each phase of your treatment builds upon the one that came before. Missing out on the opportunity to wear a retainer or a different appliance means that you will not be happy with the final results of your treatment.

You can Wind Up Needing Treatment Again

• Premature removal of your oral appliance means that your teeth may not have been held in their new places long enough to fully settle in. Over time, you can expect your teeth to start shifting back to their original places. This means that you will have to start all over again if you desire to have a straighter smile.
• Depending upon the damage that you cause to your teeth with your removal methods, the treatment that you need in the future could be more intensive than what you are dealing with now.

You can get Braces Removed Easily in a Professional Setting

• While the list of reasons why you should not try removing braces yourself can go on forever, the best one is that it is simply too easy to get this done right. In most cases, it only takes a single office visit to get your appliances removed. The removal cost may also already be covered under your current treatment plan.
• During your office visit, your orthodontist will use special tools that make removal more comfortable and protects your teeth from chips and scrapes.

You may Have Other Options

• You may be wanting to end your orthodontic treatment due to issues such as discomfort or frustration with having to attend checkup appointments. When you are frustrated with your current treatment plan, there are often many things we can do to make things better. For instance, you might be a candidate for Invisalign retainers that allow you to go back to eating what you want, or we might be able to place your brackets on the back of your teeth so that they are less obvious.
• Be honest about why you want to end your treatment so soon. This allows us to find a way to help you continue to improve your smile while also being happy with your treatment plan.

Conclusion

Dr. Gluck and his team at Gluck Orthodontics know why you shouldn’t removing braces yourself and carefully follow your treatment plan to make sure that your orthodontic appliances are carefully removed when the time is right. If you are considering removing yours on your own, then give us a call first for a consultation. We can make sure that your teeth are in proper alignment, and we’ll use the safest techniques to remove the brackets and wires so that your smile does not get damaged.

2002 Richard Jones Road
Suite A-200 Nashville, TN 37215
Phone: 615 269 5903

Curious About Removing Braces Yourself? | 9 REASONS YOU SHOULDN’T

joelgluck

Dr. Joel Gluck has practiced orthodontics since 1983 when he opened his own office in Nashville. He earned his undergraduate degree at Washington University in St. Louis, and his dental degree at the University of Tennessee. Dr. Gluck then completed an orthodontic specialty residency at the University of Michigan, one of the top five orthodontic training residencies in the country. He also wrote an original thesis and received a Master of Science degree.