Expander Woes

Oh, my word!  This expander in my adult mouth became quite a pain--literally!

I had to "crank" my expander twice a day for a number of days after having it installed.  Then, after that initial expansion, went in for a checkup to see how it was going.  Fortunately for me, my palate handled it quite well.  Unfortunately for me, the expander couldn't handle the crookedness of my teeth.

It kept coming off!  Yes, that's right.  Remember how my teeth were angled toward the inside of my mouth--almost as though they had turned toward each other?  The best explanation we could come up with is that the teeth were unevenly crooked to start with--and so the expander was angled with the crooked teeth.  As the teeth straightened and became more even, the metal expander remained in the uneven state and just angled itself right off the teeth.  This happened 3 or 4 times in February and the first part of March.  After a while, the orthodontic staff just kept a standing appointment for me each Monday.  Because, naturally, the expander ALWAYS came off on Sunday afternoon/evening.

The good news was: My teeth--especially my canines--were straightening at such a rapid rate that I could see beautiful results within the first 4 weeks!  The bad news was that the straightening teeth were outpacing the expander.  It was almost comical how often I needed to go back to the orthodontist to have the expander reinstalled.  Dr. Allen would keep bending it into the shape my teeth were and then the next week, the teeth were in a different position.  He started calling me Wonder Woman because we wondered whether I'll be back in for a refit the following week.

Sigh.  Eventually, everything calmed down and it finally stayed in place.  I don't know how long I'll have to wear this expander, but I sure am looking forward to getting it out!

Some things to note about my expansion experience:

• As I was expanding, my entire skull was, too.  This caused pressure throughout my sinus cavities.  It was nothing a little Ibuprofen couldn't handle, though.
• As my sinus cavities expanded, I started having sinus drainage through my nostrils.  This coincided with the onset of Spring allergies, but I don't usually have sinus drainage with allergies--it's usually post-nasal.
• As my upper arch expanded, my teeth moved so quickly!  I kept saying "my teeth feel so foreign inside my mouth".  My canines moved down into place and I have contact on the left molars now!
• I had to relearn how to chew each week because my teeth weren't where they were last week.
• The expander made it difficult to swallow certain things.  Food would get stuck between and wrapped around the expander.  Small pills/medications would get stuck between the expander and the roof of my mouth.  I ended up getting children's chewable Ibuprofen because they would practically melt instead of needing to be chewed.
• Chewing hurts for the duration of your expansion.  I survived on mashed potatoes and gravy, crushed Ramen, Spaghetti-O's, and Slim-Fast shakes.  Somehow, I didn't lose any weight, though...
• I had to learn to take smaller bites. There were a few instances where I nearly choked because I put too large a bite in my mouth.  With all that metal in there, your mouth capacity is smaller.
• All the expanding creates new bone.  This made me extra tired a lot of the time.  I was told that it's similar to healing from a bone fracture.  As a person gets older, healing from these things takes more time and energy.  This is why orthodontics are recommended in younger teens and tweens.  (Of course, I use this knowledge to justify naps.)

In case you're wondering what an expander is, why it's used and what its purpose could be, here's a little infograph.  Fortunately, I found one that's not too graphic--you're welcome! 

Yes, this graphic says "until puberty".  Obviously, that doesn't describe me (a mother of a couple of kids actually going through that phase of life).  In various cases, palatal expansion is used in adults.  I'm fortunate that I am one of the adults whose mouth accepted the expansion quite well.  If you have a more difficult case similar to, or more extreme than mine, I highly suggest avoiding the at-home treatments and seeking a professional, medically-trained orthodontist.  Please see an AAO Orthodontist for treatment options and plans.  It's surprisingly affordable and you won't regret taking care of yourself and upgrading your smile.

Even with these expander woes, I highly recommend Marc Allen Orthodontics.  If you are in the Charlotte Metro area, please consider him for your smile.