braces on adhd'ers

[Blue Oreo]

My DD, 11yrs. had a huge over bite and she was basically chewing her food on the roof of her mouth cause of it . After 3 years of braces and me nagging to brush them, she did awesome and the over bite is gone, she didnt need the lower braces, only top tp correct it. Its well worth it since she is no longer called "buck toothed bunny" by the horrible kids in school. I have seen her self esteem rise 10 fold since they came off and she smiles a whole lot more now. well worth it in my eyes and hers.

[Amsmom]

thank you all soooooo much for your great responses!
i called the ortho's office today and told them of our dilemma. they said that they have worked w/ kids like ds and that for the consult they will only look in his mouth and let him get to know the dr, the office staff and the office. they wont do any of the preliminary work. our appt is for 4/22. i'll keep you all posted.
thanks again for your help

[Blue Oreo]

In our office with "special needs kids" I know they can give them gas or make them go nite nite to put braces on and they never knew or felt a thing . If your DS is affraid, ask if this option is availble there too. You can do a walk in and let him see all the pretty dental techs and the other kids there. I was giving the tour and my DD got lotsof free stuff, like tooth brushes and teeny tiny rubber bands to shoot at people .. anything helps ease the stress for them.. good luck

[mskris]

chiming in late, here, but wow! What a timely topic! I just made an ortho appt for Taylor, who will be 10 on Sunday. I've always known he'd need braces, because his baby teeth were pretty tight and overlapped in places (small jaw + big teeth = braces). He is very advanced, dentally - teethed at 4 mos, had a grin by 8 mos , adult teeth before 5 yrs...so waiting isn't really an option.

I had braces, myself, and can't say I was ever "in pain." There is pressure/discomfort, but nothing I couldn't handle. DS is, thankfully, pretty stoic, even for adhd...so I'm not anticipating any problems.

The orthodontist is the one my sister used for both her kids and herself (yes, she had braces twice!). Highly recommended. If the receptionist is any indication, it sounds like a really nice office. I don't think Taylor will have any major problems.

Oh, just FYI - I had braces for 2.5 yrs, and was supposed to wear a retainer for a year - that lasted about 2 mos! I lisped with it and hated it. Needless to say, the teeth shifted, but not noticeably. Botton teeth shift more than top, generally.

Kris

[Amsmom]

i gotta say, it's not really the dental office i am worried about! it's when he's home with me that i'm worried about!!!! ds SOOOOO OVERREACTS to every little pain, no matter how tiny!! i am very concerned that life away from the dentist's office will be days of ds's constant complaining.

[gabrielsmom]

Amsmom:

I don't know if this will help but you can ask the ortho if he will give you lidocain ointment for your son's use at home. I know that my root canal specialist gave me a jar to use at home if the pain got to be too much afterwards. Now I also have a friendly relationship with him so I don't know if any dentist will do this but it would be worth a try. Maybe if you tell him of your son's extreme reactions to pain he would be willing to do this for you. Also if that isn't an option maybe you can use Ambesol or something like that that he can use whenever the pain is too much for him. I think that the use of some sort of pain reliever and Ambesol may be enough to keep your little one comfortable whenever his braces need to be tightened.

Hope this is helpful to you.

Josh

[Blue Oreo]

YES.. I got a bottle of liquid lidocaine for my DD.. in fact its sitting right here in front of me, cause of her new retainer is causing a sore spot from not wearing it the last two weeks. No pain, no gain. better living through chemistry I say, anything to make life easier.