1Wearing the appliance correctly
- Hold the appliance gently between your teeth with your jaw relaxed. (If a severe malocclusion means you need to bite down with some force, follow your medical team's guidance.)
- While wearing it, do not clench your teeth or bear down with your molars.
- Applying pressure as if sucking on a candy can injure the mucosa around the gums, so always wear it lightly.
- Always bite with correct posture. Several times a day, with the appliance in place, do jaw, neck, whole-body, and walking stretches (see the in-clinic brochure). Adding the daily cervical-gravity stretch, which speeds up the treatment effect, will help you recover faster.
2Normal reactions and how to respond
- In the early period of wear, the teeth are stimulated, so everyone experiences some tooth and gum pain. It can be more pronounced if your teeth are uneven or you have a malocclusion. This is a normal reaction, and it usually eases gradually over one to several weeks.
- If headache, nausea, tooth pain, or gum pain occurs while wearing the appliance, stop wearing it for 10–30 minutes, then put it back once the pain subsides (if the mucosa is injured, resume after 1–2 days).
- Tooth discomfort may go away and then return. This is a normal reaction, so there is no need to worry.
- After wearing the appliance overnight, start your first meal with soft foods. Biting straight into hard foods can make your teeth hurt.
3Adaptation training
- If tooth discomfort is severe, practice wearing the appliance during the day, gradually increasing the time.
- If tooth discomfort wakes you while wearing it at night, take it out and go back to sleep. As you repeat this, your wearing time gradually lengthens, and eventually you will be able to wear it all night without discomfort.
- If the foreign-body sensation makes you feel like gagging, short, repeated practice helps: wear it for 10 seconds and remove it, then 20 seconds and remove it, then 30 seconds and remove it, and so on.
- Even if saliva increases while wearing the appliance, you usually adjust within a few days.
4What to expect during the correction process
- While your bite is being realigned toward a normal occlusion, pain when chewing may continue. If the malocclusion is severe, this period can last for several months.
- In cases with Class II or Class III malocclusion, or a marked left–right deviation of the jaw joint, an open bite may develop as the jaw moves toward its normal position, making chewing uncomfortable for a while. In most cases it gradually settles back into place over several months.
- Rarely, in cases of skeletal malocclusion, dental treatment may be needed to finish once the appliance has corrected the central position of the upper and lower jaws.
5Care, and when dental collaboration is needed
- Mild gum bleeding or inflammation may improve over time. Otherwise, have regular scaling at a dental clinic and keep your mouth clean by brushing with salt.
- A habit of pushing the teeth with your tongue when swallowing can cause an open bite. Correct it by practicing swallowing with the tip of your tongue placed at the center of the roof of your mouth.
- When you feel like gagging: if your spleen–stomach (digestive) function is weak, we combine herbal medicine treatment. Gagging caused by a change in the hyoid bone usually disappears within a few days, and pressing the tip of your tongue firmly against the roof of your mouth can also settle it. If gagging is caused by a long appliance pad, your medical team will adjust the pad length for you.
- If saliva stays heavy for a long time, it is related to reduced spleen–stomach (digestive) function, so we combine herbal medicine treatment.
- A tooth whose nerve is already dead may, rarely, be damaged while using the appliance. In that case, dental care may be needed.
- An implant that was placed incorrectly while the jaw joint was misaligned may come loose during treatment (if needed, trimming the area the appliance contacts allows it to be worn without problems).
6Regular check-ups
- Visit our clinic once a month so we can check how the appliance fits and whether there are any problems.
Progress and reactions can differ depending on your individual condition. If something feels wrong or you are unsure how to judge it, please do not deal with it on your own — consult your medical team.