It’s normal to have some soreness or minor pain in the beginning. Dr. Gellerman recommends a saltwater rinse to alleviate this soreness. Just dissolve a teaspoon of salt in eight ounces of warm water. Swish the solution around your mouth, gargle for a minute or two, and then spit it out. If that doesn’t sufficiently relieve the discomfort, an over-the-counter pain reliever like Tylenol or Motrin can help. In the first week or two of wearing traditional metal braces, ceramic braces, or lingual braces, you might have some irritated skin in the cheeks, tongue, and lips. Wax can coat the wires and brackets to relieve this problem, so just ask a member of the Gellerman Orthodontics team for some wax to take home with you!