After having your brace fitted, you will probably find that your speech is effected for a short while as you get used to the appliance. Anything that changes the shape of your mouth or effects the way your tongue or lips move will have an effect on how you sound but you will find that you will quickly adapt and your speech will soon start to return to normal.
You should also bear in mind that you will think that you sound ten times worse than you actually do. Many adult brace wearers have commented about this on their blogs and were genuinely surprised to find their colleagues, family and friends not noticing any difference to the way they were speaking. One of the best ways to regain your confidence speaking after starting wearing a brace is to practice reading aloud. Some adult brace wearers take a few days off work or arrange for the brace to be fitted on a Friday so that they can get some time to get over any initial lisp that might develop before facing their colleagues.
One passage that is often published on orthodontists sites and blogs to help you get used to speaking normally again is this one:
“When the sunlight strikes raindrops in the air, they act like a prism and form a rainbow. The rainbow is a division of white light into many beautiful colours. These take the shape of a long round arch, with its path high above, and its two ends apparently beyond the horizon. There is, according to legend, a boiling pot of gold at one end. People look but no one ever finds it. When a man looks for something beyond his reach, his friends say he is looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.”
It is also often written that brace wearers perceive their speech to be worse in the afternoon or evening when they are tired or after they have been talking for a long time but again, this may be less noticeable than they think. If you have any concerns about speaking with a brace, you should talk to your orthodontist who will be able to offer you advice.
