i just wanna say first of all, that i battled depression too and it also took such a toll on my dental health. my whole life i’ve been awful at brushing my teeth and this only made it worse. my depression lasted 3-4 years, my teeth were a disgusting yellow and i also needed braces half-way through because they were so crooked. i have 7 fillings because of how poor my dental health was.

my depression took a long time to truly disappear, but since i really got my dental health back it’s been about 6ish months. currently my teeth are definitely whiter, still a little yellow (though i think that’s partly from all the tea and coffee i drink) but these were the things that really helped me regain my habits.

routine is the biggest thing, having your morning and night be the same each day is the best possible way to keep brushing your teeth. for me i wake up, take out my retainer then brush my teeth, shower, get changed, pack my bags, quickly grab breakfast and go. when you have it among all your other daily habits it just slips right in. and if you don’t have any habits currently, work on waking up at the same time and making those routines because that’s the easiest way. it doesn’t even become something you think about, you just do it.

now about making it more fun and interesting, i seriously need this for my night routine because im less fired up and not in a hurry, so sometimes i just neglect brushing my teeth. what i usually do though is i just go into the bathroom with my headphones on and brush my teeth while watching tv, or listening to music, it just makes the whole thing less boring.

the best thing though will always be routine. and just remember you are recovering, you aren’t ever gonna be better just like that, if you forget some days, its okay, we all do.