Yeah your teeth won't straighten up on their own.. I hoped that for a while. XD
They don't hurt. I heard lots of stories that they hurt before I got them so I was freaked. Really they don't hurt at all, at least for me they didn't. They hurt SO bad after you got them on. The procedure itself doesn't hurt. And it's more of a sore tender feeling than a sharp piercing pain. You kinda feel sore after every adjustment too but that's cuz sometimes they gotta change the wires. Good luck with that!
Thanks for the picture comment! I have had them for years. I never smile with my mouth open in pictures, I am starting to more. I am getting them off in a month or so.