Plastic Braceface

Top: before I started Invisalign

I waited about four weeks for my first refinement trays to come in.  When I picked them up they only gave me seven new sets of trays and only put one attachment on one of my lower teeth.  I thought it seemed weird, so I asked to see the video that showed the changes in your teeth.  In the video there wasn’t really any movement.  The girl who worked at the office said “Oh, are you trying to fix your open bite?”  I told her “I just want straight teeth.”  She kind of laughed it off and took me to the front to schedule my next appointment.  My appointment was scheduled for a longer period of time, because they assumed I would probably want another refinement.

I wouldn’t mind dealing with Invisalign if I was actually happy with the end result.  I don’t like relying on a system that gets sent off to a machine that is supposed to figure out the right process to straighten someone’s teeth.  I’m not sure if I should get my last refinement or just get traditional braces.  At least with traditional braces your ortho has more control over the process.  I feel like I’m spending thousands on dollars on pieces of plastic and having to deal with the struggles of Invisalign for a slight improvement in my teeth.

Any advice is welcomed. 

The top is before I got Invislign and the bottom is 6 months into it. 

No matter how much I file it down this tray is tearing into my tongue. 

I popped tray 2 into my mouth today.  The bottom went on easily.  The top tray not so much.  I struggled a bunch, but it finally fit.  My top teeth need a lot more adjustments than my bottom ones, so I guess that makes sense. 

My old trays were getting pretty gross.  I didn’t notice that until I compared them to the new ones.  They stunk and had a slight tint to them.  I clean my trays and teeth constantly, but plaque finds a way in, especially overnight.  When I take them out in the morning I notice a significant amount of plaque stuck on them.   

Maybe people are just being polite, but nobody has asked me about them yet. 

All in all, they aren’t as bad as I thought they would be.  Invisalign might be a huge inconvenience for an alcoholic though, haha.   

I’m getting used to Invisalign!  My teeth aren’t in any pain.  And I’m looking forward to moving on to tray 2 next Monday. 

The sides of my tongue are in rough shape and I can’t taste much of anything.  My top aligner by my two front teeth is too big or something.  It covers my gums and they feel really soft and tender in that area.  I tried to file it down a bit today, so hopefully that helps. 

I’m getting used to talking with Invisalign in my mouth, so that is a plus. 

So, teaching on Friday wasn’t that bad.  I lisped a bit, but I don’t think most people noticed it. 

So, day 2 was the worst.  I’m thinking it’s less annoying to deal with today, so I’m hoping it’s just going to continue to get better! 

Today was my first day at work with these babies in.  Nobody called me out on having them in my mouth, but I hated the sound of my lisp when talking to people.  I was also pretty self conscious about smiling and laughing. 

I generally don’t like leaving the house but a local bar is having a crafting and craft beer event for charity and I’m kind of bummed that I can’t go.  Yes, I like crafting.  Don’t judge me. 

Random observations:

These attachments/buttons that are on my teeth feel like tiny razor blades and they cut into my gums and aren’t that fun to deal with when eating.

So. hungry. :(

My mouth and lips are super dry.  If you get invisalign invest in some lip balm or chap stick.

My two front teeth hurt like a bitch. 

I’m 26 years old and I have the typical Invisalign story.  My parents couldn’t afford to take me to the dentist when I was young, let alone get me braces.  I always had a snaggle tooth (messed up canine), but it never really bothered me.  However, as I got older my teeth started to shift more and more.  After I got my wisdom teeth taken out my bottom teeth started to shift.  So, I started to dislike the appearance of my teeth and felt self conscious about smiling.

Here are my teeth (It’s a lot easier to post knowing I am in the process of fixing them, haha):

I’m a graduate student so it is in my nature to research extensively about something.  I started looking into Invisalign and ceramic braces.  I came across a lot of horror stories about Invisalign that scared me, but the more I looked the more positive stories I came across.  It’s understandable that there are a lot of negative stories out there, people like to complain.  After hours of looking into it I decided to go with Invisalign. 

The first part of the process was impressions.  I recommend going somewhere where you can get a 3D intra-oral scan of your teeth using the iTero scanner, because they claim it’s more reliable.  Nonetheless, the traditional impressions were not that bad.  It just felt like chewed gum in my mouth. 

Today I went in for my first set of aligners!  It’s an exciting/nerve racking day.  I had to get 13 attachments put on.  It’s not the most pleasant process and the stuff they put on smells like glue.  Then, I had to get my teeth filed.  I thought it would hurt, but it really didn’t.  The ortho was like punching me in the side of the face trying to get a grip on the file, which was the worst part, haha. 

*drum role* Aligner time!!

I had read soooo many reviews that spoke about the pain of Invisalign so I was really nervous, but as of now it does not hurt yet.  They are tight.  Annoying.  Bulky.  Did I say annoying?  But overall no intense pain.  Oh yeah!  I have a slight lisp :(  Since I teach and will be conducting interviews this is probably the worst part of the process thus far. 

I eat frequently throughout the day, so I am really upset about having to change my diet, but I’m sure I will get used to it overtime.