#6

I switched to the #6's last Friday, the 18th... It was the first (and only so far) night I lost any sleep over my Invisalign. It's not because it was terribly painful, just whichever way it was pressing on my teeth was causing a pounding headache that lasted a couple days. It's Tuesday now and they are already loose and I'm back to the grinding.

Of course, there's no obvious visible difference between these aligners and the previous ones. Trust me, I've scrutinized every indention on the trays... BUT this morning I pulled out the last ones in this package, #10, and I CAN see a difference. By February, my front 2 bottom teeth (the one that's currently in front of the rest and the one next to it on my left) will be aligned with each other! The top tray also seems to get a little wider and the teeth next to my front 2, a little more lined up. I can't wait until I can see my top teeth pushed back. After that, I'll be heading back to the dentist to get more. Looking a month ahead, it's too bad these changes won't be visible during our trip to TX to see family. Oh well, one step at a time.

Can't wait to get through January now!!!

The boys have started to call my Invisalign "Mama's glass teeth". Nick likes to examine them in my mouth nearly every day and asks to put them in his mouth. Ew! LOL

I slack on how many hours I keep them on during the day, but not enough to mess up treatment... I'm just not as paranoid about it, I guess. Instead of leaving them out for strictly 1 hour per meal and a snack mid-afternoon, I keep them out roughly 2 hours per meal and for a little bit first thing in the morning while I wake up... and for a little bit for snacks all day long.

That's all that's new! I hardly think about the things now... they really have become just another part of my life.

#5

Dr. V filed more on my teeth today. Fun, fun. Nick went with me and now I think he wants to be a dentist! He laid on my chest and watched every move the dentist made... he even assisted by giving her a few tools! I love how the office is so kid-friendly. They didn't mind one bit that I brought my month-shy-of 3 year old boy with me.

Dr. V informed me that she won't be filing on my teeth every time but that it's needed right now to create space to un-crowd my teeth. She also told me I'll probably start to SEE a difference around the 4th or 5th month mark, which is about half-way through my treatment... so that's what? February or March? Sweet. I'll put up new progress pictures whenever I cross that milestone. I really could care less about my crowded bottom teeth... shove my upper teeth back and I'll be a happy girl!

These aligners feel tight, but no tighter than the last ones have been when I first put them on. We'll see how the pain is during mealtime. I'm anxious to see how that goes - to see if the filing and stuff made my gums more sore than usual. Oh yeah! She did say she could tweak the aligners some how if the teeth grinding becomes too bothersome. I told her my jaw is popping and hurting so to go for it but she didn't do anything. I'll just deal with it.

Otherwise, today is yet again, pretty uneventful... aside from the rain! It's raining in Sun Diego! The boys were so excited they were squealing with joy! I think we'll even walk to Sam's school to pick him up... after all, it's not too often we get to use umbrellas and hop in puddles around here!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today I'm thankful for Invisalign! I was able to pop my aligners off and stuff myself silly. I'm now on set #4 and all is well. Different teeth are sore, but nothing like the first set. Nothing new to report. Hope you all had a wonderful Turkey Day!!!

~~Love from San Luis Obispo/Avila Beach, California ~~

#3

I haven't posted as there's nothing noteworthy to say about the 3rd set of aligners. I definitely felt new pressure on a bottom side tooth making the tray more difficult to get off, but the associated pain went away in under 2 days.

I'm not sure if this will change but I actually look forward to putting on a new set of aligners. As the old set gets looser, I grind my teeth more and more saliva collects under the trays. I'm finally able to bite directly into a regular sized sandwich rather than using my side teeth, but I still can't open my mouth very wide due to the jaw pain I've had for years... that's now aggravated by the teeth grinding. Getting the aligners on and off now are not a problem. I've discovered if I place my thumbs behind my fang teeth and press up and back, the top tray slides right on. The bottom aligner is a little more tricky - I have to press down and to the left for it to comfortably slide onto my teeth, probably b/c of my front bottom tooth that is angled in that direction.

I can't help but wonder how miserable it might be if I were to catch a stomach bug. Seriously. Throwing up with these aligners? Are you kidding me? It's probably not as bad as someone with regular braces but the thing is, I wouldn't be able to keep the aligners off for very long and I wouldn't be able to take them off quick enough. Yuck! I know it's gross but it's flu season.

Anyway, there's obviously no visible change to my teeth at this point. It will be nice when I can see progress rather than just feel it! :)

Time-out

I thought I would take a moment to retract my statement about the Invisalign Diet and my worries of losing weight - now I just eat anything I could possibly want later in the day at mealtimes STUFFING myself... which is much easier than the removal/replacement/dental hygiene routine if I had a snack... So in fact, now I'm likely eating MORE than what I would have had I not had Invisalign.

... Thought you'd like to know ...

Happy Halloween! Off with #1 and on with #2!

Unfortunately, I can't snack on my kid's candies while they're sleeping!

First of all, after about a week with the first aligners, they became pretty loose and easy to get on and off. It became so routine and comfortable, I forgot they were even on - until I kept finding myself grinding my teeth ALL THE TIME! It did become harder to chew since my bite alignment became completely messed up... This happened much quicker than I anticipated. I also couldn't bite into foods directly with my front teeth as they stayed fairly sensitive. I even ventured out to dinner a couple times and it went well! It's kind of awkward brushing and flossing and taking care of business, but thankfully, I don't get embarrassed easily.

I've also been around quite a few people while taking my son to school and Halloween parties, and as far as I could tell, no one noticed! I do have the lisp when I'm talking, but that's a small price to pay. My good friend Veronica told me she could only tell when we were speaking really close together. Sweet!

After all of our Halloween festivities tonight, I tried on the 2nd set of aligners. They weren't difficult to get on, just tighter. I feel the same amount of pressure in the front of my mouth as the 1st set during the first few days. Hopefully these aren't too difficult or painful to get off in the morning!

Well, I hope you all had a safe and fun Halloween! Time to go browse through pictures!

Tray #1

After many years of torment and self confidence issues stemmed from my jacked teeth, I'm finally able to end the agony. Kind of. This week I started my Invisalign treatment! Exciting! Terrifying!

... and after 4 weeks of googling and reading and watching youtube videos since my dental impressions were taken, I've faced my anxieties in the dentist's office. Monday I was fitted into my first trays of 18! A few of my teeth needed to be filed in order to create more space for shifting. This was no big deal - only slightly uncomfortable. She also attached 9 "buttons" on my side teeth - 3 upper, 3 lower (R) and 2 upper, 1 lower (L). These attachments are tooth colored and help keep the trays in position and apply more pressure to certain teeth. 2 days later, I had most of my buttons break off and had the dentist try again. She assured me that if they come off, it won't mess up my treatment plan but to come in if this happens. As it stands right now, I should have 18 sets of retainers/trays, changing them every 12 days. You do the math. Then there will probably be refinements.

Anyway, the first day wasn't terrible... just a bit of pressure in the front of my mouth, both upper and lower. At least, I thought it wasn't terrible until I went to pull the things out for dinner. Youch! Putting them back in wasn't as painful but there was definitely pain. Once the trays are in or out, however, the pain subsides and all is well.

Day #2 is when I lost those attachments. The pain subsided when removing or replacing trays but was still there, along with sensitivity while eating and brushing my teeth.

Day #3 the trays became a bit looser and more comfortable. That said, I couldn't leave them alone! I grind my teeth (err plastic?) together to relieve the throbbing and pressure. After having the buttons replaced, now a back portion of the upper tray sits a little lower causing it to touch my bottom teeth while my mouth is at rest. Annoying! I'm getting the hang of taking them on and off but it's still pretty awkward.

Things to mention:

The trays collect a lot of saliva. You can SEE the saliva while you have them on. Yuck. The plastic is also kind of shiny and noticeable, but I guess still better than a mouth full of metal... and while the trays collect saliva, my mouth & lips are left incredibly dry. I'm using a ton of chap-stick and drinking a lot of water (the only thing you're supposed to intake with the trays on).

They say the 1st week is the worst, and the 1st 3 days of that week are the hardest. According to my short experience so far, I'll say I'm living by the rule. They also say the first 3 days of any trays are hard.

We'll see when I get there! For now, I'm sticking to soft foods and taking the trays out only when necessary to eat & drink. No snacking! :( So there's another idea - the Invisalign Diet. Let's hope I don't lose any weight. The kids find my removable "teeth" pretty amusing. Hopefully they don't tell people Mommy has dentures or anything one day. :)

I feel great so far. I haven't lost any sleep... and I can still drink Dr Pepper!