Post-Busy Season Update

Life got busy for the past month with work, my ASL class, and attempting to continue my exercise habits.  But, I'm still alive!  Here is my most recent before/after picture.

I am currently wearing tray 14, but I don't think my bottom teeth have completely settled in yet.  Eight more trays after this, and then I will be moving onto refinements!

Halfway!!

I switch to tray 12 today.  Since I have 22 trays, it becomes official today that I am halfway through my initial Invisalign trays!!!

Here are my teeth

You can see some differences, but you have to look for them.  However, I took a picture of my trays the other day... this is where you can see the real difference (thanks to the different angle used).

This is actually tray 12, so it is slightly ahead of my teeth.  The front four bottom teeth:

Yay for being finished with the first half!

Goodbye, Tray Ten!

Tomorrow night, I say goodbye to my first double digit tray and start tray

This is exciting, because after my 11th tray, I will officially be halfway through my 22 original trays!


I have been slacking a little with everything!  I've been stress eating, not exercising, not meeting my 22 hour tray requirement, not studying ASL, and not getting enough sleep!  :( 

Gotta figure out how to increase my motivation....


Trays 8, 9, and 10 were all super easy.  I keep waiting for my luck to run out

I will post pictures at the halfway point; hopefully there will be some differences....

100 Days!

Guess what today is!  Obviously, from the title, today marks 100 days of wearing Invisalign!!  (Ok, yesterday since it's after midnight.)  Now, this may not seem like a big deal to anyone who hasn't worn Invisalign, but to those who have.... it's pretty exciting!

Since I didn't give an update the last time I changed trays, now is a good time to do so....

Tray

Tray 6 was popped onto my teeth on December 18, while I was in Miami for work.  When I first started wearing it, I thought it would be a breeze!  But tray 6 reminded me of one of those headaches that doesn't bother you at first, but slowly starts to wear you down... about 24 hours in, there was just enough discomfort to be noticeable, but not really enough to truly bother me.... It only lasted for a day anyway, and then I was back to feeling comfortable!

For the first time, I noticed a power ridge on my trays, located on my top left central incisor.  Apparently I also had one of these in an earlier tray, but it was more noticeable this time on a front tooth.  For anyone who doesn't know, this is what power ridges are (these aren't my teeth, btw).

If you imagine a tooth that is slanted inward, and the power ridge pushing/holding the top part of the tooth, while the tray moves the bottom part of the tooth outward, that is my understanding.  If that doesn't make sense, you can also watch this video, which helps make it a little more visual.

So, anyway, the most annoying thing about tray 6 was driving down to Alabama for the Christmas break.  I ended up drinking one of those Starbucks Frapuccino drinks you can buy at gas stations and drinking it with my trays in because I couldn't keep constantly stopping in gas stations, and I needed caffeine.  But I survived (yay!) and moved on to....
                                                                               Tray

Tray 7 was similar to tray 6 in the sense that it definitely didn't hurt at all the first day.  It was comfortable right after I put in... I couldn't tell if I was happy to be comfortable or sad that I wouldn't be seeing a ton of movement!  So, the next day I was surprised when I could actually feel some soreness on my bottom right central incisor.  I think this is the first time I have felt anything specifically on that tooth.  (Once again, it was enough to be noticeable, but it wasn't bad at all.  Just enough soreness to let me know something happened, but not enough to bother me- I actually wish all trays were just like tray 7!)  And maybe the theory that it's more noticeable the first time a tooth moves has merit!  haha, it seems logical, so I wouldn't be too suprised! :)  I didn't notice any teeth in particular feeling any differently than usual...



So, to finish up my blog, I will tell you about my Invisalign dreams and why I'm sooo excited about tray 8!

Invisalign Dreams

In one dream, I put in new trays and they didn't fit.  They went on my teeth, and the top part fit fine, but they only went halfway down my teeth instead of going to the gumline...  I think this is similar to what happened to a fellow invisaligner, but my dream happened before his tray didn't fit.

In another dream, Align Technology invented Invisalign that lit up and played music when you bit down your teeth.  I was jealous that I didn't have them, which is obviously absurd, because the whole point of the plastic trays is to hide the fact that you are wearing braces....

Why I Am Excited About Tray 8

I can put in tray 8 for the first time at home!!  I know, you're wondering what the big deal is, right?  Well, for tray 4, I had them put on at my appointment.  For tray 5, I changed in Atlanta.  For tray 6, I changed in Miami.  For tray 7, I changed at my appointment again.  So, yes, I am quite excited to change a tray at home since I have not done so since November 4!  This happens on Wednesday, January 16.

So, that is all today.... sorry I'm a little scatterbrained today; hopefully this wasn't toooo boring to read!  It has been a busy week, so I'm too tired to be entertaining.

Post from BracesReview - Finished with Tray 6

I posted this on bracesreview.com a few days ago, so I decided I would post it here as well.

I have a dentist appointment tonight, and I will pick up trays 7-9.  I'll update more later.  I have been feeling sick lately, so I will put if off for now.

Roll Tide!

Tray 5.... It's Over!

I switched to tray 6 tonight!!!  As in, 30 minutes ago!  It's a little tight but not bad AT ALL.  Yay?

Anyway, I post quite regularly on bracesreview.com, and I decided to follow a new trend on that website... video blogs!  Not the greatest one ever made, but cut me some slack--it was my first! :D

Not sure if there is a way to change the frame that it shows before the video plays, but I secretly wouldn't want to anyway... it's quite funny!

ps On December 25 (CHRISTMAS!) I will be exactly 25% finished with my trays!!

Jealousy and Pain.... Yay?

On November 20, I had my first appointment since starting Invisalign!  I was so excited!!  I received trays 4-6 and had some IPR done.  By the way, if anyone who reads this doesn't know what IPR is, it is interproximal reduction.  To help with crowding, they file down between your teeth like this:

Obviously, it's not much fun.  It's not horrible by any means, but it's certainly not a fun celebration :)  But, the good news is that I think I only have IPR on one more tooth!!  Yaaaaay!  I hope they do it at the next appointment to get it over with!

So, anyway, tray 4 was really tight.  I tried to put it on in the dentist office.  I'm not sure if it was because the tray was so tight or because I was putting it on in front of other people... but I couldn't put it on!  My dentist ended up snapping it on for me.

And then, it hurt.  My first real pain from Invisalign... Apparently this may become a common theme with my treatment.... The tooth with my crown was the culprit.... and it's also the one that caused a slight bit of discomfort for a day last time.

To make it a little worse, my dentist appointment was in the morning.  AND it was right before Thanksgiving.  So, the day before Thanksgiving I didn't eat dinner, and the day of Thanksgiving I didn't eat breakfast.  I went 24 hours with my aligners in... But my plan worked.  My teeth didn't hurt when I took the aligners out for the Thanksgiving meal!!! :D

But... I've dealt with worse, and it was only for about a day.  It wasn't bad enough to keep me from getting work done or anything... And it will definitely be worth it for my results at the end of treatment!

PS, now my trays are DEFINITELY not tight!!  If I didn't have attachments, I could probably slip the tray off my back teeth with my tongue!


Ok, so I need to admit something.  I'm an awful person.  Whenever I take pictures, I don't see results.  And when I think I see results, I later realize it was just the angle of the picture or something deceiving me.  And originally, I didn't expect to see results this early, but after seeing EVERYONE ELSE talk about their results after this amount of time... I'm a little jealous. :(  So, let me ask you guys.... do you think there is a little difference, or is it just a difference in how the pictures were taken?

I'll even post a picture of me instead of just my teeth!

And by the way....

Tray 4... So Close, Yet So Far Away

I am almost finished with tray 3!!  I go to the dentist on Tuesday and get trays 4-6.  I think I am also having some IPR done, but I'm not 100% positive.

Overall, everything is going really well.  I haven't had any problems, or any real pain.  One of my back teeth was a little sore for about a day, but it went away.  It wasn't even that bad, just a slight pain.

However, I have realized something over the past few days.... I hate my teeth.  Has anyone seen the episode of How I Met Your Mother where they all "discover" each other's bad traits?  Ted corrects everybody, Robin says "literally" too much, Lily eats too loudly, and Marshall sings everything.  Before they consciously realized these annoying habits, they weren't frustrated by them.  But as soon as one person brought it up, the others were soooo annoyed by these traits!  That's similar to my teeth.  Before now, I knew I didn't have the greatest teeth, but now that I stare at them ALL the time, I'm noticing sooooo many flaws with them, and I'm starting to think my teeth are hideous!  I think I will try and stop looking at them so much. :)

............

............

Ok, I'm back... I went to look at my teeth in the mirror to see if I could see progress yet... just kidding!

Oh, and I cheated today.  I cheated on my diet, I cheated with my Invisalign-wearing time, I cheated on my boyfriend... wait, that's not right.... I'd never cheat on..... oh, wait, I don't have a boyfriend.



AWKWARD SILENCE.

Anyway.... just wanted to share my thoughts.  I took tray 3 photos, but I won't be posting comparisons because they look identical to tray 2 and also to the beginning photos.  So ready to see some progress!!!  I know I need to be patient, but that's easier said than done.

One fun announcement.... Thanksgiving day will mark 50 days with invisalign!

Before I end my entry, I want to say that my Tuscaloosa/Roll Tide/College Roommate friend, MaryKathryn is the best!  And her new hubby is pretty cool, too.

She wrote an entire blog entry about me, which made me look like this:

So, yay for MaryKathryn and Sam!

That is all for today! :D

Bazinga!!  Happy (early) Thanksgiving!  Now I am done!

End of Tray 2? Close Enough!

I'm almost done with my second tray of Invisalign!! :D  Yes, this means I still have 20 left, but that doesn't mean I can't enjoy the small victories.  I change trays Sunday night.

So.... updates!

• The sore spot caused by tray #1 disappeared right after I started tray 2!
• A few days into tray two, I rubbed against the tray and had a small scratch on the side of my tongue. :(  However, it only lasted for about 2 days, and wasn't really that bad.
• I had a slight amount of tooth pain one day, and it felt similar to a cavity.  I was a little worried, but it felt better the next day so I don't think it is a cavity... yay!
• I have a dentist appointment on November 20, so I will see if everything looks like it's on track so far.
• I can see some changes in my pictures!!

My natural smile.  Please ignore that my lips are chapped, haha.  I have been stressed.

All of my teeth.  Notice the difference in my top sideways tooth? :D

I think the front two teeth look slightly better.



So, nothing major, I know.  But obviously, I did not expect much after only two trays. :)  I am excited for another one!

Tray 1? Check!

After spending centuries waiting (ok, 2 weeks), and months anticipating (ok, 2 weeks), and forever talking about it (ok, 2 weeks), it is finally time to switch to tray 2!!!!  Yay!

The first aligners were mostly a breeeeeeze.  I hit the first downside around day 14, when I somehow managed to create a rough spot on my tray.  It rubbed against a spot inside my mouth, and now I have a sore spot. :(  Oh, well, it has been such smooth sailing that I can't complain too much.  After all, it seems that my Invisalign trays are still 1,000,000,000,000,000 times better than traditional braces. Ok, fine, maybe that is a slight exaggeration.

I guess that is the only thing to report.  So excited about the second trays!  I will update again in 16 days after I finish those!

My First Week

So, I survived my first week of Invisalign!  Well, technically, I can't say that until around 5:30 pm, but most people are not as picky as I am.

Since I haven't mentioned it before, here are a few facts about Invisalign:

• You switch trays every 2 weeks.
• It is recommended that you wear them 22 hours a day.  Some say this is a minimum (what??) and some say it is the ideal amount, but you can go lower.  A lot of people say you should wear them 20-22 hours a week.  A few say 18 is fine.  A very select few wear them for less (not something I think I would do on purpose).
• You are only supposed to drink water with them in (Yay for dieters who can't mindlessly snack?)
• You are advised to brush and floss each time before re-inserting the aligners.
• Some people have attachments that help the trays snap on and help them move your teeth certain ways.  I have 12, and I hate them for 2 hours a day.  Apparently, they're made with the material that fillings are made of and they make my teeth feel disgusting when my trays are out (good motivation to meet the 22 hour requirement!!)

So... you have 2 hours to eat 3 meals, brush and floss three times, and clean your aligners.  If you eat all three meals and don't eat any snacks, that gives you 40 minutes per meal/cleaning time.  Oh, and btw, when you drink sodas or acidic food, it is recommended you wait 30 minutes before brushing your teeth to avoid wearing down your enamel.  Yeah.... I need to give up diet cokes.  They're not going down without a fight, though...

So, how was my first week, you ask?  It went very well!  I only felt discomfort once or twice when I snapped my trays off quickly.  It only lasted for about a minute.  Like I said, I hate the attachments, but with the trays on, I don't mind them.  And I don't care if the attachments make them more noticeable, because I tell everyone about them anyway (I'm still excited).

Two things I'm not crazy about, however:

• I'm obsessed.  And the fact that I am having some downtime at work is not helping!  I just want to sit here and read about Invisalign allll day long, even though it is starting to become annoying and insane.
• I'm more obssessed with Carmex.  I used to love it because I had that nasty habit of biting on my lips and so I used Carmex almost constantly to try and heal the damage I inflicted on myself.  Now, I use it both for that reason and because my lips are always dry and chapped.  So ready for my mouth to get used to having the trays in so that it will go back to normal.  And, speaking of normal, I am going to get a cup of water right now to assist with that.

Random picture of water to show how serious I am about drinking some of it now.  You can't post it on the internet if it's not true...

Tray #1

Started my first tray of Invisalign today.  It took about an hour, with waiting and everything included.  However, it felt like AGES.  When putting on the attachments, they used this awful piece of plastic to hold my mouth open, and it huuuuuurt!  A tray was used to put them on, and when the tray was taken off, it kinda felt like my teeth were going to pop out.  Then when they filed down the attachments, it felt like they were drilling into my teeth to fill cavities.  After they finished that, they used this sandpaper-type-thing to literally file down two of my teeth.........  After all of this, I had to practice taking off my first tray and I was awful at it.

Anyway, I'm tired from my dentist visit..... This was not a fun one.  Here is a picture with my trays.... wow, these glasses are crooked.... lol

My Starting Point!

Here is how my teeth look now...

However, that is not how I smile (obviously), so most people see this

Apparently, the tooth on the top row will be the hardest to move.

So..... now the exciting part!  Drumroll, please!!!!

Here is my ClinCheck!



It really is amazing how this

can do all of that!



ClinCheck

Yesterday (Friday, 9/28), I called the dentist's office to check my Invisalign status before leaving town.  I found out they had my ClinCheck ready for me to view!!  (This is a video showing how my teeth will move, and my dentist wanted me to approve it before my trays were actually made.)  The estimate for receiving my trays now is 7-10 days!!  I could receive them as early as next Friday.  I found out that my first plan consists of 22 trays, which means 44 weeks.  Obviously, it will be more, due to refinements and imperfect scheduling abilities when it comes to setting up appointments every four weeks.  But I at least have an idea of the starting plan now.

Yaaaaaaay!!!

Update-- I have appointments every six weeks, instead of four. :D

Impressions

On Friday (9/21/12), I had my first Invisalign appointment!  They made impressions of my teeth, and are shipping them off so that my treatment plan and my first couple of trays can be made!  They made 2 sets of impressions--one for the dentist office to keep, and one to send off for making the trays.  Doing the top teeth was pretty bad; the gooey stuff would get close to my throat and I kept expecting to swallow a huge mess of gooey,play-doh-type material.  Gross!  But after reading awful stories about it online, it actually wasn't as bad as I expected! :D  This is what the material/tray looked like.

So, according to the dentist office, I will receive a phone call in 7-10 days and I will review my ClinCheck, which is a video showing my specific treatment and how my teeth will move with the trays!

After I sign off on that, I have to wait another 7-10 days, and I will receive my Invisalign trays!  I will get the first two trays, and each tray will last two weeks.  (Apparently, Invisalign is made in Costa Rica, by the way...)

I'm excited, and counting down days until I can start wearing them!  Although I know it will probably take me only a week or two before I hate them! :D

For those who are curious, the total cost for Invisalign was $5,000.  This is how I'm paying for it (estimates).

1,950 Insurance
1,550 Employer Contributions to Health Savings Account
1,000 My Contributions to Health Savings Account
500 Invisalign Day (this is a discount my dentist offers annually)

So, the only thing I pay out of pocket is the 1,000-- $75 comes out of my paychecks (pre-tax) each month and goes toward my monthly payment plan that I set up with the dentist office.