First week with Invisalign!
I had always been self conscious about my teeth. When I was in Elementary School my dentist had me wear retainers. It lasted for a few months before I accidentally threw it away during lunch at school. My parents then used the excuse "Well they don't look that bad" to not proceed straightening my teeth. When I would laugh I would quickly use one hand to cover my mouth....I didn't want to live like that. I love to laugh, and I love to smile, but I wanted to do it confidently. So once I got a job with good orthodontic insurance I knew it was time to finally get braces.
I decided to go with Invisalign which are removable clear braces. It's definitely not invisible. After my retainer incident, I made sure I was extra careful when I ate. My orthodontist told me they would not have to pull any teeth, but they would have to sand some of them down. I gave her this odd look, and every few months she had to sand the sides of my teeth down with sandpaper safe for teeth! This gave my teeth room to move into place. I also learned that my bite was not centered, and prior to getting braces my TMJ was a huge problem.
Almost there!
I was initially given 20 sets of Invisalign moldings that I would have to wear 2-3 weeks at a time. Similar to regular braces my teeth would hurt for about 2 days after putting in new moldings. I talked weird with them, so on days I worked I would usually take them off (I cheated a bit, I know!). After my first 20 sets my teeth were still not perfectly straight, so I had to get my teeth molded again and Invisalign gave me 9 more sets to wear, but this time I had to wear them 3 weeks at a time.
AFTER
When I was done with my Invisalign I was given regular retainers to wear to do some fine tuning that Invisalign couldn't do. I now only wear my retainers at night a few times a week (or when I remember) to keep it straight. Because I got my braces as an adult my orthodontist told me I would have to wear my braces for the rest of my life. My TMJ is nearly non-existent, my bite is now centered too, and I smile and laugh with confidence.
Date Accomplished: April 3rd, 2010
1 comments:
You're lucky to got to use invisiline! I think they might have to sand one of my teeth for one to fit and now that they're getting straight the 'tops' of some will need to be sanded to look right. I am glad I got mine, I cannot believe the progress in only 5 months!!!
Post a Comment