“Zingers - Wow but Great Result”

I had my teeth whitened within the last hour in birmingham (England) using Zoom. I had totally wound myself up with the reviews on here re the pain to the extent that I vry nearly didn't go through with it.

I spent ages choosing my dentist and I'm glad I did. She was so thorough and spent over 1/2 hour preparing my mouth. I've had no issues at all with burning etc.

I had the 4 cycle treatment. During the first minute of the 2nd cycle I experienced my first "zinger". Now being English I didn't really know what was meant by that. I sure do now! It was however the only zinger I experienced during the actual procedure and although my bottom teeth started to feel sensitive during the 3rd and 4th cycles it was never more than mildly uncomfortable.

The second the treatment stopped the zingers started in my bottom teeth. I'm not going to lie, these hurt like hell in a "I'm going to throw up" kind of way - it's the weirdest kind of pain but it's not up there with dry socket which hurts a hell of a lot more. I've never had a kid but anyone comparing this with childbirth needs to toughen up!

I brushed my teeth for 2 weeks before the procedure with sensitive teeth toothpaste and took 3 ibuprofen before I went into the surgery. The cost of my treatment included specially made tooth shields for the at home top up treatement and my dentist loaded these with sensitivity gel and put them in my mouth immediately.

So was it worth it? My teeth do look amazing. I've gone from an A4 to a B1 after the full 4 cycles. The zingers are incredibly unpleasant but I'm either luckier than most in terms of home "painful" they are or else the majority of posters are wusses! If my teeth stay looking this good and the zingers don't get any worse then I'll say it's worth it.

Updated on 26 Jul 2011:
Well I've been asked by a member to update my review so I will. The extreme whiteness did not last but my teeth are still waaaaay better than they were. They started to dull within a few days and within a week I was disappointed but compared to how they used to be I would have taken it as a result beforehand. About 6 months after I had mine done a colleague did hers but she used Enlighten, not Zoom. Her teeth look absolutely amazing. She is however younger than me and hasn't had a cup of tea since!

The one thing I should add though as a note of caution; my teeth are now exceedingly sensitive. I had the night treatment top up with the moulds made to keep my teeth white but can't use them even though it's a much weaker solution.

It's a close run thing but I'd say it's worth it - I no longer laugh with my hand over my mouth.