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*Treatment results may vary
Final pictures and cost breakdown
Looking at the pictures, my teeth look better at tray 24 vs. final retainer picture. The (R) incisor is in a bit and the canine out a bit. The retainers should actually help it get back into place. If not, then I can do refinements once more in 3 months when I get back in for a check up. It's not the end of the world for me and I know I have options if it comes down to it.
Here is a final cost break down here for everything I did pre to post care:
Pre-treatment wisdom teeth extraction:
$200 per tooth x 3 = $600
Pre-treatment arch expansion:
2 expansion retainers = $400
Invisalign with provider extras:
$5200
- 24 normal trays, 2 final trays
- all check-ups covered
- attachments
- all bands, chewies
- invisalign tray whitening (at beginning of treatment)
- refinements if necessary
- post invisalign cleaning, polishing
- post invisalign whitening
Post-treatment:
4 Vivera retainers = $400
Total = $6600
Here is a final cost break down here for everything I did pre to post care:
Pre-treatment wisdom teeth extraction:
$200 per tooth x 3 = $600
Pre-treatment arch expansion:
2 expansion retainers = $400
Invisalign with provider extras:
$5200
- 24 normal trays, 2 final trays
- all check-ups covered
- attachments
- all bands, chewies
- invisalign tray whitening (at beginning of treatment)
- refinements if necessary
- post invisalign cleaning, polishing
- post invisalign whitening
Post-treatment:
4 Vivera retainers = $400
Total = $6600
Final step: Retainers!
AHHHHHH! I've made it!!
So after 2 years and 3 months, I've finally made it through 99% of my ortho treatment! Woot!! What started out as a pain in the mouth triple wisdom tooth extraction has finally turned into a beautiful smile that I am proud of!
I MADE IT THIS FAR WITHOUT LOSING TRAYS...WHAT ARE THE CHANCES:
Just a little catch up on what happened since my last post - I was on tray 25+ (tightener trays it was explained to me as) and after 2 weeks I was supposed to come in for retainer impressions. Well I got caught up with work, and then the fourth came around and the office was closed, and then the office was busy, and then I managed to lose my trays!! So about 2 weeks ago I went back in so that they could check my teeth and give me some different trays to hold my teeth before retainer molds were made. They took off all of the buttons and this point and gave me 26+ trays to hold my teeth (but not move them because buttons weren't on).
BUTTON REMOVAL:
This process wasn't *that* bad, but it was a bit like finger nails on a chalk board. The doc used a drill type file to buzz the buttons off without damaging the enamel. I had 6+ on both top and bottom so this was a bit of a process where I couldn't help but cringe the entire time. It didn't hurt per se, but between the cold water stream and the pressured air that is used to dry the area -- let's just say that with sensitive teeth it's extra cringe worthy. Every now and then there would be that sharp burst feeling in a particular tooth (not really pain). That was about a 10 minute deal though so it wasn't too bad.
IN THE MEAN TIME:
I was sent home with 26+ trays and a tube of 15 minute whitener. This was a different brand than what I used before. I can't remember what it was but I don't think it worked as well. You only get 2 uses out of it - basically a days treatment because it says to do it in morning and at night - versus the other one where I would put it in my trays over night and rinse it in the morning and there was 3-4 nights worth. It could have been more of a perception issue on my part though because they were noticeably more white after the first 15 min. This was all towards the end of July.
RETAINERS:
2 weeks later I went in for retainer impressions. This was the same as the Invisalign molding process where you get your mouth stuffed with foam for 5 minutes.
It took about a week and a half for my retainers to come in (they told me 3 so this was pretty fast). I ended up going with Vivera (invisalign). They gave me two options for retainers. One option was to pay $150 (I think) for 1 retainer that would last a year or so. I think this was different than Vivera but I may have misunderstood. The other option was Vivera with 4 retainers for $400. Each retainer should last at least a year. Well it was kind of hard to say no to that (hence the reason I don't even remember the other option) and so that was what I went with.
The Viveras are exactly like the Invis trays but are made of a heavy duty material. They do feel a bit thicker on the teeth but nothing to invasive. I still have to wear these 24/7 for the next 3 months. Then I only wear them at night.
FAQs:
Does the constant hygiene get annoying sometimes? YES
Did I always follow exact care instructions? NO. My life saying is sh*t happens. Deal with it the best that you can and the best possible results will happen. They didn't always get cleaned perfectly. I didn't always floss. Or mouthwash. Or brush with toothpaste. It all depended on what I was doing for my job (didn't always have bathroom/running water luxuries) and the amount of time I had to do it in. But my teeth survived.
Did I sometimes put trays in without brushing my teeth? YES. gross I know, but sometimes you gotta do what ya gotta do.
Did trays ever crack? YES. There were 2 sets, one in the beginning and one towards the middle, that cracked. I still wore them and they still worked. I was just extra careful. It also depends where the crack is and whether you close to being able to change trays - mine cracked towards the back and during the last 2 days of that tray.
Did I get cavities, decay, or any other ortho/periodontal issue? NO (thankfully! Especially considering my love for coffee)
Was my mouth sore? SOMETIMES. it depended on what was being moved. I could usually tell it was a major tooth movement if the trays almost immediately hurt putting them in. The back teeth especially during a couple of trays.
Did the pain last? NO. I changed trays at night and took an asprin so I didn't notice it as much. Teeth were a little tender in the morning eating breakfast and taking trays out.
Did I buy all of the special Invisalign stuff to clean trays? NO. general brand denture cleanser tabs work great. Sometimes I had a tray set for 1-2 months at a time and they were still clear at the end.
Do the bands really work? YES. Check my pics. I didn't believe the doc at first. I thought the bands were annoying and honestly, how were two little bands going to move my bite?! Well those two little bands did.
Did I have any tracking issues: YES. The one canine that is noted in the question below.
Is there anything I'm completely unhappy with? NO. As Lucy5408 mentioned in the comments, my right canine is out a little further than what would be considered "perfect", but this was an issue that the doc could only do so much about without compromising roots and possibly other teeth. My teeth have come a LONG ways and this minor detail I am okay with, all things considered.
Overall, I'm happy with my experience. I didn't realize what all I was getting into in the beginning - with the expansion and then the buttons and bands - but I'm someone that goes with the flow if I trust my provider and everything turned out great in the end.
Thanks for all of your wonderful comments, updates, advice, rants, and humor throughout this process! Sharing this experience was great for me and I hope it has helped others in some way. I will still continue to post random mile stones just so everyone knows what to expect in the future (i.e., if the retainers work the next 3 months and if my teeth are still awesome in a year!)
I'm loading pictures right now and putting dates on them. So those will be up in a "final" post in a few hours.
So after 2 years and 3 months, I've finally made it through 99% of my ortho treatment! Woot!! What started out as a pain in the mouth triple wisdom tooth extraction has finally turned into a beautiful smile that I am proud of!
I MADE IT THIS FAR WITHOUT LOSING TRAYS...WHAT ARE THE CHANCES:
Just a little catch up on what happened since my last post - I was on tray 25+ (tightener trays it was explained to me as) and after 2 weeks I was supposed to come in for retainer impressions. Well I got caught up with work, and then the fourth came around and the office was closed, and then the office was busy, and then I managed to lose my trays!! So about 2 weeks ago I went back in so that they could check my teeth and give me some different trays to hold my teeth before retainer molds were made. They took off all of the buttons and this point and gave me 26+ trays to hold my teeth (but not move them because buttons weren't on).
BUTTON REMOVAL:
This process wasn't *that* bad, but it was a bit like finger nails on a chalk board. The doc used a drill type file to buzz the buttons off without damaging the enamel. I had 6+ on both top and bottom so this was a bit of a process where I couldn't help but cringe the entire time. It didn't hurt per se, but between the cold water stream and the pressured air that is used to dry the area -- let's just say that with sensitive teeth it's extra cringe worthy. Every now and then there would be that sharp burst feeling in a particular tooth (not really pain). That was about a 10 minute deal though so it wasn't too bad.
IN THE MEAN TIME:
I was sent home with 26+ trays and a tube of 15 minute whitener. This was a different brand than what I used before. I can't remember what it was but I don't think it worked as well. You only get 2 uses out of it - basically a days treatment because it says to do it in morning and at night - versus the other one where I would put it in my trays over night and rinse it in the morning and there was 3-4 nights worth. It could have been more of a perception issue on my part though because they were noticeably more white after the first 15 min. This was all towards the end of July.
RETAINERS:
2 weeks later I went in for retainer impressions. This was the same as the Invisalign molding process where you get your mouth stuffed with foam for 5 minutes.
It took about a week and a half for my retainers to come in (they told me 3 so this was pretty fast). I ended up going with Vivera (invisalign). They gave me two options for retainers. One option was to pay $150 (I think) for 1 retainer that would last a year or so. I think this was different than Vivera but I may have misunderstood. The other option was Vivera with 4 retainers for $400. Each retainer should last at least a year. Well it was kind of hard to say no to that (hence the reason I don't even remember the other option) and so that was what I went with.
The Viveras are exactly like the Invis trays but are made of a heavy duty material. They do feel a bit thicker on the teeth but nothing to invasive. I still have to wear these 24/7 for the next 3 months. Then I only wear them at night.
FAQs:
Does the constant hygiene get annoying sometimes? YES
Did I always follow exact care instructions? NO. My life saying is sh*t happens. Deal with it the best that you can and the best possible results will happen. They didn't always get cleaned perfectly. I didn't always floss. Or mouthwash. Or brush with toothpaste. It all depended on what I was doing for my job (didn't always have bathroom/running water luxuries) and the amount of time I had to do it in. But my teeth survived.
Did I sometimes put trays in without brushing my teeth? YES. gross I know, but sometimes you gotta do what ya gotta do.
Did trays ever crack? YES. There were 2 sets, one in the beginning and one towards the middle, that cracked. I still wore them and they still worked. I was just extra careful. It also depends where the crack is and whether you close to being able to change trays - mine cracked towards the back and during the last 2 days of that tray.
Did I get cavities, decay, or any other ortho/periodontal issue? NO (thankfully! Especially considering my love for coffee)
Was my mouth sore? SOMETIMES. it depended on what was being moved. I could usually tell it was a major tooth movement if the trays almost immediately hurt putting them in. The back teeth especially during a couple of trays.
Did the pain last? NO. I changed trays at night and took an asprin so I didn't notice it as much. Teeth were a little tender in the morning eating breakfast and taking trays out.
Did I buy all of the special Invisalign stuff to clean trays? NO. general brand denture cleanser tabs work great. Sometimes I had a tray set for 1-2 months at a time and they were still clear at the end.
Do the bands really work? YES. Check my pics. I didn't believe the doc at first. I thought the bands were annoying and honestly, how were two little bands going to move my bite?! Well those two little bands did.
Did I have any tracking issues: YES. The one canine that is noted in the question below.
Is there anything I'm completely unhappy with? NO. As Lucy5408 mentioned in the comments, my right canine is out a little further than what would be considered "perfect", but this was an issue that the doc could only do so much about without compromising roots and possibly other teeth. My teeth have come a LONG ways and this minor detail I am okay with, all things considered.
Overall, I'm happy with my experience. I didn't realize what all I was getting into in the beginning - with the expansion and then the buttons and bands - but I'm someone that goes with the flow if I trust my provider and everything turned out great in the end.
Thanks for all of your wonderful comments, updates, advice, rants, and humor throughout this process! Sharing this experience was great for me and I hope it has helped others in some way. I will still continue to post random mile stones just so everyone knows what to expect in the future (i.e., if the retainers work the next 3 months and if my teeth are still awesome in a year!)
I'm loading pictures right now and putting dates on them. So those will be up in a "final" post in a few hours.
25+ tray
I'm still on my 25+ tray. It has been 2 weeks. I was supposed to go to an appointment yesterday where it would be decided if I move to 26+ or retainers next but I had to cancel. So hopefully next week I'll be in phase 3 of this process (retainers!)
Provider Review
Eby Dental Care