So Far So Good -Pittsburgh, PA

I cannot even begin to write how excited I am to have already begun my ClearCorrect journey. At the age of 24 I have been waiting for this day for over 10 years! I have always been made fun of due to my teeth. To me, they were never really that bad until some of my "friends" nicknamed me "snagletooth" behind my back (due to my one Canine). That is when I started becoming VERY conscious of my smile. Ever since then, I never liked to laugh or smile by showing my teeth in front of others or in pictures. Things really hit hard during my mid-teen years when my "friends" were finishing their metal braces treatment and were showing off their perfect smiles. Plus as I am currently engaged, we have yet to get engagement pictures or even think about a wedding as I am too self-conscious about my smile. I attempted several times to get braces but my health insurance always deemed them a "cosmetic" need and refused to cover the cost and needless to say my parents were unable to afford a couple thousand dollars for them. Thus I never thought that I would see the day where I would be able to afford braces on my own. Back in May I found my opportunity to do what I always wanted. I found a Groupon for ClearCorrect through a local othordontist and the price was manageable ($3000). My loving Fiancé allowed me to take the money out of our wedding/house savings since he knew how badly I wanted to feel "normal" and "pretty." I saw my ortho in the beginning of May, had my impressions taken, and was told it can take up to 20 days until my treatment plan would be ready (very disappointing but understandable). Towards the end of May I received my phase 0 and wore them until the end of June (to get used to them being in my mouth). My ortho has always been realistic and honest with me since day 1. He told me I would need extractions (4 total) to make room for movement. I began my phase 1 June 25 (the day of my 4 extractions). I did have to get 8 attachments, 4 on the top and 4 on the bottom. To me they are not bad at all. I can only feel them when rolling my tongue over them. They do not scratch my mouth/cheeks nor do they even look noticeable. They do, however, tend to collect a lot of food around them. To help prevent the attachments from popping off when removing my braces, I use a tool called an "outie tool" that I bought on Amazon and it works like a charm. It has a hook edge that helps to get under the brace to lift it up and off the teeth. It helps to work the braces off without causing damage to my teeth, my nails, the attachments, or the braces (best investment ever!). Right now I am on aligner 3 of 34 and could not any happier with my decision. My teeth are a little sore but nothing extreme. I am already starting to see significant movement, which is really exciting! I just cannot wait to see the end result and to finally be able to get on with my life (aka getting our engagement pictures and getting married without feeling so insecure)!