Teeth Whitening: Stories

So I have decided it is time to brighten my smile a bit. My teeth are pretty white naturally but seeing that I am an avid coffee drinker (true Seattle girl) I'm not loving the little bit of dinginess I see in the mirror.

I have used Crest white strips in the past and was always pleased with the results, but the new material they are made of is quite a bit thicker. I'm concerned it won't get in between the teeth as well and could result in uneven whitening.

Fortunately I have whitening trays, so now it is just a matter of choosing the product. I'm heavily leaning towards Dr. Georges Dental White. Another community member (T in Texas) wrote about it in her Invisalign review and the pictures she posted showed pretty dramatic results. I tried the Rembrandt gel but didn't see any real results.

My teeth are pretty sensitive, so I started using Sensodyne toothpaste and a fluoride rinse at night to prep my teeth for the whitening and hopefully decrease the sensitivity I will feel.

If anyone has recommendations for what brand of gel to try let me know! I haven't ordered it yet & would love to hear what worked for you!

Updated 9/26/11

So I received my Dr. Georges Dental White in the mail a couple of weeks ago, but the combination of not wanting to give up my mochas & it being blueberry season kept me from taking the plunge & starting my whitening. Well, yesterday I finally committed and am now on the "white diet".

I found that loading the gel from the container they send it in, into the syringe you are suppose to use to load your trays to be a messy procedure.

Once the trays were in I had a tiny, tiny twinge of sensitivity from a tooth on my upper right but nothing bad at all. When I took the trays out my gums were not white, but I could see the dehydration of my teeth, which I took as evidence it was working.

I'll do another round tonight. Since I don't need a huge change in shade I will probably only do it once a day for a week, but we'll see. Happy I haven't had any real discomfort with this. I'm not sure if it is due to the brand of gel I'm using (instead of Crest White Strips or the Rembrandt gel) or if it is more due to the fact that I have used Sensodyne & Act rinse for the last 3-4 weeks!

I'll let you know the final results when I'm all done. :)

Updated 10/17/11

So I did about 8 days of the Dr. Georges Dental White. I do want to say that because my teeth are sensitive I ended up usually only doing it once a day. I didn't have great results. I think they are a tad lighter, but nothing significant and I still like to see them a full shade lighter, but apparently I don't want it that bad because after day 8 I was ready to go crazy from not having any chocolate or coffee & decided I was done. I waited a few more days to have coffee & chocolate until the "pores" in my enamel had time to close. I'm back to happily swigging my morning & afternoon mochas now. Perhaps I'll give it another go in a few months, but for now good enough!

Updated 9/19/12

I have gone back to Crest White Strips. They are just so easy and convenient, and give my teeth the little whitening touch up I need a couple times a year.