25 Y/o Never Had Braces.. Finally Working Toward my Perfect Smile! - Boston, MA

I got my first set of trays last Thursday. The first day I had them in, I was surprised by how easy it was to remove them and put them back in. I was also pleasantly surprised by how they felt, they weren't bothersome or painful. I talked very strangely but I knew that was something I had to get used to. However, the next few days came and I began to notice how irritated my mouth was getting the edges of the trays. My cheeks and under tongue were so irritated and painful I could barely drink water. Today, my cheeks feel better, but my tongue is still extremely irritated and tender. I'm hoping this is something that just takes getting used to. I've also had pretty rancid breath. My orthodontist didn't suggest any cleaning techniques other than brushing the trays with soap, water, and a toothbrush. I'm going to start soaking them in water and white vinegar twice a day. I've read from other posts on here that this may help reduce the odor. Overall, I'm not totally discouraged. I knew this was going to be a commitment, and I knew it wasn't going to be easy. I have a wonky cross bite. My smaller canine is a baby tooth that never came out. The adult tooth grew in on my palate which was removed when I had my wisdom teeth taken out. My orthodontist is confident that my baby tooth will survive this process, but I'm prepared to get an implant if and when that happens. I go back to get the "buttons" put on in about a week and half, I'll continue to update my progress!

I got the attachments on yesterday. Wasn't too painful, just annoying. I almost prefer to have my trays on now because I hate the feeling of the buttons. It's not even the buttons themselves that bother me. Yes, they feel weird but I can deal. The things that's bothering me the most is each tooth that has an attachment, feels like there's dried superglue all over it, or like there's a ton of food caked to my tooth that wont come off. Has anyone else experienced this? My teeth without buttons feel smooth and normal, but the teeth with them are all rough and it's not just where the buttons are. The entire tooth is like covered in glue or something.

Otherwise, my teeth feel fine. Some soreness since getting the new trays but that's all. I'll post pictures later!

I'm a week into my 2nd set of trays. Nothing to really update. I haven't noticed any significant changes in my teeth or their placement. My bite feels off when I take the trays out to eat, which is a given since my teeth are slowly moving. I'm used to the feel of the buttons now. They're still annoying but there's nothing I can do about that. Oh well.

Rule breaker: drink nothing but water with the trays in - oops. I'm guilty of drinking iced coffee through a straw once in a while. And drinking beer - more than just once in a while, with my trays on. I haven't had any serious staining of my trays or teeth. I'm always sure to have water with me when I drink iced coffee so I can swish some around after every few sips. When I'm out drinking I'll try to always have a glass of water with every drink so my teeth don't stain and BONUS! it keeps me hydrated, so I'm hardly ever hungover anymore. I make sure to brush my teeth as soon as possible after my coffee. Sometimes I'll go to the bathroom when I'm at the bar and rinse the trays out. I hate the feeling of having beer in between the trays. I'm still steering clear of dark liquor and darker drinks in general.

Picture quality isn't that great.