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POSTED UNDER Invisalign Reviews

So Far, So Good! Boston, MA

UPDATED FROM TroubleCopper

Invisalign and Strep Throat

TroubleCopper
$5,000
Hello there! I know it's been awhile. As a teacher, the past few months have been incredibly busy but there is light at the end of the tunnel as there are only 19 1/2 school days left!
About a week ago, in fact, it was the Friday before Memorial Day Weekend, I woke up around 3am with an awful sore throat. It was the last day of state mandated testing so I knew it was important to be there. Plus, it wouldn't look good calling in sick the day before a long weekend!
I got ready and started the 4-minute commute to work (lucky, I know!). Well, not so lucky. It wasn't a hot day out but I had the AC on full blast in my car. Right then and there I knew something was wrong. When I got to school, I had another teacher go get the nurse. Well, I had a fever of 100.3 so she sent me home. She didn't think my throat had any white spots. Long story short, I found out the next day I had strep throat. I was told to throw away any toothbrushes or anything else my mouth had come in contact with.
I cried slightly as having Invisalign means tons of toothbrushes at the ready. In total, I threw out about 5 fairly new toothbrushes and all of my chewies that I had.
I had asked the doc about my aligners and she said that once I've been on antibiotics for 24 hours, I should move on to the next aligner. Luckily, I was schedule to move up to aligner 23 the day after. Starting new aligners a day early is not that big of a deal!
It was just such an inconvenience as I had to get new toothbrushes, new chewies, etc. Oh the joys of being a middle school teacher!
I switch to aligner 24 tomorrow. I'm a bit nervous as the first week of my current aligners, I did not have any chewies. I used q-tips, pens, whatever I could find to try to get a tight enough fit. Hopefully this strep throat wasn't more than just an inconvenience during a long weekend.

I'm attaching pics of my teeth in the aligners currently on tray 23, almost 24. I love the progression they've made! During my initial consult, back in June (can't believe it's been a year since I began this journey), my Ortho said at the end I might want to shave some of the gums over one of my front teeth as they'll be a tad uneven. I can now see what he's talking about. Anybody have any experience with this.?

As a reminder, I only have 31 aligners so I'm getting close! Next visit to the Ortho is in 2 weeks, the same day I move to aligner #25!!!!

I'm already preparing myself for life after Invisalign, it's so close!

Replies (1)

June 8, 2015
I can certainly relate. I was a teacher, recently retired, and know what that entails, especially toward the end of the school year. Won't be long now, and a well-deserved rest is forthcoming! I too am nearing the end, it feels like my front teeth are being pushed out prior to them being reigned back in for their final curtain. I hope all goes well and the R word stays un-uttered for us both.
UPDATED FROM TroubleCopper

End of Aligner 18

TroubleCopper
So I had a checkup this morning. My worries about my snaggletooth (if you look at my pics you'll see it on the top right) were dismissed as my invisalign is working right on track. It doesn't look like I'll be completely done for the wedding I'm in this summer but I'll be extremely close. I got my aligners 20-24 today and my 24th aligners look perfect! I can't wait!
He only downfall of this checkup is that my Ortho discovered that a filling fell out! So off to the dentist I go in 3 weeks to get it replaced. I was worried it would affect my invisalign but he said that as long as my dentist doesn't go too crazy, the aligner should fit fine. Any worries, I should just go back to the Ortho.
I uploaded some pics to show the progress I've made. My only disappoint with invisalign so far is that the teeth with attachments on them have turned a slight yellow. My front teeth are fine. Is there any way to fix this while we're invisalign? I tried to whiten my teeth before invisalign with my training trays but I had a very bad reaction to the whitening. Any help would be much appreciated.
If my filling goes awry, I'll update on here. If it doesn't affect my Invisalign, you won't be seeing an update until June 22nd when I have my next checkup! Until then...

Replies (2)

March 30, 2015
Correction: my snaggletooth is top LEFT in my pics
March 31, 2015
My last post was all about the method I use for whitening. You might want to check it out, as it has worked well for me. I've also read where some people have used a paste of baking soda and water.
March 31, 2015
Great! Thank you so much!
April 2, 2015
You're very welcome!
UPDATED FROM TroubleCopper

Aligner #16

TroubleCopper
First of all, sorry for the long delay in posts. I'm sure you know how it is...life gets in the way sometimes. Fortunately, invisalign has not gotten in my way!
I am currently on day 3 of aligner 16. I have 31 total aligners in my treatment plan.
I had my next check-up in January and the Ortho was a tad nervous about the tooth you can see on my top teeth on the left. It sticks out just slightly. It has always been like this and she wasn't sure if it was moving correctly. It does line up with my aligners so she wasn't too worried about it. It just hasn't been its time to move yet! I can tell which aligner is moving which tooth because it hurts like crazy the first few days of the aligner. That problem tooth had moved slightly since the first tray because I have felt it a few times and I know that my teeth shouldn't drastically move. It takes time. I go for my next check-up the beginning of April.
No issues to report as of yet *knock on wood* and I will hopefully will update then with what my Ortho has to say about my problem tooth.
Until then....

Replies (1)

March 26, 2015
Looks pretty good already, even with the problem tooth! I have a Mr. snaggletooth who I think is finally on the move with my current tray, 29. I will have 38 trays in total. There's pics on my review which I will update with my next tray. So glad things are going smoothly. I rarely have any pain, although this current one was a bit ouchy on snaggletooth for the first three days. ( but that's how I know he's packing his bags, right?)
March 26, 2015
Yeah that's what I figured. I have 31 trays so I'm a little worried it's cutting it a bit close! I'm scheduled to be done right before I'm in a wedding this summer so I hope this won't cause any setbacks! I got to the ortho for my next check up on Monday so I'll post an update after that! Thanks for the comment!
March 27, 2015
Great, keep us in the loop, and fingers crossed you're done in time for the wedding. ( I was actually at both of my sons' weddings in full invisalign - no one noticed).