My Journey to the World of Invisalign!! - Corona, CA

I was always unhappy the way my teeth looked, I have overbite, multiple gaps, already got a bridge and not to mention the root canals. I am 40 years old and I did not really want to have the train track so I got very excited when my dentist told me I could still have my teeth fixed with Invisalign.

Today is my 4th day of wearing the trays. It was very hard for me to take the trays off! I don't have long nails but the tip of my left thumb is very tender to touch from all the use of my thumb nail to take the lower tray off. I really did not experience too much pain the first time I started to wear my trays but today I felt an achy feeling all through out my teeth and gum, at one point I wanted to toss my trays out to the trash can! But then when I thought of the money I paid, I kept the trays on! I took some Advil to help me with the discomfort. I have been wearing them 22 hours a day. I eat only three full meals a day, I stopped snacking. To be honest I have never brushed or flossed my teeth so much in my life, now my teeth sparkle!!

I am not fond of those "buttons", I have 8 of them. I look like a vampire when I smile! My children had the wire braces and I witnessed the pain they went through and all the hassle they had to put up with cleaning and flossing the metal braces also the rubber they had to wear. Compare to their experience I don't think I am going through any severe discomfort. So over all I am very excited about my journey and I cant wait for the day when I will be able to stand in front of camera and say "cheese"...:)

I just added some pictures of my teeth! I still don't see any changes. I am on tray # 3 out of 13. The sores on my tongue is gone. I am more proficient at taking my trays off. I also find that cleaning my trays with water/hydrogen peroxide solution is working better for me. I soak my trays on the solution in a denture cup (yes a denture cup, I had to look for one all over the place, finally I found one at Walmart!!) three times a day, I stopped using tooth paste, I just scrub the trays with a soft brush after I soak them in the solution. I use Sensodine to brush my teeth. I also gargle with warm salt water instead of mouth wash. I feel that if salt water is strong enough to kill bacteria such as staph, I am sure it will be strong enough to kill the other bacteria in my mouth! So far its working great! I still have the minor lisp and I seem to produce more saliva but I am getting used to with tackling the saliva and lisp related issues! So far I am happy but I just need to be more patient with seeing the result.

Tray # 4: I went to pay a visit to my dentist today. He has made two spaces between two sets of teeth so that I have space when my teeth rotate. He also did a regular cleaning, he said my teeth and gums were in great shape! He showed my the demo of my treatment. According to the slides my teeth moved a little bit but I still cant see any changes. I am wearing my 4th trays, they are much tighter than the previous sets. I have taken some Motrin as I know tomorrow will be a very painful day for me. Oh I can not bite on a apple anymore! My teeth are tender and feels somewhat loose, I feel like they will fall off! So I cut all my fruits. I am really excited and looking forward to seeing my final result ( even though I have a long way to go, just finished tray #3 out of 13...lol).

12/4/2012: I just put my 6th Tray on. The bottom one is extremely snug. I think these trays are now working on my bottom teeth. I have been slacking with wearing my trays recently. Wearing them about 20 hours instead of 22! I have to go back to my old strict routine. I still don't see much changes, I will post a picture when I do. So far so good. Not having any more issues, other than slight aches...:)