Invisalign at 27 year old! Worth it or not??!!?!?!?

Growing up, I had a decent enough smile with mostly straight teeth that getting braces never crossed my mind. It wasn't until in college that I started to notice that my teeth were slowly shifting. I started to see a little bit of crowding on my bottom teeth but nothing too major to stop me right there and then and visit an ortho. I always had one of my canine that stuck out a little but it didn't bother me too much because I thought it was part of my own unique smile. It wasn't until till 2013 that I really started to get bothered by how much my teeth had shifted, probably because of my wisdom teeth coming in and making room for themselves though my dentist always assured me that I had room in my mouth for my wisdom teeth to come in. Maybe my face shape changed a little, or maybe it was the wisdom teeth, but the crowding became more and more apparent and I also noticed some slight tilt in couple of my teeth on the upper arch. It was time to seriously do something about that So I made some consultation appointments with few of the orthos around the area but none of them gave me enough assurance on the outcome of the results by Invisalign to make me comfortable enough to go ahead with the treatment so I put this whole thing on the back burner for a while which was also due to financial reasons: Invisalign is expensive!!)
As it happens, I got engaged meanwhile so getting the perfect smile became the highest priority (lol) so I googled top ortho treatment providers in the area and started scheduling consultations. I fell in love with the first orthodontist I visited. she made me feel so relaxed and answered all the questions and concerns. I felt at ease with her and I finally decided to go ahead with the treatment.
My biggest concern was that I didn't want to take out my wisdom teeth if there was enough room in my room and cleaning them wasn't ever a problem for me so I didn't want to get extractions done if there was no need. She told me I could keep them and still have the Invisalign treatment but I would get better results with my overbite being corrected if I choose to take them out. It was also really helpful that she mentioned that I can still go ahead with the treatment and come in for the dental impressions because either way if i take the wisdom teeth out or not, they wouldn't be included in the impressions and trays (as they would end before they reach the wisdom teeth) So i had time to make up my mind.

-2nd Appointment.
At my second meeting, they took a bunch of pictures from several angles and then took impressions of my teeth by using this molding clay like putty which they would send to the Invisalign for my trays to be manufactured. They told me I can expect my trays to be delivered in about 4-6 weeks . Waiting for them was probably the hardest part of it all so far.

3rd appointment:
My trays were finally here and I went in to get them. My treatment was for 37 trays for the upper arch and 38 for the lower. Thats a looooooot of trays! I honestly didn't think I would need that many but it is what it is. I was also told that I would have about 11 attachments and that I would also need rubber bands to correct the overbite. I also had a little bit of jaw alignment issue hence the long treatment time. At that point, I had also decided that I would get the upper wisdom teeth extracted to get as best of the results as possible. If I am committing to such a long treatment, I might as well give it my all to get the best results possible!! So I also scheduled a wisdom teeth extraction at my regular dentist's office and got that taken care of before my next appointment with the ortho.
Treatment Start Date: 5/19/15

Invisalign Tray 1:
My initial reaction to the trays: How do people keep this in all day?! I felt like gagging for the first two hours, then i slowly got used to having piece of plastic in my mouth. Taking them out was also a pain the first couple of times. There was a point where I wanted to cry because I couldn't take them out because of all the attachments. However, i got the hang of it by day 3 and since then its been a breeze putting them in and taking them out. I wore that tray for two weeks. Didn't feel much discomfort. my mouth got used to having invisalign trays in and I slowly got used to not eating all the time.

Tray 2:
Tray 2 was a little tight but nothing too painful. I also got my wisdom teeth out during the first week of tray 2 so I didn't wear it for two days straight with all the swelling but went back to it as soon as I could put them back in without too much discomfort.
I should note that two weeks feels like a long time with just one tray so I got impatient and started researching ways to accelerate my treatment and came across acceledent advertisements. It's a little vibrating device that promises to cut down your treatment by 40%. Something that will cut down my 18 month treatment time to hopefully 10 months? I am in! I decided to talk to my ortho about it and sent her an email. She seemed excited to have me try acceledent. Only one other patient of hers had tried it before so she wanted to see how I would do with it. She quoted me $1200 for it.

3rd Appointment:
At this appointment, I was given 3 more sets of trays (3,4,5) along with rubber bands that I had to wear 24/7 as well. I also decided to get acceledent and made a payment for that. $1200 is a little steep for a little device but its something that'll hopefully cut down my treatment by 8 months and since I am getting married early next year, I am willing to do whatever it takes to speed up the process.

Tray 3:
At this point, I am used to having trays in and don't even feel them most of the time. Tray 3 didn't cause any discomfort at all. I also started using acceledent with it. You're suppose to use it everyday for 20 mins straight. I usually do it at night before bed and I feel that it really helps with alleviating the pressure trays cause on your teeth, making them move in return. You can just feel your teeth shift into their new position slowly. I was highly impressed with this little device!

I am now on tray 13 of my treatment! I have been wearing each tray for an average of 7 days with the use of acceledent and I love how hassle free this whole process is finally becoming! I am used to having the trays in most of the time and just take them out only for meals. Though there have been some days where I got a little lazy to put them back in right after a meal or I was out with friends for too long snacking or for meals that it was definitely more than 2 hours that I kept them out but I always compensate with extra day if that happens. Also there have been some trays that I was able to change after 6 days!!! I only did that for 3 trays because they became loose enough to be changed and I tested by putting in the next tray to see how much tighter it feels. For me, I can definitely change my trays every 6 days with the help of acceledent! I love using it and I haven't felt any pain with new trays ever since I started using acceledent! Definitely worth the money invested!!!

Now for the changes: I haven't noticed too much change personally, just a little bit of movement but people around me have started to comment on how straight my teeth are becoming and they are beginning to see changes. I love it when I hear such comments! Gives me motivation to keep going! I do take weekly pictures just so I can compare them later on with my before pictures and I have slowly started seeing minor changes in the way my teeth look. Nothing major yet though! But I am keeping my expectations realistic and also do not want to rush things.

I have been changing trays every 5 days now. I did that starting with tray 13 and I just finished 16. Love love love acceledent. Also my top front teeth are almost perfectly straight now and judging by where my jaw gets sore, it seems like invisalign is currently working on straightening my bottom teeth and also widening my arch a bit. I will confirm that with my dentist when I see her in about a month. Here are some update pictures.