40 and Ready to Smile - New York

Severe overcrowding and a refusal to break out into a full smile - that's me in a nutshell!

I wasn't going to document my Invisalign journey but after getting so much out of everyone here who has, I decided I needed to pay that back. So while talking about the thing I'm most self-conscious about for everyone to see seems strange, I hope I can help someone else. Especially since I have a complex (read: nasty) case of overcrowding. See exhibit a in the photo space.

Like a lot of people here I've wanted to do this forever, but have put it off for all the usual reasons. As an added wrinkle I have auto-immune issues which can be a time-consuming and expensive proposition. But when I started seeing a new dentist this year (after a multi-year lapse due to said other medical issues plus the last dentist was the pits and put the fear of the drill into me) she plainly said straightening my teeth was a health issue, not a cosmetic one, and ignoring it longer put me at high risk for gum disease and more inflammation my body would not handle well, and eventual tooth and bone loss. Ok ok I get it.

The thing is, I had gone to a bunch of orthodontists in the past to consider treatment and I hadn't liked a single one. Mostly I felt like none of them really considered my case beyond lots of crooked teeth that need traditional braces and tooth extraction. It always felt like a knee-jerk diagnosis, and in earlier years I get that there weren't options to consider. And I haven't been looking for somebody to just say yes to what I wanted, which was actually just a real conversation about Invisalign. I was seeing cases and advancements that made me question "why not me!" and not a single person could give me an answer that felt well considered. At the very least I didn't want to spend years in treatment with a doctor who can't bother with really answering what to me was a very very important question.

So it was with a lot of hope and very little expectation that I asked my new dentist to consider taking me on as an Invisalign patient, knowing she had very satisfied patients. To her credit she said she wouldn't commit either way in that visit, and after I had my wisdom teeth extracted and old fillings replaced she'd put forward her recommendation and that could very well include the traditional route if that's what would be best. She did mention that she herself had done through a treatment of Invisalign and clear braces because of the complexity of her own case, and was grateful to cut down her time in braces even by half. At last, at least somebody is talking to me like I'm a real person with feelings and anxiety, and acknowledging a lot is going on in my head, not just in my mouth.

We talked during my visits during the next six months. She talked me through a case she was finishing that was as complex as mine and very successful. We agreed to do the scans and treatment planning for Invisalign and then see what could be done. What impressed me was her offer to go through the plan with me before a final decision on her part was made. She could have just assumed that if she was happy, I'd be thrilled and to go with it. But this extra step, which doesn't seem to be normal protocol for a lot of doctors, was very comforting and helped me know that I would be making a fully informed decision based on all the facts.

So I know from reading that the general rule is your better off at the orthodontist, but I should also note that in my experience (both personal and through my professional life) being a specialist doesn't always equal being up-to-date or experienced, or the best person to deliver care. But it was in my mind to take this seriously and not commit if I wasn't fully pleased with the plan or had doubts. I still wanted to do what was best in the long-term.

Today I got a very thorough presentation of the Invisalign plan, with many pros and cons presented, an overview of particular trays that will be the ones where I'll notice something good, and even bad, and of course where all the attachments will go. I know a lot of people feel like if the mouth is full of attachments, what was the point, so that was really going to be a big piece in my final decision to go with Invisalign or not. I also got a lot of explanation of why everything was going to happen the way it will, and that gave me confidence that she does know what she's doing and thinks it's important for me to appreciate the mechanics of the treatment. She'll want to see me every four weeks instead of the customary six or eight, and have some maintenance cleaning to avoid any potential health complications.

When I thought of all the things I have had to sacrifice to treat a chronic illness -all the pills that have made me sick, the diet and the lifestyle changes, and at times an impacted quality of life - it came down to wanting to be able to enjoy meals and not further restrict myself if it was at all possible. Being able to clean my teeth, and have access to a team that really gets me, and one that I feel super confident in is not a luxury for me. I feel like I found a dentist who appreciated my whole case, not just my teeth, and I know from our six months of discussions that if she didn't feel it would work I wouldn't have been presented the plan. Her sincere enthusiasm was so evident. I think she's more excited than I am!

So in two weeks it will be Tray 1 of 34!

Sorry for the extra long entry! I promise they won't all be like this. But it was a really long process to give the green light, and hopefully somebody will relate and benefit from how I got here. More to come, and thanks for reading.

You guys, I'm sort of in this phase where on the one hand I can't wait until Tuesday to have these suckers in my mouth and get the teeth moving. And then there's the other hand where I realize what a true figurative and literal pain this is all going to be, so what's the hurry?

So I'm enjoying my last few days of careless eating and drinking without a second thought to time and flossing. I'm not a regular snacker by nature, and I'm actually a pretty efficient eater (I've been timing my usual meals), and while I should have no problem in this area just the fact that in a week these will be things I'm forced to do because of Invisalign my stubborn streak is coming out. So snacks, mints, gum, and leisurely chewing for the hell of it are frequent these days.

But I'm also getting my stuff together. I do subscribe to the notion that luck favors the prepared so while I'm jazzed about this I'm actually overpreparing a bit, because once I lose excitement it ain't pretty. The one thing you'll notice about me as I go along this journey is that I have two modes in life: totally on top of it and brain dead. So what follows next will make me sound like my life is really together (or you might think I'm just crazy), but trust me when I say in a few short months you'll wonder how I've managed to survive as long as I've had due to my sheer forgetfulness/laziness. I'm actually considering a toothbrush and toothpaste subscription type service so there's automatic supply and I'm never out. Quip, anyone?

So my prep list! I have or have coming:
- A zippered case to carry everything I could possibly need to carry
- Supply of travel size toothbrushes, toothpaste, mouthwash and floss
- Denture brush and Retainer Brite
- Ortho wax
- Crochet hook (the secret weapon for aligner removal success I'm told)
- Aligner chewies (is it weird that I'm really psyched about these????)
- Lots of nail filers to sand down those rough edges
- Tylenol PM for rough nights
- Clove Oil (amazing for mouth pain!)
- Head wrap and ice pack thing for jaw and face pain (wisdom teeth removal fave #1)

I also went back to my wisdom tooth survival recipes and reminded myself of the good soup and smoothie recipes that kept me eating even through extreme pain.

Is there anything I'm forgetting? Will a Waterpik rock my oral health care routine? Because I see words like "gum massage" and I'm kinda sold...

I can't believe tomorrow is the big day, and the next time I sit down to dinner I'll be cursing these two pieces of plastic that I've waited well over a decade for.

Seriously, I'm so ready to be on my way! I've lived for so long not smiling, but just kind of smirking. It's dawning on me that psychologically that can't be healthy, to not allow yourself a real big smile. It's like physically suppressing your own happiness. So the other day I actually started to practice an open mouth smile and realized my facial muscles above my upper lip were like "um...what is this crazy business about?" This will take some work.

I've also never allowed myself lipstick, to not draw any attention to my mouth. I'm starting to scout some must have colors. It's a long way off - something like 476 days, not that I'm counting or anything - but the idea of a nice red lip really excites me, and will hopefully keep me motivated when the going gets tough. It really is the small things in life right?

Ok let's go.