Satisfied with Invisalign - Washington DC

Hey everyone! It has been about a month since I finished with invisalign and had my permanent retains placed in my mouth. I just wanted to share how things are going with all of you. It took about a week, but now I really don't notice my permanent retainers at all. They became just a regular part of my mouth and I don't think about them. I still have to wear the plastic retainer once a week at night; I do Sundays so I always remember since it's on the same day. When I wake up, my teeth are a little sore, which must indicate that although I have the permanent retainers, there is still a little movement going on. I guess that's normal, but it still worries me a bit (I don't want braces a third time!). My teeth look beautiful and feel great. The only downer is that flossing my front bottom teeth is a major pain in the butt. You can't floss with the wire on the back of the teeth, so you have to use these little threader things that are annoying and don't really get the plaque like regular floss does. Small price to pay, though. Other than that, the only other weird thing is that I feel like I should always be brushing my teeth since I had to brush about six times a day with invisalign. I think this is probably a good thing, though, since it means I'll have better oral hygiene! Hope you're all doing well on your journey.

Today I went to the orthodontist to have my "bumps" removed, have my permanent retainers place on my teeth, and have my long term retainer made. To be honest, having the little glue bumps removed wasn't too comfortable. I wouldn't say it hurt, exactly...it's just very noisy, smelly, and there is dust flying everywhere. My teeth got a weird sensation--almost like if you have sensitive teeth and they are reacting to something very cold. That took about fifteen minutes to complete. Then they took a mold of my teeth (like they did at the beginning of the whole process). Next, they cleaned off the backsides of my two top teeth and five bottom teeth. It took about ten minutes start to finish to glue the thin wires behind my teeth. Completely painless. The one on the bottom I can barely feel. The one on top is a little intrusive; they had to be careful because of my bite, so it's up high by my gums. They were trying to say I didn't need it, but I was persistent because my one front tooth likes to move forward. I had to wait about fifteen minutes for the retainers to get made. Then I was off on my way. I don't need to go back until May. Here are some pictures of the final outcome/permanent retainers. I'm very pleased with the results, and how short the time took.

11/29--Saw the orthodontist. I saw the head honcho this time since I am getting close to the end. He did a little filing--mainly got rid of the bumpy edges on my front teeth that never wore down as they were supposed to. He said that the next visit will be the end of my treatment if I am satisfied. I have three trays to go in addition to the one I am currently on, which is about halfway through. I will go back on February 1 2013, which if I'm happy at that time, he will install my permanent retainers on top and bottom and mold my teeth for my invisalign long-term retainers. If I'm not happy, they can keep tweaking things--you can order up to three sets of invisalign for what you pay. So far, I am EXTREMELY happy with the way things have turned out. I truly cannot believe how quickly and painlessly this whole ordeal has gone by. SO MUCH BETTER than going with traditional braces.