Tray Two

I have now had my Invisalign Trays in for two and a half weeks. I switched over to tray two on Sunday night (May 27th). It was, again, shocking how tight they felt. It caused immense pain in my gum line and jaw; the pain went up and resulted in a headache! But it was ok, I planned for this; I had switched the trays over a few hours before bed, and thought I could just sleep through the pain, as I had heard so many other people had done. Not the case. After an extremely restless sleep, tossing and turning much to the dismay of my boyfriend, I was exhausted for Monday morning. It was hard to lay down because even something as soft as the pillow, causing pressure on my jaw line resulted in discomfort. Lesson learned: Change tray on a Saturday night!! (If I have a restless sleep, I will be ok on a Sunday)
For the first day I had an extremely hard time removing the trays to eat or brush, so it resulted in lots of smoothies and protein shakes (fine by me!) and rinsing with mouthwash. I have found brushing the trays with a soft toothbrush and some toothpaste the best method in keeping them clean, and it’s fairly easy. I usually do this twice a day. (I actually soaked them in mouthwash for about 20 minutes while eating one day, went to put them back in and they had turned green, the colour of the mouthwash! After much scrubbing they did return to clear, but I don’t recommend it!)

At the moment I am very vigilant about keeping everything clean as I am a bit of a stickler with clean, white teeth, but as time goes on I may get a lot more lax due to how time consuming it is! I have seen some changes so far, my teeth seem to be moving back, making room for the front teeth to come down and lineup. Also my back bottom molars were slanted inwards (towards my tongue) and I definitely feel them straightening up. I will post some pictures soon because I feel nothing is noticeable at the moment. I filed the new trays, with a soft emery board, before placing them in my mouth, and hurray! No cuts on lips, no rubbing, they feel great. I have completely gotten used to wearing them, no irritation at all! I read one person’s blog and they said “Get through the first two weeks and your home free”. I couldn’t agree more. The first two weeks are quite awful, but now I talk, sleep, relax completely naturally. The pain when changing the trays is expected, as they are extremely new and tight, but it lasts one night, even by the next morning I was a million times better.

The Beginning

My appointment with my orthodontist was at 3:50 in the afternoon of Monday, May 14th 2012. I was so excited I could hardly breathe! I had been for my consultation and molds 4 weeks earlier. The consultation is when they take pictures of your teeth, from every angle, not a very pleasant viewing; the Ortho will make his estimation of price and length of treatment. The molds were slightly unpleasant, but nothing unbearable. The mold substance is very soft, and goes hard in your mouth within seconds, requiring the Ortho to basically yank them out, again slightly unpleasant. I’ve heard a lot of people say they felt like gagging due to the fact the molds go all the way to the back teeth, I luckily didn’t have this problem. The mold appointment took about 20 minutes, and the consultation takes 30-40 minutes, depending on how many questions you have!

I got about 11 attachments (sometimes called buttons) fitted, bottom and top. The attachments seem to be like gel they apply to your teeth in small dots, and then harden with a UV light. The taste isn’t delicious, but as long as you keep your tongue away it isn’t bad at all. The hardest part is keeping your mouth wide open for 20 minutes! They then scraped and picked off any access gel and filed down a few of my teeth so the trays would fit correctly. During this time, they periodically put smaller, thinner trays in your mouth that are prototypes of your Invisaligns, don’t be fooled they are not your actual trays! I was excited because they seemed so small and thin and bendable, and was disappointed when I found out they weren’t the real trays! Once the attachments are completed, I was fitted with the real trays; these immediately feel a lot heavier and tighter. Once clicked in, you must bite down (which hurts!) on small plastic tubes, this is to ensure correct fit. We practiced taking them in and out a couple of times (took me several minutes, and a lot of drool and tissue…) but I promise it gets faster each time!



First Trays!



The first night I couldn’t take them out, so I gargled with Listerine and drank a smoothie. The entire evening my tongue was fiddling with the trays, it acts like a territorial animal, wondering what has entered its domain! I couldn’t stop it! I spent ten minutes chewing on a “chewie”; small plastic tubes that supposedly help the trays stick to your teeth. The pain/pressure was intense, I had to take a few painkillers, just to dull the ache in the gums and jaw, but my ortho warned me about that. The most awkward part is just getting used to the feel of having plastic in your mouth which tastes and feels very strange.

I’m now on day three, Thursday May 17th, and most of the pain has gone away. One issue I have now is the plastic is scratching up my top lip, causing them to be quite sore. I filed down the plastic with an emery board, and it definitely helped. I think my lips just need to get used to them. I haven’t been able to eat much, the most painful part is definitely the gums, I’ve been eating soft foods for the past few evenings and lots of protein smoothies! I’m MUCH faster at taking them out and putting them in (still a little drool!) I’ve learnt you can’t be afraid to really pull (they won’t break, I don’t think, and contrary to how it feels, your teeth will stay in your head), also I find it works well if you unhook the back using your nails, and pull around to the front. I have been chewing my “chewies” for 10 minutes every day. So far I have been very vigilant in keeping the trays in, due to the fact that it is still quite painful, so if I leave them out for any longer than an hour the pain intensifies when I put them back on. It feels as though the teeth have shifted already!

I can definitely vouch for the Invisalign diet, I don’t snack anymore, and drink about 5 bottles of water a day, and because of the pain right now I haven’t been eating much. But I’m sure this will change as time goes on, as each day it is getting better and better! I have been brushing my invisaligns with my toothbrush, gently, then rinsing with cold water and they come up quite clean. It is very nice to be able to remove them, have a drink (of something other than water) and eat, clean my mouth out properly (brush and mouthwash!) and then put them back in. No one has noticed the braces unless I have shown them and they are impressed that they are so clear and can actually straighten my teeth! The only parts that are noticeable (I think) are the attachments, but again, nothing I have complained about compares with not having to deal with actual metal braces!






 



A picture of my boyfriend and I from Hawaii three years ago.
As you can see; my crooked teeth aren't very noticeable in pictures!