Eek!

So I decided to get away and go out of town for the weekend. My teeth hurt, but they were decent. By the end of the day Friday, the bottom part of my lower gums was so irritated, it was literally driving me nuts. I had to actually sand down the retainer with sandpaper, which I haven't had to do in awhile. And luckily I brought oragel in my makeup bag, but I ended up numbing my tongue almost and started mega drooling. It was just gross. And painful. But that has passed. The actual teeth on the bottom hurt a bit, but otherwise things are fine. It's weird to have soreness after the first few days of a new set because the majority of the time that hasn't been a problem, but these last few weeks have just been painful. I'm excited to get this process done and hope the pain stays relatively painfree, but I understand why it's hurting. I just wish they could do more about the pain.

Update

So I was thinking to myself this afternoon "wow it's nice to have a set of retainers than actually fits and doesn't cause severe pain" I have been used to such pain the last month, it was such a change to not feel any. It was a good change, though. However, it wasn't long before some pain came around. I took my retainers out to eat something for dinner and I experienced a weird, sharp pain. It was the second time in my treatment it felt like the root of my tooth was close to the surface of being visible. I looked in the mirror and saw it was at a very weird angle in its' process of moving. (This was a tooth on the bottom towards the side that was tilted) My back tooth also looked like it wasn't lined with the others. I can tell they are in the process of moving. I will try to take a decent picture to show this change. The bottoms are pretty sore, but nothing unbearable. I did have to take out my retainers once tonight for 15 minutes just to let my teeth have a break. And there is a part of the retainer on my bottoms that is digging into my gums a bit. If it continues, I can always file it down. But I'm assuming it won't last long. Still the pain is better than it has been so I'm not too discouraged. I'm gonna keep on keeping on! Just wanted to make a note that it isn't as ideal as I earlier thought. It definitely isn't a concern, though.

PS...It's now a couple hours later and had to add this: Oragel=miracle. My sore gums are now semi numb. If you need relief from sore gums or tooth pain (I once used oragel when I had a bit of tooth decay that wasn't a cavity yet but hurt. the dentist ended up drilling/sanding it off without having to numb me since it was on the surface, but that day of pain before i went in was made better by oragel. which is why i luckily had some on hand!) oragel is my favorite. I'm so glad I just remembered I had some.

Mind over matter

So I changed into my dreaded new trays today. And they were not even half as bad as I expected! The previous 2 or 3 trays were ridiculously painful. I tried these ones on last night to see how they would feel and if I was ready for them, and they felt tight and the bottom didn't click in like it hasn't been lately. So I was so nervous. But today I figured I better bite the bullet if I want to continue to see progress. So I ate some breakfast/lunch consisting of cookies and nachos (healthy I know lol) because I knew after my teeth started to hurt I would not be able to eat hard things. Then i took some ibuprofen and brushed my teeth. I popped the topped retainer in, which was a little more snug than normal, but not uncomfortable. And my bottoms didn't fit as easily, but after a few seconds they were pretty secure. The right back was a little up, but by an hour it's mostly all the way down.

I'm not sure if this set is just not as painful (minus the minor pain in the area where the retainer on the bottom is digging into my gums) or the ibuprofen is that magical. Regardless, it is far less painful than I was expecting, which makes me very happy. When they don't hurt, it makes it much easier to wear them as long as you should. When they hurt, you take longer breaks with them out, which doesn't help your treatment. I feel like my jaw is at an unnatural angle and when I smile my teeth don't touch because of the bottom retainer! It looks funny with a gap. And I have a mild lisp. But I'm sure in a few days it will be corrected, as per usual. I guess it goes to show, things aren't always as bad as you make them out to be!

Slowly...but surely?

So in a couple days I am supposed to be switching trays. But it definitely doesn't feel ready. Usually by the first week the teeth fit in the retainers good. It's been 11 days and they still don't feel to fit right. It took a couple days to click down into place correctly. And I think it's such a big change it's taking some time. The bottoms are just not having it. They have been pretty sore the past couple weeks with all the moving. It makes biting with my front teeth a bit difficult. My tops are fine, but they go together in sets. So if I don't feel ready on Thursday (and I will try the new set on to see) I am thinking I will be wearing these an extra week. It will set me back, but it's better to give my teeth the proper time to move. It will cut down my pain, as well, because I won't be pushing it. If that's the case, I will likely call my orthodontist. They have told me that's an option in the past, but better safe than sorry. I paid for their assitance anytime I need it, so might as well use it!

I've gotten very good about brushing after I eat. At least a dry brush. It really, really helps. Another amazing trick I just discovered is...GUM! As in chewing gum. Not gums. lol! If you are out and can't brush, or are too tired/lazy to brush your teeth after you eat, just chew on a piece of gum for a couple minutes. It helps clean your teeth and freshen your mouth. Sugar free of course because sugary gum would be counterproductive. I'm loving Extra Orange Dreamsicle or Creamsicle. Whatever it's called. I haven't chewed gum much during this process, and I have missed it. So I did it on a whim and found out how beneficial it can be. I also saw orbit makes a whitening gum. So when my attachments are off, I will be checking that out for sure!

I've done lots of research and it sounds like whitening mouthwashes don't have strong enough of ingredients to do any real whitening. They may just harm your enamel. So I think I will be staying away from them. Or using it every other day or something. I have tried whitening mouthwash before prior to invisalign, but I didn't use it long enough and I always rush through brushing my teeth. So I will give that another try. Crest 3d white is a great brand. I also would love to do some kind of whitening gel or strip. Probably will end up with Crest whitestrips. I would like a cheaper option, but I don't want to ruin my teeth with less than good products. We will see when the time comes what my options really are. It looks like that will be at least 3 months away anyway.

Hanging in there!

Through the use of ibuprofen and aleve I have made it through the past couple days. My retainer finally slipped into place and the air gap is gone, so it's formed around all my teeth. And the mid-back teeth on the right side can surely feel it. They were sort of forced sideways so I believe they are being kind of lifted upright right now. Which is quite painful. But it seems like the pain is gone for the most part. (thankfully!) I kind of wish all the pain would have been in the first 8-9 months of treatment so by this point I can just do some fine tuning. But it seems the majority of the stubborn teeth are the ones moving now. So it will probably be Pain City for awhile.

I have gotten even more impatient because I'm so eager to do some whitening! Which I can't do until my attachments are off, which will likely be when treatment is fully done. Since my good report at the dentist, I am- however- more conscious of brushing after I eat because I want to maintain my good habits.

Something that has really gotten me through the last few days (besides medicine) is my tooth role model: Bree Essrig. She is a youtuber who I love watching. She's funny, creative, and very real. If you don't know who she is, totally check her out on youtube. She even made a video on her tips to teeth whitening! Anyway, she has the most beautiful smile. It's straight and super white. I idolize her smile. So when things were painful and I didn't feel like wearing my retainers and dealing with the pain, I thought of her teeth and how mine can look like that if I keep up my treatment. And it totally motivated me. Weird, but it worked! Since I couldn't find a good picture, I just snipped one from one of her youtube videos. She's acting in it (playing her hilariously dumb character Scout) so her mouth in kind of at an usual position, but you can see how pretty and white they are.

People losing weight have thinspiration. This is my teethspiration! So I will keep on keeping on until my teeth are where my orthodontist thinks they should be. Then I will take over on the whitening department (since they charge $500 for whitening at my orthodontist!!)

Holy teeth week

Yesterday was a check up for my invisalign. In which I expected they would tell me I was almost done. That didn't happen. They gave me 3 new sets. I put the new ones on. Again this time the bottom set didn't fit right, but the tops did. The hygenist helped pop it in, but it still needed a day or two to settle like last time. It hurt, but I tried to stick it out. I asked the hygenist if I was almost done and she said after these 6 weeks, I have 6 more weeks and the last set I'm supposed to wear for 4 weeks to make sure everything is in place. Which means at least another 3 months! So that's probably into July. Which is not what I was expecting. That will be about a year of treatment, not 10 months. Which is still not horrible, but I'm getting ready to stop wearing these things! It's kind of annoying sometimes, especially now because these last trays have been painful. And my naughty tongue, who likes to play with things he shouldn't, couldn't stop popping my retainers off in the back right because it wasn't down all the way. It was very unnatural feeling. When I pressed it down, it HURT. And it even made me talk with a lisp, which was very gross and weird sounding. (thankfully it's better now. this morning I was disgusting by my voice) I was quite annoyed, I just medicine and went to sleep.

When I woke up this morning BOY were they sore. I brushed my teeth and actually kept my retainers out while I showered. I needed a small break. I put them back in and they immediately ached. So ibuprofen it was. I was nervous because I had to go to the dentist for a cleaning and my teeth were so sore as it was. But the ibuprofen helped, and the gentle hygenist, because it was not painful. I got a new hygenist at my regular dentist's office (which by the way I was excited to go to besides the pain. My alarm clock went off and I didn't even press snooze! I jumped outta bed! I love the dentist. Call me weird.) She was SO nice! We chatted and she actually stopped a few times so I could legitimately answer without her hands in my mouth. And it was so easy to talk to her. Usually I'm at a loss for words aka socially awkward, but she was welcoming. And I told her my teeth were sore, so she was extra careful. It was nice. Plus she said I was doing great with cleaning and flossing. There was very little plaque. AND this was the first time ever I didn't get "yelled" at for not flossing enough. I'm psyched. I must be doing something right.

Anyway then the dentist came in and said I was doing good. He became interested in my invisalign. So he asked if he could see them in. I told him they were saliva-y, because they were. Which is gross. Every time I switch trays, the first few days my mouth views it as a foreign object, so it super produces saliva to try and break it down I guess. But he didn't care. I showed them to him and he told me to put them in cause he was curious. Which was sort of funny. Then I was on my way. Clean teeth and retainers mostly fully molded to my teeth like they should be.

What I gathered from the last few days is: my teeth are not as far along as I thought. They have come a LONG way, but there still is a significant amount to go. I was rushing things I guess. So I will try to be more patient because even a year is nto that long to wait to have the smile I've always wanted. To prove my teeth are far from "perfect" as I thought they practically were, here is an extreme close up:

Obviously as you can see, the top AND bottom teeth need to line up a little better to get on the same level. And the bottom teeth need to stretch out a little more so they're not as crowded. But still an improvement nonetheless. And I've noticed today my lips are fuller. The orthodontist said that might happen. And it looks very nice considering my top lip was always smaller than my bottom one!!

Looking good!

So I am on week 2 of this tray. Wednesday would be the day I go to get my new trays (after forgetting one day a few months ago, my day was originally a Tuesday). However, the doctor leaves early on Wednesdays and at the time I scheduled the appointment, I needed a later time. So Thursday will be the day I go in. Since last time my trays hurt so bad, I'm actually thankful to be a day behind in case they hurt again. Because this way my teeth should be really set in these trays. They certainly feel comfortable and like they fit perfect now so I'm not anticipating any trouble. But you never know.

My retainers feel super duper dirty right now. I really need to take better care of them. I haven't flossed a whole lot later, either. But I seriously have had zero time. I've made a big life change, or I should say career change, which I'm hoping will lead to a more flexible schedule. I am attempting the start of many changes in my life. So straight teeth will be the first real change of the series. I'm excited to go to my appointment. I'm pretty sure I don't have much longer left. I can really see there isn't much more movement needed. I have had several moments recently where it was awkward to take my retainers out, but really they feel like a part of me now. It will be so weird to NOT have them in. But I think I still will wear them at night. I'm fairly certain that's the procedure. And I don't mind that. It has been an intense, yet not too hard journey. Hard to explain how it was easy and difficult at the same time. But I will not allow my teeth to go back. I have heard many people who didn't take care of their teeth after treatment for braces and decided not to wear their retainers and their teeth started shifting back. NO way, Jose! I didn't go through this time and money for nothing. And I'm very pleased thus far :)