Quick Update

Haven't had much time to write & seriously every picture I try taking turns out horrible. I was just going to wait, but I thought I'd write quickly. I go to the orthodontist n 4 days, so at this point in my current trays my teeth aren't hurting. Things are fine that way. My retainers have gotten so dirty and it's pretty much impossible to clean them back to normal once you let them go. I half don't even care at this point since I'm almost done with this set, but know I need to focus on better habits.

I have been doing some research because I was very worried that my teeth weren't where they should be and apparently it's quite common to need refinements. Which from what I've heard is just new retainers because things didn't go as planned or for whatever reason aren't perfect. Which I believe includes new molds (ick) and new trays. Which can be a lot depending on the case. I've read some blogs where people needed 2 different cycles of refinements, which can easily add up to 6 months or more. Which is both discouraging and nice. I want perfect teeth. But I am sick of retainers and was very much looking forward to being done. Plus I have to wear this next set for a month. Which seems wasteful if I'm going to get new molds. AND then the molds take time to be sent away so I can be making NO progress for like a month. That seems like a waste of time. And I'm unsure about payment. I read sometimes 1-2 refinements are included in the cost. But I'm not sure. I would hate to have to invest more money into this process when I'm trying to save for other things! I'm guessing I will learn about this when my teeth are "done"  and the orthodontist realizes they're not perfect and will require more work. For now, I guess I will just wait.

I've been meaning to write...

I've been meaning to write, but I was waiting until I took some pictures (which I never did...oops) so I figured I should at least write. I changed into my (so-called) second to last set of retainers 2 days ago. My penultimate set of retainers. Haha never thought I'd use that word when I learned it in college prep senior year of high school. Ohh the good old days. Sorry this is turning into a non-tooth related blog. The bottoms hurt a lot, as usual. And I find that weird because the bottoms look almost perfect to me. The tops actually hurt a tiny bit this time, which I feel like they should hurt more because they have more moving to do. I don't possibly think in one more set of retainers after this one my top teeth will be completely straight. And I want them to match the bottoms and also look good. I guess I can talk to my orthodontist about it, but the appointments are so quick they really don't give me time to talk about anything and I don't even get to see anyone but the hygenist. But this is a big deal (and investment). My worrying is getting the best of me. I'm trying to trust in the plan they made for me, but I can see my tops not moving like I expected them to.

I have been very good at brushing my teeth after everything I eat, and in the event I can't (like the recent roadtrip in which I was starving) I at least floss. I put a couple flossers in my purse so I'm good to go anywhere. I have been trying to do my best to get in the habit of keeping my retainers clean because after this set, I will have to wear the next set for a month. And if I let them get dirty/gross, it will be unpleasant. Plus if they're my actual last set (which I'm unsure of at this point) they will probably be the ones I'm supposed to wear at night. Not that they told me I would have to wear them at night when I'm done, but I've heard you have to and I don't want my teeth to shift back.

My teeth are still semi sore as of now, but a lot better than they were 2 days ago. And not enough pain to need ibuprofen, but this headache I have right now may break my day free of pain medicine. And I still haven't learned to stop biting down on the areas that are sore to check if they're still sore (which make them hurt more, but I can't leave them alone!) I will TRY to add pictures soon. It's just very hard to take quality pictures that show my teeth with my cell phone's crappy camera!

Lazy & Unsure

Yes, I have gotten extremely lazy...when it comes to my retainers. 75% of the time I don't chew gum and I haven't been brushing after meals. I rarely floss. I have actually only been brushing in the morning. I wake up, throw my retainers in a clear mouthwash rinse (at least I do that) and then brush my teeth and retainers. I brush them pretty good. My sonicare toothbrush runs for 2 minutes and it usually stops before I'm done, so I know I'm doing it long enough. I just really need to get the energy to brush before bed. I've gotten myself in the habit of washing my face nightly. I know I could get in the routine of brushing, too. I just have to try. Flossing, there is no excuse for. It is so easy with my flossers. I also have been drinking with my retainers in. I know that's a big no no, especially the red gatorade I sipped last weekend. It's not good cause it can stain as well as get in your retainers and wear at your teeth. I am going to really focus on bettering all these things. It will be easier when I don't have retainers anymore, but it's best to start those habits now.

I still feel weary that my teeth won't be perfect in the time frame they've alloted. And I'm pretty sure after the last tray which I'll wear for a month, they'll be taking off my attachments. Which I'm not sure how that will go. Hopefully it doesn't hurt. I think getting them on was alright, but if I remember correctly, it was a bit uncomfortable. Anyway, if the attachments come off, I would think that's final that I will have no new retainers. I have been really looking at my mouth and will definitely make sure things are good before my attachments come off. I hope they will talk with me more, even if I have to prompt them for answers. I still never know what happened with the tooth filing which was supposed to happen around tray 17.

As far as pain, I've been in this set for a week and there is no pain. I have one set after this until I go in for my supposedly final set. So I'm really not expecting much more pain, but you never know. Maybe the last one will be drastic. I can't imagine that, though. From what I understand, every week is a very small change because your gums can't handle huge changes suddenly. I guess we shall see. Trying to remain hopeful, despite my cynical nature.

The Countdown Begins!

I had another retainer check (aka they just give me new retainers) today at 8 am...yeah I wasn't pleased it was that early, but I had to work later in the day and when I called to reschedule, that's what I got stuck with. Nonetheless, I went back to get my new retainers and....they said I only had 3 sets left!!! So they gave me 2 of them instead of the usual 3 and I will come back to get the last pair in 4 weeks. The hygienist told me the last pair I'm supposed to wear for 4 weeks to make sure everything is in place and they like to give that to me separately.

So as the title states, the countdown begins. I noticed I have 3 more retainers in my set so I guess if I want to fine tune my teeth? Not entirely sure. Based on the progress so far I highly doubt in 3 new sets, my teeth will have enough time to correct themselves all the way, which worries me. I want my teeth to be PERFECT! The bottoms are very close. Just a few need to turn more and then the teeth in the way back need to line up. The tops, however, need quite a bit of moving. My smile has really improved, but I want more than improvement. I want perfection. I'm very nervous that they won't be everything I want.

What also bothers me is for the last couple months my top teeth have really NO pain. The bottom teeth are the ones that have the mild pain. I'm assuming pain equals progress. So if my tops aren't in pain, are they not changing much? Or is it just enough to do its' job? I really don't know. The tops don't hurt at all since I changed into my new trays today. I changed at about 8, went shopping, came home, ate breakfast, took a nap, and when I woke up from my nap at 11:30, my bottom teeth were quite sore. And still are. I took ibuprofen 3 times today I think. Come to think of it, I may have accidentally taken my last doese too soon. I took 800 mg at about 5:45 and then just a little bit ago at probably 11 took another 800. Yikes. Should be fine. Hard to go to sleep when  you're in pain.

I do like the whole process and my progress so far, I'm just a little I guess disappointed with my orthodontist. I have seen him maybe 3 or 4 times the whole time. They haven't kept me informed about what was happening. I was supposed to get my teeth sanded, they said, but they never mentioned it again. They never look at my teeth when I go in for check ups. They told me 10 months and now it has turned into a year. I really just hope things are where they should be. I know the retainers fitting should be a good sign, but I wish they would have been more involved. I'm the kind of person who likes to be very involved and know what's happening every step of the way. Having had teeth that made me so self-conscious, I really want and expect teeth that are beautiful and just how I was told they would be when I signed up for this invisalign treatment. I don't want to look at my teeth and say "they look better" I want to look at them at say "they look amazing!!"

Quick Update

Just wanted to quickly update this and say that all my minor pain is gone! It hasn't even been one week in these trays. I have about 9 days left until I go back to the orthodontist to get my new sets. I'm very much enjoying the lack of pain. Quite nice I must say. And my gum chewing obsession is in full force. I now literally chew gum after everything I eat. I went through almost all the gum I had on hand from B.R. aka before retainers (when I was a big gum chewer). I bought some more today with a nice coupon I had that was expiring. It gets all that hard to get stuff out of my teeth. Stuff brushing misses. Which in turn reduces the amount of plaque (spelling?) that will settle on my teeth. Which I believe will help keep my teeth clean and reduce any staining. It's so low maintenance too. Just pop in a piece after eating and chew. Can't get much easier. Now I just have to a way to motivate myself to floss more regularly. But progress is going very well. My retainers fit so perfectly that I can't even tell I'm wearing them. I've literally had to check a few times to make sure.

I have to admit, that is a little weird that a few weeks ago I was in the worst pain and didn't think 2 weeks was enough on my trays and now on these new trays after a few days it feels perfect and no pain. It seems inconsistent, but at this point, I'm giving my full trust to my orthodontist. Because if things don't turn out how I was promised, you best bet I will not give up until I get my teeth perfect.

Yes!

So I've gotten very uncreative with my titles. Pinterest is sucking my creativity in other directions. On to the teeth! 2 days ago (on Thursday) I changed into my 22nd set of retainers!! They didn't really hurt at first. Later in the day, it felt like the bottom might need to be sanded because it was slightly digging into my gums, but it ended up not. The bottom right was sore again like it has been lately just for the fact that the turned teeth are moving. And the tops were fine, like the last few times as well. Now 2 days later, pain in 98% gone!! It's very exciting to get out of the pain phase so quickly. And even the pain in the first 2 days was mild compared to the past. Makes me very hopeful!

Now for the promised pictures:

Here's a look at the bottoms. They're almost perfectly straight from what I can tell. The ones in the "corners"are the ones that need to kind of swivel to sit upright.

These are the tops, which obviously have more work to be done. When you see them at this angle you can tell they need to align more. Which I find weird because I haven't felt any pain from the top retainers in months.

And here is probably the number one thing that bothers me. If you look where the middle of my lips are, you can see the middle of my teeth are not aligned there. Which isn't a huge deal I suppose, but it looks funny to me because I really notice it. I definitely hope that this fixes itself or I will say something to my orthodontist. My top teeth do have lots more to do, so hopefully it won't be an issue.

And here is a general look of how my teeth are doing. They look far better from this angle than they do when you see the teeth in back. Even though I rarely will be showing my back teeth (if at all) I want everything to be straight and perfect!! I'm very pleased with the way my smile looks, but that's not all the teeth my mouth has. I also want my bite to feel natural.

Anyway that's all for my teeth news. Thankfully there is no complaining of pain in this post! Let's hope it stays that way. Or for the sake of progress, relatively pain free!!



Unexpected in a good way

Sorry for the delayed updates. Due to not having my own internet, and therefore not being able to use my own computer, things of that nature have been difficult. I suprised myself by remembering what website my blog is hosted through as well as my user name and password. The things you take for granted when you have everything automatically signed in on your laptop.

Anyway for the past month or so I have felt totally not ready to move on to my next set of retainers. But I still have a few days until changing them again and I've felt ready a couple days ago! Which I think is a very good sign. I'm eager to change because I know it's progress. I'm hesitant because I know it will involve at least some pain. But overall I'm excited.

A rather unfortunate thing happened last weekend. I was out of town and got some new makeup. After I got back home, I realized my lips were very dry and painful. I woke up one morning to notice they were huge and swollen. Looked like I got lip injections. NOT cute. I had an allergic reaction to my lipgloss! My lips are still dry and itchy. Which is very frustrating. I did affect my eating for a couple days. And I was so drooly. Yuck. I'm hoping the new retainers won't be a problem with my already sore lips. I even noticed today almost a cut on the inside of my lip. Which my tongue will not leave alone. Ah! Makes me so angry.

Otherwise my teeth look fab. I took some pictures I will try to upload somehow without my own computer. They show the view as a whole with my mouth open so you can see the alignment. I have gotten at least 3 comments just this week about how much straighter my teeth look. Which is such a confidence booster. I'm glad others can see the difference I can. I seriously reccommend invisalign to anyone. Despite the instances of pain, I am totally focused on the good they have done. And my teeth continue to get straighter everyday!