i'm starving and i have to pee!

day 2 and so far so good

well, day 3? i got my invisalign monday night, so....today was my 2nd full day of having them in

we'll start with how i got here

2009- a few months before our wedding, my fiance (now husband) decides to take it upon himself to ask his dentist what he knows about invisalign.....gee thanks sweetie...i thought you loved me the way i am
so i thought about it....growing up i was always told i needed braces, but, with my crazy teeth, i would have needed a few extractions, which, i did not want for anything
no way no how
so, my awesome parents did not push the issue

so, soon after lou inquired on my behalf, i had a check up/cleaning at my dentist, and i asked about it...and this one dentist there i don't like came in to tell me about it....the verdict was that it wouldn't make any difference in time for the wedding, so, why bother
and really, i was fine with it...my teeth don't bother me, and when i look at our wedding pictures, i don't thing "damn, i wish i had done something about my teeth!"

so, fast forward to april 2011, i had an appointment for a cleaning, and now i have a new dentist (same place, but my old guy doesn't work nights anymore) and she said something to me about invisalign, and i told her i spoke to another dentist about it, and was curious, and told her my concerns about extractions...she said that the consultation was free, so i made an appointment to get molds made to see if i was even a viable candidate for it.....a few weeks pass, and the office called saying that the results were back....so i go, and she tells me that they can't do it, regular braces would be best, and something about extractions...i said, thanks, but no thanks

i was oddly disappointed since i am totally ok with my teeth the way they are, if i'm self conscious about anything, it's not that.....but, i do have a tooth on the bottom that is turned almost completely around, and i do bite my lip often with it, and it can be annoying....and i do have a fang where my adult tooth grew over my baby tooth (which was only pulled a few years ago)

so, i forgot about it, which was good, i mean, we couldn't afford it anyway

then in june or so, i get a call from the dentist office again, saying that she re-submitted my case, and they said yes, indeed it is doable, and without extraction! awesome! so i went in, and she showed me my clincheck, and i made her figure out a way to email it to me

my awesome snaggle teeth

so, those reddish things are buttons....they go on your teeth to create friction to help rotate the teeth...and those numbers are where the ipr will take place...that's where they file down your tooth to make room for movement

after much hemming and hawing, i finally decided to go through with it.....so i called and said it's a go....and a couple of weeks later (last thursday) they called saying the trays were in, and i made an appointment for monday night

i get there, they take me right away....she cleans off the teeth where the buttons are going, and starts with that...

it starts with a tray similar to the regular tray, but not as stiff plastic, and they fill the button holes with the composite, fit the tray to your teeth, and then use the blue light to cure the composite....she did the right side first, and then did the top left and bottom left...i have 10 total...after that, she filed them down so that they were smooth, and were the right shape

after that, she filed down between 2 of my teeth on the left side

then, she popped the trays on! and yikes....a little tight, but not too bad...i tried to take them off, but i had hard time with the top tray due to all the buttons (7 on top), and then i popped it back in myself, and had no problem really with the lower one

i went to show my folks, and realized that the inside of the bottom tray is totally irritating my tongue...like crazy

so i get home, lou goes "ok so are they in?" and i know he's just being the awesome husband, because they are noticeable...i have a thingie right on my front tooth!

so i pop them out, and have something to eat...and before i put them back in, i tried to file down the rough spot...and i did...or thought i did....i had no issues taking them out or putting them back in

tuesday morning,i took them out when i got in the shower, and then brushed/flossed/swished when i got out (25 mins out), then i go to work...armed with a toothbrush, toothpaste and some floss.....i usually eat like, yogurt or chewy bars, or oatmeal bars when i get to work, and then have coffee with a coworker, so i figured i'd just wait til coffee and consume everything at once, so that i don't have to take the trays out....only mildly difficult to take them out, and i had them out about 25 mins again....head to the bathroom, brush, floss and pop them back in....felt kind of tight on the bottom by the buttons...then lunch..i decided to go to the mall (i work across from a mall) and bring the food back to minimize the time out....so for lunch they were out for about, another 25-30 mins....the top was tough to get out, but, after brushing and flossing, both top and bottom snapped back in no problem....but again, the bottom was uncomfortable by the buttons

but it went away...just a lot of pressure....i think total time out yesterday was just over 2 hours...

same for today....i notice them in my mouth less...i had to file down a few more spots this morning, but all in all, not bad......

i had to go to target last night and pick up more things for work..i didn't like the small tube of toothpaste i had at work, so i got a new thing of that, and some mouthwash for work, and some of the flosser things....i'm all thumbs when it comes to dental floss

i also picked up a water bottle since all you can drink with them in is water...and, like i said to my boss "if anything, i'll loose weight just from walking to the kitchen to get more water, and walking to the bathroom to pee"....so i got a water bottle bc it holds more than the cups at work, so i'd fill it up less....and it wouldn't end up tasting like paper cup at the end of the day

i filled up the 24oz bottle 3 times....and man i had to pee so much!

and this no snacking thing is going to kill me...i've never been so hungry! i suppose it's for the best...i do snack a lot

and it's not worth it since the buttons are annoying, and it's a pain to take off the trays, and brush/floss/swish every time.....

so, i've been caught twice in the ladies' room, once yesterday, and learned that she too had invisalign before (she's now in retainer stage), and she had it since i've known her......i would have never known....and today, and she told me she's been dying to get her husband to get it.....

i don't plan on telling a lot of people i'm doing it, but i'm not going to sneak around with my stuff...if someone says something, i'll tell them...i'm not embarrassed

anywho, i'll leave you with pictures for now

(we took pics the night before on my other camera, but, i can't find the cable to load 'em up)

my first set of trays

first night with the trays! can you see them?
(they may or may not be in, i dunno)

 

most of my buttons

and the other side

and from today

it's really weird...

no change yet, but, the dentist said that the tooth on top that's behind (on my left, but on the right in the picture) should be almost to the front by the 3rd set of trays

it hurts to chew when i take them out

my front teeth are sore

i feel this constant pressure like something is stuck between all my teeth

i have this crazy urge to bite down really hard

but, so far so good

i have 20 upper trays and 22 lower trays, so, as long as i don't need any refinements, it should take 11 months

i was quoted 11-16 months