New to Invisalign - Hi

[EmUk]

Hi everyone, i have been lurking for quite a while while i was waiting for my Invisalign and now i have them throught i may as well join in.

My name is Emma and i am from Liverpool, UK. I am on my 1st tray of 21U and 21L. I have 12 attachments at the minute, 6 upper and 6 lower which are mainly from my canine tooth outwards.

This roughly gives me 10.5 months of treatment minus any refinements, however i am due to get married in 7 months.

I have dreamed of straight teeth for sooooo long as i suffer really badly with confidence issues so much i have avoided meeting new people. Its took me 10 years to finally get the courage to walk through the door to the dentist and up to now i am wholeheartedly commited.

I am approx wearing them for 21-22 hours, the first day was hell. My ortho put them on around 3pm and that night i was waking up every 2 hours or so in pain, however this has now gone and i can barely feel them. I actually prefer the feel of them and look of them in my mouth than my normal teeth. However, they have given me a lisp and very sore and chapped lips.

Sorry if i have waffled, i would just love to talk to others in the same situation as me as none of my friends have ever heard of Invisalign.

Em

[tennesseeditto]

Em, welcome to this great forum. It is a great place to ask questions and to give/receive encouragement regardless of the product one has chosen to straighten one's teeth.

I am happy for you! I am sure you will be smiling more and more as your teeth begin to straighten just I and others who are seeing the process work.



Keep us posted, okay.

[Aditi]

I'm totally new myself but welcome! That is actually really cool that you decided you had an issue and are taking care of it, that is very admirable. Best wishes!

[EmUk]

Thank you all for your warm welcomes.

Quick question, i have heard conflicting views regarding cleaning my trays with toothpaste. Is it safe to do so? Currently, i brush tham with water as soon as i take them out and leave them in cold water soaking until i put them back in again.

Also, can i use denture cleansing tablets such as Steradent or Effadent to clean them?

Thank you

Em

[Aditi]

Since I only wear each set for 2 weeks I don't care much about them getting scuffed up, which I think is the objection to using toothpaste on them. I file my aligners to smooth out the rough edges and that scuffs them up right there. So I brush them with toothpaste twice a day. I floss a lot and I brush my teeth every time prior to putting in the aligners so I have not noticed any problems with this regimen. Using denture cleansing tablets, no idea, I think I would be wary of that interacting with the plastic. There is something you can use though, let me go and look for it, I think that the admin here mentioned it.

Ah here it is, this is a direct quote from the Admin of this site:

There's a Retainer/Aligner wipe you may also be interested in. It's great for those times when you don't have access to fresh running water to rinse or clean your aligner: http://www.dentakit.com/clfrgoto.html

I don't have this stuff, I don't really need it but there are safe cleaning options around.

[EmUk]

Thank you Aditi, that helps a lot

[Jane16]

Hi there,

I'm at the same stage as you, with 21U and 21L. I'm now on my second tray, shortly to go on to the third. Also hated my teeth for years but I wasn't really in the position (financially) to do anything about it and also thought I was too old! I found the first 2 weeks really hard and had a bad reaction to using Listerine and/or sterodent. Sterodent was fine to clean the trays, it does a good job, but it didn't suit me. I've read that some people think it is not a good idea to clean the trays with toothpaste as it is abrasive and can cause tiny scratches on the aligners where bacteria can multiply. I'm using half vinegar half water or a baking soda solution and sometimes a gentle brush with mouthwash. It seems to be working fine but will be interesting to see how using these from the beginning of my next tray work out.

Good luck with it!
Jane

[EmUk]

Thank you for your replies.

I am LOVING my Invisalign, im on tray 2 now. My teeth have been sore when i first put them in on Saturday night but i slept through the inital movement, i can feel them working away but its not unpleasant.

I love how my teeth look with invisalign on, it closes my gap in between my front teeth.

I do have a problem however, at my last dentist appt, the assistant who i saw told me to change to my new set every week if i felt my trays were becoming too slack. Im worried about this as i feel my teeth will be moving too fast.

Should i move to 1 week, 10 days or stick to 2 weeks?

Hope everyones doing ok, with there trays!!

OOhhh Jane, we'll be going through our progress together, i'd love to know how your getting on!

Emma x

[tennesseeditto]

Emma, so glad you and your Invisaligns are doing well.

You ask so here is my two cents worth:

I like my dentist's dental assistant really well but I am not willing to trust the health of my teeth to her. I am paying the dentist to oversee the work, not her, AND it is not her place to tell me to speed up the process.

If I wanted to speed up the process then I would ask my dentist not simply do it on her advice.

That said, I went to my dentist almost two weeks ago after being in clear aligners for two weeks to help rotate a front tooth. (I am doing the "fast track" with a combination of Inman Aligners and clear aligners). He did a little filing on two of my teeth after examining my teeth and mouth very carefully. He said he was very pleased with the progress as am I. He then looked at my teeth, arches, and mouth very carefully and then told to do the following, "expand the arches every three days for the next two weeks and come see me in 18 days. We should be done or very close."

I asked him if that was too much stress on the bones and teeth and he told me the roots of my teeth are in fine position and everything will be fine. However, if I had any doubts we'd go slower.
So I've been following his advice and we're almost there.

If his dental assistant had told me that I would have asked dentist because he is the one with the advanced degree, experience, malpractice insurance, not to mention the man with his fingers on my mouth.

[Aditi]

I totally agree with Tennessee. I would not take anyone's advice who told me to switch every week. For one thing you can cause inflammation doing that and if you google it you can see some of the adverse root outcomes with too fast of an advancement. I think it was irresponsible of the assistant to say that. You might want to mention that to your dentist.

[MIKE82]

am from Liverpool too em and about to start my invisalign!!

[EmUk]

Thanks for all your advice, i agree with what you are all saying hence my concern.

I am now changing every 2 weeks.

Im moving onto tray 3 on Saturday!

Hey Mike, where about did you get your Invisalign?

Emma x

[MIKE82]

pure dental on allerton road


how about you

[EmUk]

Liverpool Dental Spa in town!

They've been fab so far!

[rasp88]

[quote="EmUk"]
I am approx wearing them for 21-22 hours, the first day was hell. My ortho put them on around 3pm and that night i was waking up every 2 hours or so in pain, however this has now gone and i can barely feel them. I actually prefer the feel of them and look of them in my mouth than my normal teeth. However, they have given me a lisp and very sore and chapped lips.[/quote]

Hi Em, the lisp will go away after a few weeks or a month. It has already been a month, so it is probably not a problem now! I recently finished my invisalign treatment, and I can tell you that by your wedding day, your teeth will look almost done. I have taken my trays our for up to 6 hours in a day (not everyday of course, only once or twice a week) to no ill effect, so I think you can safely enjoy your wedding cake and smile yourself silly on your wedding day.