Set 8 Progress Report

Hello everyone, sorry it's been a while, things have been so busy - work, the business, and running errands/doing favours for people, what can I say, I'm highly in demand and a hard worker!

I am onto day 5 of my eighth set of Invisalign Aligners, and everything is going well. Now, as I always comment on the pain factor, or lack thereof lately, you will be pleased to know, that this set was the most painful I have had in a while! I can really feel the pull on two different teeth - it's a sure sign it's working! One tooth is throbbing today, I think it's taken exception to being forced to be different, heck, I know I would!!

I finally rung my Orthodontist and discussed the whole thing about my appointment this time being two days earlier than all my others - this is explained better in previous blog entries. Anywho, he told me that he was happy for me to wear both set 8 and set 9 for 13 days instead of 14, since my progress is so good. Now, I got excited at this! You un-invisalign people probably won't understand, but two days is a huge difference to treatment time, considering if you don't wear your aligners for a minimum of 20 hours a day you may need time added on! So in my book, two days taken off for "good behaviour" is swell!!

I am really starting to notice the differences in my bottom teeth, they seem much straighter now! But in other news, I am struggling to find a good whitening toothpaste, any suggestions? Even though I am brushing my teeth sometimes 5x a day, they refuse to look any whiter or cleaner - I think I may have to shell out for a professional whitening when my treatment is done, since I am so obsessed with "perfect teeth".

Stay tuned people, there is always more teeth-ramblings to come!!

Faith :)

Half way through treatment on bottom teeth!!!!

Just a quickie here to keep yall updated - I am as of today half way thrrough my Invisalign treatment for my bottom teeth!!! This seems like a huge victory for me, I have managed to stick with something for this long (Wish I could say the same about going to the gym :( )

So far set 7 has been very uneventful - I have had hardly any pain or discomfort and on the Friday night (the next day after changing) I was even able to eat crackling with my pork roast I cooked for ourselves and our business partners. I know all this is something to be happy about, but for me, as you have real before, PAIN = PROGRESS, so I feel a bit left out!

Anyway guys stay tuned in for next time - hopefully I will have more excitement to share with you!!

Faith :)

Changing to set 7

Hi everyone!

My goodness, it's been a whole 12 weeks since I got my first set of Invisalign Aligners! Time seems to have gone so fast. I always thought it would be the opposite, since you are counting in two week periods, but the time has just shot past! I am changing into my 7th set of aligners tonight after dinner, and I really can't wait for the pain - I know that sounds bazaar, but for me, pain = progress now! (Wish my brain thought similar of the time I should be spending at the gym but not!)

Thank you to all my avid readers, I started off this blog feeling like the only person in existance to be dealing with Invisalign to correct my crooked teeth, but through the magic ofthe internet, I now have a humble six followers (you know who you are!) and quite a lot of page views. Big kudos here to www.answers.yahoo.com who helped me spread my blog-seed while answering Invisalign questions, and to Facebook also - I've been updating my status whenever I write a new post (well, you would certainly know this if you are a facebook user, thank you for not blocking me haha!)

I have come to a bit of a dilemma with the dates surounding my aligner changes. When I went to my ortho last, he gave me 4 sets, instead of three, which is great, but there were no appointments for a Thursday in 8 weeks time, so I had to take a Tuesday. This now means, well, I don't exactly know what it means, but anyway, I have two less days of treatment, since my ortho always get me to "wear" my newest set he gives me, so he can check if it's progressing ok. So, does this mean that with set 9 I wear them for 12 days instead of the 14? Or if for sets 8 and 9 I wear them for 13 days each? A bit confusing in my book. Also, this means (and it couldn't have been avoided but it still stinks a bit) that I have to do my hour long trip to Kerikeri (and the hour back) twice in one week, as on the Friday of the same week I have a wedding to be an awesome bridesmaid at! Gunna be an expensive week, lucky my car is economic(ish) and a good runner! I would hate to have to take Josh's holden, for example!

So I better tell you about set 6, what happened since my last post on day 4. Answer: nothing remarkable. I put them in. I take them out. I brush, floss and rinse, and put them back in. Although, after being so happy about not having a crack in set 5, guess what I got in set 6? Thank you, universe. Not. It was a real pinchy one this time, got a few tastebuds caught :(

Now I will of course keep you updated on the progress of set 7, but for now, I have to cut this one not-so-short, before I waffle anymore (I thought my school-exam-waffling days were over!!)

Have a good day everyone, thank you for tuning in, and be sure to stop by again soon!

Faith xx

Aligner 6, Week 12, Day 4

Ha, how do you like the precise name of this blog entry? Not usually like me aye!

This set of aligners is still quite sore to remove, especially on one of my side teeth on the top, I guess it's really moving then!

Just thought I would confess to my online virtual conscience about what I did in the weekend that wasn't so great...

A couple of times, (once, we went to get some gormet pizza and ended up having the most bestest and yummiest white chocolate and cream daquiri, and again, when we did chocolate tasting) I wasnt near my toothbrush carry bag thingy and so just rinced my mouth and popped my aligners back in. Actually, no, that was just with the chocolate tasting, the cocktails made me not even take the silly things out, which by the way, feels horrid, you can just feel the liquid going into the aligners and just know it will spell out cavities. But in both cases I was quick to do my routine brush and floss as soon as I was in the car...

Anyway, I thought it was high time to give you some photos as updates, so here goes!

I don't know if you can tell much difference between the two close ups - I don't know if even I can, but friends who haven't seen me in a while reckon my teeth are moving, so I guess I just have to believe them!

Original photo - First set of aligners

Today, Aligner 6, (Week 12, Day 4) Notice any difference?



This was about a month ago, see, they are pretty invisable, with the exception of the "bumps"




Anyway, that's it for me today, have a good day yall, catch up with you next time, online, and possibly in my pyjamas....

Aligner set 6

Hello hello hello!!

Just thought I would update you on my progress and what not and share with you a little mishap I had last week.
First, I will talk about the pain and progress. Yesterday I changed to set 6. And it hurts!!! Well only one one tooth, and its the same tender pulling sensation as I describe in my other posts. Not unbearable, but still not the nicest feeling in the world. I do have a mistake to correct, I am not half way through treatment for my bottom teeth just yet, I still have three weeks to go. I have no more shaving on the bottom teeth, and around set 16 on the top I get all of those teeth shaved. I have been good aparently, so I got given 4 sets of aligners yesterday instead of three.

Ok, my whoopsie. Well I can say that I successfully avoided a dilemma by not, by some miracle, being a fairy elephant and stamping on them. I put them on the bench, and one of my lovely kittehs decided it would be fun to knock them off coz I wasnt paying him loves. Anyway, I didnt realise, and went to the bench to put them back in..... WHERE ARE THEY!!??  So I got down on my hands and knees and combed the kitchen floor for INVISABLE plastic on a whiteish lino floor. Thankfully I found them before I stood on them, what would have been so bad.

So, as ever, please contact me if you have questions etc. And follow mr if you think it's worth it. I am off to open my package from Supre that just arrived :D :D

Loves!!!
Faith

Updates

Hi everybody that is dilligent enough to keep reading my teeth related ramblings time after time. I trust that you are all well and happy in which ever country you are in. I see I have some views from Finland and China, HI!!!!

Last night I changed into my 5th set of aligners. Half way through this set, I will be exactly a quarter of the way through treatment for my top teeth and half way for my bottom teeth. I haven't noticed too much difference, but BY CRIKEY this set makes my teeth very very tender. One offending tooth in partiular, being my one on the bottom right which is waaaay out of line still. Very tender when I remove the aligners to eat and what have you, and for the first half an hour or so after i put them back in. Also I have changed to soft food for the first few days, to the dissapointment of Josh, who won't be getting nice crisp potatoes with this Sunday's roast, and to me too, who won't be eating crackling :(

If you are that way inclined, please send a prayer for Leanne, my friend who is suffering the effects of getting all four wisdom teeth out at one time. Poor girl hasn't eaten in three days and the meds make her throw up anyway.

Be sure to stay tuned in for an update sometime within the next two weeks :) FOLLOW me! ;)

Tooth pain and tenderness

Good Morning everyone (Just)

Just thought I'd update yall on my teeth.

Everything is going well, fine and dandy, except my teeth are so bloody sore!! Like really tender to touch or eat crunchy things, and this is 4 days in to my newest set. And on day three, in the morning, I noticed a huuuge split in my top aligner, towards the back, behind my 2nd and last button on that side. So I was like FML this is going to break before I even reached one week, which is still possible actually but I choose not to think about it.

I have noticed myself noticing other people's teeth alot more that is probably healthy. People who I thought had nice teeth, now I look at them and can see flaws. Which isn't good really.

Anyway, work calls, follow me!!!

A punch to the face

Hi everyone out there who may or may not be reading this.

Just letting you know, I changed my aligners last night. All went well, it wasn't painful at all to be honest. Just tight. And they feel so nice and new!!! By the way, please please PLEASe invest in some kind of box (shoe box etc) to put your old aligners in, in order, coz it can get soo confusing! I stared at my lot for a looong time trying to remember what was what and what I was up to.

In the night, my partner nicely managed to uppercut me in the face, and so my teeth are real sore now, but they are fine, no damage done.

Back to work for me everyone, please remember to follow if you like my blog. New pics will be coming sometime, but there isn't much change so far, that I can see anyway - maybe coz I look at my teeth like 10 times a day...?

Faith :)

the 0 - 5 food revelation

Hi All

I just thought I would share with you some facts on hunger, that I was reading on a website the other day (can't for the life of me find which one now). I guess I'm feeling guilty from eating chips and chocolate this morning (hard day at work) so I am repenting in the form of making others see the light.....

Hunger - Hunger is a physical pain or a feeling, not an urge or a craving. Telling the two apart is simple; after time a craving goes away. Hunger does not.

The 0 - 5 revelation.
on a scale of 0 to 10, how hungry/full are you right now? 0 being "I am actually dying of starvation", 3 being "on the edge of hunger", 5 being STAISFIED (take note of this one), 7 being "full" and 10 being "stuffed."

Theory is (from this website I can't find), that you should only eat when you are at 1, and stop at 5. SATISFIED is different from FULL. A food portion should be the size of your fist. Look at your fist bunched up. Are you thinking, "sureley I will keel over if I only eat that much!?" Well, your stomach, low and behold, is the size of your fist. So, you can eat and eat, but that stretches your stomach, meaning, you don't actually need that much.

SO, following this revelation - I have tried to eat to only 5, and eat when I am only 1. So far, so good.... if you count going from 1 to 5 in two packets of chippies and 2 chocolate bars. Whoops. What can I say, hard day at work today, I nearly did my rag at the computer several times.

Maybe this will challenge some people into eating more healthily and a bit less. The more I think about my stomach all stretched, the less I wonder why my pants button had the tendacy of popping off mid walk/sit/stretch/bend.

P.S My teeth are going great, thanks for asking :P

Progress

I am so happy with my progress - especially since yesterday was National Roast Day, apparently, and, as I have had my aligners in for almost two weeks now, my teeth aren't tender, and finally, FINIALLY, I could eat the crackling - crackling isn't fun when you have to suck it.

I'm still getting a split on every aligner, in the same place, being between my right front tooth and the one next to it (to the right). My orthodontist says it is because of the way I am removing them ,but, there is only one way I can remove them, and I be really gentle now on purpose.

Also, some info for yall, if you get a split in your aligner. If it's a straight split and not gaping like a V, it's fine to keep going. If it's a V, an open split, cut the aligner right through at the split, and insert it as two pieces for the time you have remaining. I had to ask about this as I was going away and my previous aligner, which I had to take with me incase I lost my current ones, had a big V in it.

Anyway, I am changing my aligners on Thursday, so 4 days away, and I'll keep you updated :D

Progress - Aligner #3

Hi Everyone
Well I promised to write after my trip away, and so I am!
The day before my trip I went to the orthodontist and got my teeth grinded a bit more, and got given three sets of aligners and made another appointment for in 6 weeks time. I was a bit worriedd about putting the aligners in during the day and having to take them out for eating sooner than I would if I had put them in before I went to bed, but it really wasn't that much of a deal, I got home, I was hungry, I took them out, I ate, I brushed and flossed, and put them back in. Easy as.
So, the next day, 7 hours and three flights later, I suprised my brother for his birthday. It was lovely to see him after two years and we did lots of fun things, such as: mini golf (x2), dinner at a restaurant, lunch at restaurants (x2) a trip to Kaikura and saw a seal colony (sooo cute) and saw the snow on the mountains, it's so pretty down there. Was great to bond with him. I must say I was a bit naughty Invisalign wise as I wasnt always close to amenities and a few times just flossed and them put them back in, but as soon as I was home I would give them the old 1 - 2.
A weird thing I have noticed - some people on their own blogs say about their aligners smelling nasty - well, anything would if you dont clean it enough, its basically collecting all the crap your teeth would if they are uncovered, but, anywaaaaay, mine smell like bleach when I pull them out of my mouth. Like swimming pools!! Weird or what???
So far I have gone 5 days without a crack, and the pressure isn't even on the pain register, I'm very happy. But not so as I found out the beautiful price of $3500 was only the beginning. Yup, total cost is $7000NZD. Eek!!!! Mind you, spare a thought for my friend Leanne, who has to get all 4 wisdome teeth out before her treatment, as they are growing wrong and pushing on her teeth.
Also, be it just my eyes, but, I think, that one of my bottom teeth is alot straighter already. I guess that could work, what do you think? I'm in week 5 of 22 weeks for the bottom teeth.
Hope my post has been informative, stay tuned!

A bit of a whoopsie!

Hi everyone! Ok well my 2nd set of aligners are hanging in there, no more cracks, and I have one week to go until I change them. My work will hate me, as, next Thursday I have half the day off to go and get the 3rd set fitted, and then, Friday and Monday I will be away as I am flying to the south island, Blenheim in fact, to suprise my brother for his 40th birthday. So don't tell him!!!! OK!!!

Anyway, my whoopsie: Yesterday I went for some job training, three hours worth, and I was so rushed and nervous before I left, that after I ate my afternoon tea, I brushed my teeth and ran out the door. I was about 10 minutes into my training when I realised I DIDNT HAVE MY "TEETH" IN!! Arghhhh!!! It felt so odd!! So I went the 3 hours feeling sooo guilty and hoping nothing bad will happen, but managed to calm myself down by thinking that my teeth do't know the difference between taking them out due to forgetfulness or due to a dinner party. Except at a dinner party, my stomach sure knows the difference!

I got home and ate dinner (thank heavens for slow-cookers, or I'd have to leave my man to cook. Not that he's bad at it, but he works so hard already) and then clicked my aligners in and I could feel the pressure already, I thought "wow" so they still work!!

Here's hoping I don't take my 3rd set of aligners out and the flight attendant whisks them away with my food remains... Thats's if they feed you on a plane jouny over only 1 hour and 20 minutes? I wouldnt know, last time I went on that trip was over 5 years ago! Anyway, I will keep you updated about my third set and my little holiday after I get back I suppose. Happy browsing!!!

Get Crackin....

Well well well. Exactly three days into my 2nd set of aligners (yesterday) I was happy as Larry and couldn't complain what-so-ever, until.............. Yes you guessed, I found a crack. And in the same place as the first one last time round, just on the opposite side. So now I'm worrying that I will get more cracks and not last my two weeks as I have 10 days to go as of today. The weird thing is is that I have had no trouble getting them out at all, so I don't know what exactly is going on! I am so happy with my treatment, but a lot less so with the aligners themselves. Maybe it's because of my buttons? Who knows? I am going to see my ortho on the 28th (also my brothers 40th birthday, love you bro!) and no doubt I will chat with him about my concerns.

Apart from the cracks, my treatment is progressing well, although, I got quite sad on Friday night when I was offered a lolly and couldn't chew it..... I improvised by sucking the flavour off it and then handing it to my boyfriend to eat for me :D sorry hunny.

Aligner set #2

Hey everyone!!
Last night I changed my aligners for the first time - I am seriously glad as my number 1 ones were waaaay past their use-by date, so munted and yucky! I made sure I ate heaps, anticipating that I may notb  able to get them off for breakfast. Yummy beef cassarole for dinner and banana choc chip cake and jellytip icecream for pudding, mmmmmmmm :)

Anyway, I brushed and flossed and rinsed and jammed them in, holy cow, they felt great! All new and smooth and a bit squeaky and I could REALLY feel the pull on my teeth. So I went to bed and woke up with a wet pillow - DRIBBLED AGAIN!!! yuck.

This morning I took painkillers and then half an hour later decided to take them out for breakfast - and it was super easy! I guess I know how things work better now! My teeth arent sore like what I talk about in my posts from my first set of aligners, rather, they feel like they are being pushed up into my gums???? But it's a good, productive feeling in any case, because I know they are doing their thang!!!

Ok and I have a naughty confession to make to you all - if I want an energy drink or I'm having some wines or whatnot - as long as the liquid is clear or close to clear - I dont talk my aligners out. After every glass I rinse my mouth really REALLY thoroughly with water and when I'm home I have a big frantic "righting my wrongs" scrub, floss and rinse.

Just another funny point: if you are going to get invisalign, stock up on toothbrushes!!! I worked out that I use my home toothbrush 4x a day. That means, in a week, I will have used that toothbrush 28 times. Thats the same amount as some people do in a month! So every week or two weeks, maybe one and half, I have to change my toothbrush because it gets soooo frayed and flogged out!! Like I've been using it for 6 months, it's crazy!!!!!

That's all folks, tune in next time for some more Invisalign fun! P.S. KAT IF YOU KNOW WHERE WE ARE DRINKING TONIGHT, TEXT ME!!! WE FEEL LIKE BEING SOCIABLE FOR A CHANGE.

Not long until Aligner #2

Hi everyone in Cyberspace! How are you all today?
Just letting you know I'm counting down the days until Thursday (Today's Tuesday), which is when I change my aligners for the first time! Bring on Aligners #2!!! I'm actually nervous, I have a feeling it will be rather sore, and I'll have another couple of days of taking painkillers before every meal and every time I remove them, and breaking more fingernails and Outie tools trying to rip them out. Oh the joy! I'm changing them on Thursday night so hopefully by Friday morning I won't be as sore :) I will definitely keep you updated :D
Peace yall
Faith :)

Cracks Ahoy!

After I found the major crack in my top aligner, I managed to get hold of the ortho the next day, he told me that I could stop wearing this set on this Thursday instead of next, since three weeks on the first one is something he's started recommending but it doesnt really matter. Lucky he said this, coz now, between my upper and lower aligners, I now have FIVE cracks. WTF. They don't feel too strong really to me, and I have been very careful taking them off since the first crack. My ortho says that maybe he will have to remove a few of my nine buttons and put them on later down the road.
In other news, my good friend Leanne got proposed to by her awesome man Mike on her birthday on Fiday night at a Thia restaraunt in the presence of myself and my man Josh, soooo cuteeeee!!!! Tear jerker!!
And on Saturday I masquaraded as a fairy for a kids birthday party! :)

ANOTHER Crack

OK, just a quickie here, just thought I'd inform my blog world that my top aligner as another crack in it, all the way down the back to the bottom of one of my front teefs :( Typically I noticed it 30 minutes after the ortho closed, so I have to wait until tomorrow to ring him. Unless I'm paranoid and feeling things (or not) it feels like my top aligner has stopped pulling my teeth altogether. And today is my one week anniversary of having these 1st aligners, and I have to wear them for three weeks total, but I think they will fall apart waaaaaaaaaaaaay before them.

:(
:(

Professional Aligner Remover

Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!
Ok so I'm really good at removing my Invisalign Aligners now. Like: *click crunch click click click DONE* I even did it in the middle of PackNSave just to show someone. Kind of gross coz it was all spitty, but, awesome huh? I can definately feel my teeth moving, I'm pretty stoked :)

Behold, a crack

Just letting you know I am able to remove the aligners without too much trouble, all is well. One toothie is very wobbly and sore to touch, but it's getting better :)
One thing I have noticed is that the left side of the top aligners doesnt fit onto my rare teeth, upon closer inspection we can see a split in it, it between the teeth, just after the back button. I know this can sometimes happen, and it's probably from me figuring out how to remove them right. I'm worried it will break as I do have to use quite a bit of force to get them out, and even if I wore this set for 2 weeks instead of three, there's still a long while to go.

Those fingernails aren't mine, they're my dads. Signs of a diesel mechanic right thuurr.

Explanations

Good morning everyone... (Good Morning Faith) How is everyone today? (Good thank you Faith)
Good, coz I have some explaining to do. If anyone needs the bathroom, go now, OK? Anyone? Good.

I realised last night that I didnt eplain too much of the procedure, which isn't helpful for those of you who are thinking about getting Invisalign.

When I went to the ortho yesterday, first he fitted his Invisalign mold, which is essentially the same as the real thing but thinner and more brittle. This he used to figure out where exactly to place my nine buttons. He first gave the offending teeth a quick clean and then rubbed a mild acid on them, to burr the surface of the teeth he was attaching them to. Then they blobbed little bits of whiteish goo to my teeth, put the Invisalign molds over it and shaped it with tweezers, then cured it with a blue light that made a whirring noise. Done. Easy as pie. Mmm pie.
Then Mr Rubber Glove Hands got a little thingy and shaved one tooth on either side. He put glasses on me, and the nurse lady was fanging away with the suction. Not pleasant, but not sore or uncomfortable.

Then it was time to fit them, which took a while, and grunting from both me and him (as he pushed down hard). I was out the door smiling.

Last night, I couldn't get my top aligner off for dinner, or to brush after, or before going to bed, so it stayed on, as well as the bottom one, as they do, for 22 hours a day. During my sleep I dribbled so much!!!! I guess my face isn't used to the intruders in it. This morning I took some painkillers and managed to pull both aligners out first try, and stuffed myself full of breakfast so I wouldnt have to eat until lunch. The worstbit of the whole thing is that my teeth are real sensitive and feel wobbly, and when the aligners are out on one side, the teeth get pushed around a bit, and it huuuuuuuuurts. But you don't leave it lilke that for long.

Anyway, this was a huge post, hopefully keep you reading till my next one, it may be a few days, since the eventfulness has now passed.

Love, light and happiness to all my blog stalkers!!!

Keeping Me In Line (Aligner #1)

So, today I went to my ortho and got my first set of aligners fitted!!! I had to get one tooth “shaved” on either side, (0.1 of a millimetre, and he will shave them more when I see him next, in 5 weeks) and nine buttons. Yes, NINE. Getting the aligners fitted didn’t hurt in the slightest, once they were clipped in, I felt instant pressure on a few of my teeth. I have to wear this first set for three weeks, then I change to set number two, and from then on, it’s two weeks each set. I have 22 sets on top, and 14 on the bottom. So, that's almost a year's worth of treatment.

My ortho said that these were one of tightest lots he’s ever fitted, which worried me, as I was already getting hungry (I was too nervous to eat a big breakfast) and don’t have much fingernail height left (from nervous biting). Anyway, the appointment took an hour, and I wasn’t in too much pain after so we had a walk around and did some shopping. I was told I can eat with them in for the day if they don’t want to come out, and if I can’t get them out tomorrow morning, to call my ortho and go down there, he can take my buttons off so it’s easier.

I was sooo hungry on the way home I thought I was going to faint, so we got some hot chips, and I was eating them like a hungry seagull! Gulp gulp gulp without chewing!! When I got home, I tried to get them out, to clean my teeth since chips had got in under them (GROSS). Well, what a mission! My Outie tool I bought broke first try, SHAME ON THEM. The freight was 10x more than the product when I bought them online from the USA. I drunk hot water to loosen them, and after much swearing and panicking, I tugged them out.  Found they hurt the most when they are half out, and pushing my teeth weird ways, and when I first clip them back in.

I look some photos for yall, so have a looksie, excuse the horrid face I have to pull to show you all my teeth! Oh, for those of you who worry about the pain, I had one painkiller and one anti-inflammatory and I was ready to roll.

So exciting!!

They really aren’t that visible, even with the buttons. My partner said 7, on a scale of 1 to 10, for invisibility (10 being invisible to the point of querying existence.) He also said, on a scale of one to Nigel Thornberry, I am rather dashing...... Gotta love him. I rung my dad when they were freshly in, and he said that I didn’t sound in too much pain, so he will ring them and tell them to make it worse, since he’s paid so much, he wants to hear me whinge I guess.

Anyway, that’s a wrap for me, my invisible readers, Over and Out, and look at my photos! And click FOLLOW if you like this!!

Until next time,

Faith J

My teeth as they are normally

Here you can see some of the buttons glued on, I have 9 in total.

My first set of aligners.

Invisalign Aligners #1 in place.

With Bells On

Just a quickie today....

The receptionist at the practice rung today to remind me to be there at 10am tomorrow. LIKE I HAD FOROTTEN. I told her I'd be there will bells on, and she said that she can't wait to see them, soooo I'm contemplating wearing a huge bell or something just to be strange.....

I'll let you know how tomorrow goes as soon as I'm near a computer. I see that I am getting quite a few page views; for those of you who are reading this and finding what I'm saying interesting, educational or downright stupid but you want to keep reading, please please please click "follow" so I don't feel that I am wiriting this for thin air. Not that it matters, I mean, when I'm home alone I'll quite happily have full-on one-sided conversations with my cats......

Terror Building

I'm hungry. Hungry hungry hungry.
With only today and tomorrow as my only Invisalign free days left, I'm starting, well, actually rather CONTINUING (but more fervently) to panic a bit and seem to be having dentist-influenced dreams at night.

I'm really sure it's nothing to be afraid of, buuuuut, the thought of Nice Dentist Man scaling the outside edges of my teeth with a little dremmel type tool while I wear safety glasses to stop crap going in my eyes and craning my neck to watch a movie with no sound, Peruvian subtitles, that may or may not be Indiana Jones.

The only thing I'm really looking forward to is splashing out for Maccas for breakfast (DREAM BIG!) before it's dentist time. Hopefully I can stuff myself so much that I won't be hungry until dinner and only have to deal with the terror of taking my Invisalign out once that day..... But that won't happen - everyone knows I'm Miss Piggy's sister....

STAY POSITIVE WOMAN, me and only me is responsible for wanting this, so me and only me should STOP WHINING and grow a pair :)

Until next time, invisible readers,

Faith

PS, this isn't me, but this is what my mouth will be looking like within 72 hours!

Graze and Amaze

So, *sorry boss man* I am writing this post at work, it 9:15am, and I have so far eaten the following:
Crispy noodles (actually had to spit some out, had a mouth full when the phone rang just before)
A coffee (well, it's cold today, I needed warming up)
Some nuts and raisens

I don't really eat set meals, apart from dinner. Rather, I graze during the day. I realised today, four days from getting my aligners fitted, that this needs to stop, or I will be pulling them out, eating, brushing, putting them in, every hour or so. I EAT SO DAMN MUCH!!!!!

I feel very sorry for my poor poor body having to adjust to this :( It's not it's fault. And, another thing; next week is a friend's 21st dinner and drinks. Do I pull them out, skull some wine, brush, floss and put them back in? Or keep them out? Seems a bit lose lose to me! Lucky I dont drink much!!! Maybe this will make me start????

I'm getting real nervous that I won't be able to get my aligners out and I will die of starvation - quite a real fear if you see how much I eat :P

Reassurance, please people!

Stop, ClinCheck time

So, I decided it was about time I worked out how to upload videos to this thing, and you can tell I was successful, here are my ClinChecks!! You can really see my "fangs" move into shape! Excitey! Also, bought some Outies off of Amazon.com, the freight was horrific but I think they will be worth it, since I cant guarantee my nails will be able to support ripping these things out several times a day, as I have a tendency to chew my nails. Whoops. 

Slow progression

Well, I got a call yesterday from my ortho's office lady, telling me that my Invisalign aligners had FINALLY arrived. Coincidentally, I missed the call, coz I was brushing my teeth. Anyway, I rung back, to make my appointment, and they told me the closest date was over two weeks away. So I said NO. I have been waiting twice as long as any other cat has had to wait, so I am not waiting another two weeks. Call me pushy, but it worked - I'm booked in to get my aligners fitted on Thursday, only six days away, and if that wasn't good enough (which it still actually isn't) I'm top priority on the list if someone cancels an appointment with more than an hours notice.

Cost wise, apart from the initial consult fee of around $60.00 which was a loooong time ago, since it took me forever to get my A into G, my Invisalign treatment looks to be costing only $4000.00NZD. Well, we were told to pay $1500 when the ClinChecks came through, but that only turned out to be $1000, and we have another $2500 to go. I'm thinking that's very reasonable. Bear in mind, I didn't "shop around" like people do in big cities, as this was the only clinic in the area offering Invisalign.

I do have a few questions, and if I post them here, maybe it will help me to remember to ask the nice man with the icky tasting gloves - or maybe someone will actually read thing thing and answer them for me beforehand???

1) Can I wear these at the gym, silly question I know, but I'm just wondering about how fun exercising will be when I have plastic in my mouth. I only drink water anyway, no sport drink things.
2) Will this harm the progress of my bottom wisdom teeth cutting through? I was told they don't need to be removed for the treatment, but I'm thinking maybe the aligners will irritate the raw gum at the back of my mouth from them?
3) Can I whiten my teeth while using them? I read on another blog somewhere that a lady was doing it, but is it special whitening or just any old chemist stuff?

That's about it for today, I actually should use work's computer to do WORK. Please please please let me know if anyone is reading this...... I'm getting nervous about getting my aligners fitted, and would sure like some reassurance!!!

Here's me just over a year ago, with my cheeky fangs poking through...

A weirdo stockpiling

I just had a thought to share with you my recent trip to the supermarket with a friend.

We had planned a movie night, and needed the junk food to go with it. I also needed to buy some toothpaste etc, to stock up for when I got Invisalign, while I had the money. My partner put in a request for liquorice and chocolate.

We walked up to the checkout, Leanne with her popcorn, bikkies, wine, lollies and chippies, and me with a huge armful of toothpastes, toothbrushes, floss, denture cleaner, chocolate, and liquorice. Well, the look the checkout lady gave me! It was like "honey, I suggest not even buying chocolate if you are that anal over oral hygiene and tooth decay." Maybe in future I will buy the bits and pieces one or two at a time, in order to live life more inconspicuously. 

Another thing, this morning dad asked after my Invisalign, wondering why they hadn't arrived yet. I told him they must be still on the boat... "A BOAT!? THEY COME ON A FLAMING BOAT? HOW BIG ARE THE FLAMING THINGS? GIVE ME THEIR NUMBER!!!!" Yes, certainly, so nice dentist man can turn into torturous dentist man when I visit him next.

A game called "waiting"

After finding out that my wisdom teeth can stay in, and feeling wiser for it (punny!) I make my next appointment to get photos and moulds taken of my chompers, so they can be sent to America and Invisalign can do their thang promptly and efficiently and send back my aligners. Hmm. So, after three minutes of goo on my bottom teeth and gloved fingers in my mouth, my ortho tells me to relax as he pulls the bottom moulds out. RELAX! It feels like he’s trying to pull my head off! Thankfully the bottom mould turned out good, so he moved onto the top. With gooier goo. After another three minutes of goo running down my throat and a strange man’s fingers touching my tongue, he pulls the top mould out only to find it didn’t work so good.

Time for round too, and what do you know, the same thing happens again. By now I have a grumpy partner sitting in the waiting room, a stomach full of blue goo, and a sore jaw. Thankfully it was third time lucky, and I was left to sit and pick out the blue gunk from my teeth on the trip home.

Waiting, waiting, waiting. After a month (It’s meant to take around that long) I rung up to ask where my aligners were. Long story short, my ortho sent the images in the wrong file format, and the people in America didn’t tell him until he inquired as to the whereabouts of my aligners as I did to him. He sends the pics again in a different format (why can’t they do it themselves over there?) and two weeks later I received an email containing my ClinCheck videos. Wow! To see my teeth move before my eyes and know what they will look like after was such a huge buzz! I was anticipating getting my aligners the next week. 

Two weeks later, however, I hadn’t heard from them still, so I rung. My aligners were on a boat, heading to New Zealand as we speak, the lady told me, and they will be here very soon. Another two weeks pass. This morning I rung them again, still nothing. 

Has anybody had a similar experience? I am of course “high priority” when they come in. Is it always this slow or am I just special?

Me: Oh, the crookedness!

In the beginning....

Let me introduce myself as Faith. I am from New Zealand, and I am pursuing Invisalign as treatment for my crowded teeth. As a child, my teeth were blessed (and still probably are), as, apart from the crowding – upper and lower – I have not had one filling in my life. No dentistry what so ever. No teeth pulling. No injections, no dribbly lips and numb gums. Needless to say, since I have never been in the hot seat like many of my friends, I am completely phobic of dentists, dental procedures and the smell of dentist. Last time I saw a dentist (before Invisalign) I was 13, and I bit him. I’m 21 now, and still have the nasty rubber glove taste in my mouth.

Many times as a teen I was offered conventional braces by my parents. Dad actually tried to force me, but to no avail. When I hit 13 and started a new school, people with braces were teased, so I wasn’t going to get braces!!! Being already quite unsocial and bookish, I didn’t want to add reason to be teased more.

In February, my father asked me what I wanted for a 21^st present. A holiday? A new TV or something? Jewelery? I answered INVISALIGN!!!! He said, “Invisa-what?” and so I described to him what it was and he seemed interested. He always says “Surely your teeth aren’t that bad! Giz a look” and then I open my mouth, and he said “oh right, now I remember.” Gee, thanks dad.

So, I was nervously excited and had dad to hold my hand at the orthodontists, which is an hour’s trip away, while I had my first consult. My orthodontist is a lovely, gentle man, who takes time to listen to me, so I wasn’t so scared after the first few minutes. He says I’m the perfect candidate for this treatment, and estimates around eight months as the time it will take.

I come away from the appointment very excited, and thinking things will happen fast and soon I will have Invisalign. I then had to make an appointment to see the scary dentist that specialises in pulling teeth, as my wisdom teeth are cutting through and they may need to be removed. After more rubber gloves in my mouth and some xrays, I am told they are fine to stay in or come out, what ever I please. As they aren’t too sore, I choose for them to stay. Mainly because I’m a wuss and would it require a two hour drive to the closest city for general anaesthetic to get all four removed at the same time. Not my cuppa tea thanks mate.