2014 has been a big year. A pretty serious relationship ended and a new one began. A new one with myself. READ MORE
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| Life. |
This post is all about my Invisalign experience as I've had a few people ask me what it's like. If you've ever wondered what it was like to get these invisible braces or if it even works or whether the treatment is right for you, read on. If not then ignore this post and I'll see you at my next vlog/haul post instead :) - remember to bookmark the blog so you don't miss a thing!
As part of my new relationship with myself and taking extra special care of my physical and mental states of being, I made the life changing decision to get braces.
I've never really minded my slightly overcrowded imperfect teeth choosing instead to favor my good side in pictures. It wasn't until I started creating videos on Youtube that I noticed just how crooked my teeth were, something I never would have noticed had it not been for the HOURS spent staring at my face in the video editing chair lol.
After much research, I decided on Invisalign as the thought of being single with a metal train track mouth at my (no longer a teen) age was way too much for my ego to bear lol. What?? Don't you judge me lol.
Invisalign works via a series of transparent aligners. You wear them for a minimum of 22 hours a day, only taking them out to eat, drink (unless it's water), and brush & floss. You get a new set every two weeks with each set moving your teeth that little bit more. I've been prescribed 15 sets and I'm only on my first one so by Christmas I should be all done!
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| Aligners from the front |
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| Aligners from the side |
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| Friendly reminder in the case. |
I won't be posting any 'before' pictures until I start to see some movement. Plus with all the surprised faces I've seen when I mention I am now wearing braces, it seems I may have hidden the crookedness very well all these years. I am NOT about to ruin the illusion haha.
I will however share with you guys the pros and cons from my first week of treatment (Tray 1 of 15) for those of you considering starting the treatment.
Pros
- They really are discreet, even with a full smile. No one can see them unless you point them out in the right light.
- You can remove them to eat and drink and brush and floss so no danger of trapped food. Removing them during the first few days of soreness is a Godsend, I can't imagine having permanent braces with that constant pressure and pain and no relief.
- The weightloss. Yes, you heard that correctly. Eating has now become a chore as you have to remove the braces prior and brush and floss your teeth after every meal to keep the braces and your mouth bacteria and therefore stench free. Snacking is no longer worth the effort and I thank my lucky stars I'm as lazy as I am because for once, it's working in my favour! 4kg gone in one week!
Cons
- The pain. The first few days are when your teeth move the most so mine were so so sore. I could only eat soup as chewing solids hurt. The braces also arrived with sharp edges which cut into my inner lip until I went back to the dentist to have them filed down. Now they're fine and with some bonjela everything has healed (SEXY lol).
- The lisp. Good Lord. I'm having to tell people I've got braces in just to excuse my sudden very audible lisp which really defeats the purpose of having invisible braces in the first place. I'm getting used to speaking now so the lisp is much less audible but it's still there and probably will be for the whole treatment.
- Dry mouth and lips. I'm getting through litres of water every day as for some reason, the braces are drying everything out. The drier the mouth, the worse the lisp and the more chapped your lips. Bye bye lipstick, I'll see you guys at Christmas :(. On the plus side, water is good for you so insides are happy.
- Remembering to put them back in. It's happened a couple of times now where I'll finish eating and forget to put them back in meaning my total for the day ends up being around 19 hours instead of the recomended 22 hours wear per day. Time will tell if this will affect anything :-/.
Don't worry, I won't be doing weekly updates as this blog isn't about just Invisialign but I'll try to do regular updates so you guys can keep up if you're interested.
If you have any questions or anything about Invisalign leave them below and if I can't answer them for you, I'll ask my orthodontist on your behalf :)
Love you guys for reading! xxs