Tray 2 Complete - Stains and Retainer Brite

Last day for tray two, no cracks this time.

Had to cheat a few times this set because I forgot my toothbrush or was caught without my retainer case.  I feel like a paranoid parent when I have to put my tray in a napkin while eating because of the missing case.  But I feel less timid about drinking and eating because I've gotten a handle on removing the trays.  I do feel naughty when I have to do the quick rinse and replace method knowing that I need to do a proper scrub when I get back to my toothbrush.  Retainer Brite has wen a godsend for little bits and minor stains, but I find that I still need to brush brush my trays every few days to get  plaque out from between the tooth spaces.

Here is a shot of Tray 2.

I'm starting to use a whitening gel with my braces.  More on this on my next post.

Two Weeks Down - Time for Tray 2

Good timing, I cracked part of my upper tray on the same day I am trading out my tray.  Hopefully I won't need to redo Tray 1, but if I do I'll just deal with it.  Apparently one spot where I hook to pull the top tray off developed a stress fracture.  It was really annoying on the car ride home whith my tongue smacking it and snagging the crack.   This is the only day where I won't have worn my tray for 22 hours, I just couldn't take the last hour of the ride home and popped them out.

I took advantage of the reprieve to enjoy some Doritos and a soda...  Speaking of which.  I never realized how much I craved snacky foods until I put these puppies on.  I am drinking a lot more water which is a good thing.

Realized I never posted a shot with me wearing my First Tray so here you go.

And for your pleasure, my cracked upper tray.  The crack is fourth from the right.

Let's see if I can be better with Tray #2.  I took some pain meds and going to sleep while they do their initial adjustment.  They are not terribly uncomfortable, but I'm hoping the ibuprofen will let them set while letting me sleep!

Awkward Moments

Still getting used to popping my Invisalign braces in and out for meals.   At this point they feel fine before I pull them out, but the pressure feeling comes back when I put them back on.   I'm guessing that's my teeth trying to go back to their old spots. 

It's not as annoying as it was the first few days.  My tongue doesn't bump into the ridges like they did, though they do continue to bite part of my cheek when I put my upper tray back in. 

Had my first awkward feeling moment yesterday.   I went out to lunch with an old colleague who I haven't seen in a couple months.  We went to a local dive and I excused myself.  I don't know why I felt it was necessary but I told him "I have to hit the head and remove my teeth" which of course brought on a odd look.  I then explained that I had braces, and they told me they didn't even notice.  That made me feel good, but I wish I did a better job of letting them know.   The awkwardness came back at the end when I told them I needed a moment to go brush my teeth and put my tray back in.  

Not the end of the world, it went pretty well. It was a total of 30 seconds of awkwardness in a 45 minute catchup session.  Just need to keep chugging...

Cheek Biting and a request for a Crowbar.

Seriously... I wonder if I'm going to be dealing with 56 weeks of these things trying to take a chunk of my chubby cheeks every time I put them back on.   The DIET is going well, I have no inclination in anyway to remove my trays unless I absolutely have to.  That and the fact that I still need a crowbar to get the trays off, and yes, I'm removing them from the back to front like you are supposed to.  These don't even have the little protrusions yet.  Growing pains I guess...

On a side note I got a nice Phillips Sonicare toothbrush that I can take with me to clean up after meals.   I'm loving that thing.  It sounds like a high speed drill, but man does it plow through the gunk.  I just got to remember to take the time to make sure I hit every tooth.

Day 1 of Will's Invisalign Journey - The Invisalign Diet

I finally took the leap to get my teeth fixed.  After 40 years of Military Dependent style neglect, they are not horribly crooked, but will require 56 weeks of initial treatment.  That's 28 trays and I just started tray 1.

They are not completely uncomfortable as I feared.  There is a little bit of a ridge on the bottoms that my tongue keeps hitting and I can't stop playing with.  Taking some minor OTC pain meds definitely helped the transition as the first set settled.  I haven't become a pro yet at popping them in and out.

I thought I got all the food out from brushing yesterday after dinner, but apparently not as there was a bit of nastiness waiting for me this morning when I popped my tray out to clean my teeth.   I need to be careful about that, I've heard that it can cause cavities alot faster now there is food being pressed against the teeth if I don't clean it. 

This is also my first real blog, so let's see how well I can stick to this Diet thing.   I know why they call it the Invisalign Diet, after the first day, I've noticed I don't want to snack because I don't want to pop these puppies out and brush all that junk away again.  Likewise there is a little drool action when popping the trays out.  I'm sure it will get better as I become more skilled...