Metal Mouth Message Board

I have read some of the bad storys on here and was nervous, though my ortho not only was confident that they should work well with my teeth, he also said if we needed to do traditional braces at the end (after the 9 months), he would do that at no extra cost. He said at most I might have to wear then 3 months.

For me, this is the best case sceanrio. I am in an executive setting and my Invisalign are un-noticable. And if I can do the bulk of it like this and limit the time I might need to wear metal - great. I have been talking about straightining my teeth for a decade. Now I am. So here are some of my experiences:

* The initial molds took 5 minutes each, where "icky", and one had to be done twice. No big deal.
* I waited 6 weeks and came in for a 30 minute appt to try them on and get some training. I had 4 glue bumps added.
* At first they were tight! and the first three days I was worried about the fact that it was a bit painful to take them out and also to eat afterwards. Though considering I was adjusting bones in my head that have been a certain way for 35 years, it all made sense. I also felt at first my bite was off, but that also makes sense (it is! teeth are moving). Though now after 2 weeks, that sensation is gone.
* One added fear that was unfounded. I must have gotten a cold sore on/near side of my tounge first few days, and I was afraif it was from invisalign, and I would always have soreness there. 4 days later it was gone and has been.
* I probably wear mine about 21 hours a days. I take them out for 30 mins in morning to brush clean them (and my teeth), have some quick toast\juice and I am off. I drink coffee with them in (sweet and low). I take them out for an hour for lunch and an hour for dinner, add in brushing time after and before bed and I think 21 hours is pretty easy. I have never been a "snacker", though find it took me a few days to be used to nothing inbetween meals. I lost about 3 or 4 pounds over these first two weeks (nice).
* Now that I have 1 day before next set, I honestly cant tell when I am wearing them and they are very easy to pop out. Only issue is that I occasionally bite down on them (plastic to plastic). Probably just a bad habit that i will stop. Will keep an eye on that.

Overall, I am a BIG BIG fan. I thought I would take them out to lead meetings, though I never do. My speech is only very slightly effected and people can only notice that if I told them in advance I have them in.

Fears? Probably from reading too much on the Internet. Is my biting down going to be TMJ? Will my bite be thrown off in end? I am not too worried about such. We will see.

It is early for me, so I will keep coming back and let you know if I fall off the proInvisalign horse.

Hi jfranche,

Your experience with Invisalign sounds ideal! I think my aligners are more noticable because I have spacing between my teeth. The plastic runs across this space, making them easier to see.

I still feel uncomfortable with the aligners in (well, duh, I have a ton of plastic in my mouth) but am looking forward to perfect teeth. I'm now on aligner no. 8.

Just wanted to tell you about a listserv with many pro-invisalign people. I do feel like the odd one out on that list, since I'm still uncomfortable with the aligners, but I am happy to finally be doing something for myself and getting my teeth fixed! When I first researched Invisalign on the web, I couldn't find any "didn't work" stories about Invisalign. I think it's good to hear the good and the bad. Just shocked to see so many people that it didn't work for here.

I'm sure you'll enjoy this list:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/InvisalignUsers/

Take care and best of luck to everyone with their aligners,
Debbi

Well, I just popped in my second set of invisalign. Ouch. My first set were nice and loose, no pressure this last week+. But this second set SNAPPED in and I feel it. Not painful, just a good amount of pressure. I just took 2 advil and I am sure it will be fine in a day or two.

In a way I like this tight feeling - it feels like progress. Downside is I need to take them out soon to eat (actually now.... here goes). OK, that wasnt too bad since my teeth havent had time to get sore from the new changes.

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Debi, thanks for the reply. Good point on spaces making them more visible. I dont have any spaces, just some crooked teeth, so that probably is why mine are pretty invisible.

OK, I just had my first checkup and all is fine. I had some more spacing (sandpaper) treatment done and got my next three sets of invisaligns. This set (my fourth) didnt feel very tight going in, though it is now three days later and I have a few sore teeth.

So it is week 7 now and I find Invisalign easy. I am probably leaving them out a little longer now then I originally did, and I need to get back on getting them in quicker.

I don't really notice any improvement yet, though I was told in the beginning that the first 6 sets really will just help the crowding, and they wont focus on straighteneing until after there is some space.

All's well so far.

It took quite a few sets for me to notice a change. At least 5 and then it was very minor changes. My first 10 sets or so spent time tilting back teeth this way, pushing them that way, all to make space for the front teeth that were crooked. After that, the next 20 sets turned, pushed and pulled about 4 specific teeth (all the incisors and occasionally the first molars on each side) to where they needed to go, then the last 10 sets just straightened out my front teeth. So I noticed a lot of just a few teeth hurting.

I remember my first set being the worst as far as pain goes. They hurt me for a week while I got used to them. After that, none of the aligners hurt like the first set. Of course, none of the pain from the aligners is anything like havings spaces for metal bands for braces... but thats a whole other story.

I highly encourage you to make sure you wear the aligners as much as possible. Also, make sure to keep your teeth clean. Brush after every meal and floss every night. Doing this will help keep the aligners cleaner longer, so they don't smell as much either. Also, you won't have to clean them as often so they stay completely clear longer.

Keep on giving us updates! I love to hear that Invisaligners are doing well. I think the technology has a really great place in the world of orthodontics, it's just struggling a bit to find it right now.

OK, last time I posted was my 7th week, now I am wearing my 7th set, so I guess I am about 12 weeks into this.

I had a big problem this week. I lost my last set on Wednesday (cafeteria tray) and my Ortho appt to get the next 3 sets wasn't until today, Friday. So after trying to get my appt bumped to no avail, I wore my older set for 2.5 days - and I am paying the price now.

This new set is super tight, though it has been a few hours now and it is starting to feel fine. I dread taking them out tonight, though all should be fine tomorrow.

Beyond that, all is well. He did more spacing them normal this time - using the spacing drill thing instead of the manual sandpaper method. Lately when I eat I feel like my bite is off more then before, which is normal and exptected, though I eat more gingerly then before.

Based on my progress and what I have read, I think Invisalign will get me 90% there and I will do ceramics to finish it off. For me, Invisalign has been a god send, because I NEVER would have done it straight to ceramics... this got me started, and NO ONE notices I have them.

I will come back in a few weeks and post pictures, as I am starting to notice some straightening.