I'm on tray 8! Time is flying! I deliberately stayed in tray 7 a day longer than usual. Days 1 and 2 have been pretty sore for me and I was tired of spending my weekends being uncomfortable. I figure that Mondays are already bad, so... 

Anyway, since I got the attachments on, I've noticed that not every tray feels the same way. Four (especially top) was a real pain in the shark to remove. I thought it was just because the attachments were new... Then tray 5 was easy to get out which led me to believe I had mastered removal. Then tray 6 was even more challenging than 4, so I realized it wasn't just the learning curve of post-attachment life with Invisalign. Tray 7 was more of the same.  The first few days, I almost cried because the frustration of trying to get them out was overwhelming. And now, on tray 8, it feels like tray 5- relatively simple to remove. Even better, there was the usual day one and two "pressure" or uncomfortable feelings. I suspect different ones are having different effects/impacts on my mouth. I do see a different, especially on top. The bottom front teeth ares still pretty crowded but in pictures, I can see how the teeth behind them are getting in line.

When I moved to this tray, I was a little concerned that my teeth weren't tracking correctly.  There were a few that seemed to show a bit more plastic in tray 7. Then, these trays (#8) fit fabulously. I've also noticed that the trays feel lose on the last couple days of wear and the new one almost seems to fit better.

Attachments and IPR

I need to start with a story about a friend who going through Invisalign, too.  The last time she came to visit me, she introduced me to a concept she tried at work during "Shark Week." Basically, you replace every curse word you feel like saying with "shark".  Thus, my appointment on July 18 is when shark got real with my Invisalign treatment.

My first three trays were set up by my orthodontist to have no attachments so I could get used to the aligners themselves before adding the craziness of attachments.

In order to accommodate some scheduling issues on the part of both Dr. P. and me and keep me from spending too long in tray 3,  the tech that met with me during my first appointment recommended I schedule for July 18. So, after wearing tray 3 for only 5 nights (with the AcceleDent), this happened:

Eighteen attachments!  Each blue blob above is a tooth colored "engager" or attachment to help move my teeth to where they need to go. 

The process of getting the attachments was actually fairly simple.  The tech first moved me back in the chair and then inserted a device to hold my mouth open.  Then she had to pull it out and have me remove my trays because they were so invisable, she didn't realize they were there at first.  Anyway, trays out and lip expander thingy back in... Then she used a suction thingy and had me bite down with it to hold it between my front teeth.  Next, she told me she was cleaning my teeth and proceeded to rub something along the outside surface of them. She suctioned a bit more and sprayed some water in, then some air, then did more cleaning type stuff on the outside surface. She advised me to keep my tongue behind my teeth.  As a result, I didn't taste or feel anything with my tongue. I mention this because I remember encountering some pretty nasty tastes when I got my traditional braces on.  Next she pulled the suction doohickey aside and inserted two trays - templates with the attachments - and shoved them really tight into my upper and lower arches.  Then she used a UV device on each tooth with an attachment to cure the adhesive.  She pulled the templates out and did just a little bit of scraping of the excessive adhesive.  Then I noticed something funny behind on of my teeth and she had to pick that out, which went fast, too. She sat me up and had me rinse.

The attachments felt weird when my tongue explored them. Really weird.  Four days later, they still feel strange and one on the lower front really bothers the inside of my lip when I have my trays out to eat. I figure it will keep me compliant. 

But wait, there's more!  Before the attachment procedure started, the tech brought me a one page handout on "slenderizing" or IPR. IPR stands for inter paroxysmal reduction, which is a fancy term for shaving down the sides/edges of teeth to make more room.  This is used as an alternative to extraction and/or surgery when there is crowding and issues with jaw size.  Each red line above represents a spot where part of my tooth was filed using IPR. The orthodontist came in and did all of the IPR called for since I will not see him again until I get to tray 20 or something. The number followed by mm represents the numbers of tenths of a millimeter of tooth removed. A millimeter is about the size of a period at the end of a sentence in 12 point font.  

I'm not gonna lie. The IPR was not fun but it wasn't nearly as terrible as I thought it would be. Dr. P. used manual files and called out for a single, then a double, then a single as he completed the prescribed work. I don't know if this referred to the tools being single and double-sided or single and double width.  In any event, it didn't take long and the most discomfort came from how he had to contort my face to get to some of the areas towards the back of my mouth.  I am usually really weird about filing (nails, etc.) but it wasn't too bad.  I think since I have had a few more unpleasant dental procedures under my belt - like fillings between teeth - this wasn't too bad in the grand scheme of things.

I was provided trays 4-36.  I noticed 37 and 38 don't have attachments. As long as I don't lose an attachment or experience any other complications, I don't go back until early November.

So far I haven't noticed any sensitivity or other issues from the IPR but I do really feel like my teeth moved a LOT with this tray.  It's also a real big pain in the shark to maneuver the upper aligner in particular to remove it to eat. 

Vacation + Invisalign = :-(

The subject says it all... I went on my annual vacation with my husband's family last week. The weather was wonderful and it was relaxing overall, but the Invisalign really out a damper on things. 

I couldn't enjoy beer on the beach and had to turn it down daily.  Daily!! I usually walk to the boardwalk each night for coffee and frozen custard but that was pretty much out of the question.  Two days I only ended up wearing the aligners for about 20 hours. The rest were closer to the optimal time of 22 hours. 

I suppose I could have broken the rules, but I really want to be compliant and hopefully be rewarded with completing my treatment on schedule.  Yes, it was a sacrifice but I told myself that next year, life will be back to normal and I can enjoy all the beer, coffee and frozen custard I want to with straight, beautiful teeth.