Thursday, January 10, 2008

January Updates

I've had my attachments for 10 days now. Well at least five of the six attachments. I've been back to the orthodontist 2 times now to have one stubborn one glued back on. I wasn't feeling very happy about the attachments at first because it feels like they are really obvious. I've been hiding my smile and my husband pointed that out to me. So, I decided to let go and just smile. The way they look is certainly less obvious than metal braces but still noticeable in my opinion. I still haven't had anyone question me about them, but then I was thinking that it's probably one of those "Oh crap, my friend has broccoli stuck in her teeth do I tell her and embarrass her or let her walk around like that all day?" sort of situations. LOL, sometimes I think about what I think other people are thinking way too much. (did that make sense? I wonder what you are all thinking about that statement...) :)


Anyway, the bottom line is that I am getting over my self-consciousness of the attachments. I think it's important for people to know about the attachments. Invisalign doesn't make this obvious in their advertisements. It looks like a little piece of white rice and it's attached to the teeth that your orthodontist wants to rotate. The Invisalign trays have little bumps in them for the attachments to fit into. It makes taking them off a bit difficult, especially for the first couple of days.


I am currently on Upper Tray 3 of 16 and Lower Tray 3 of 15. I change them on Monday the 14th. My orthodontist is already talking about refinements. For those of you that don't know, they are another series of aligners that are made after the first series to correct the teeth that didn't quite end up were they should have.

And even though I refused to smile for the first week with my attachments, I will gladly post a photo for you to see what they look like. :)


17 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think that you are thinking way too much about the attachments because they are HARDLY noticeable. Really. And I'm just a stranger who can be brutally honest! I've been reading yours and others blogs because I'm about to get invisalign. Going for my consultation next tuesday, hoping to have my first set of trays by end of january! Thanks for your blog, especially the video, really eased my mind about some concerns I had!!!

Sharon said...

You have to keep in mind that I took that snapshot with a camera that has an on camera flash (so the light is coming straight on). When the light is above you, the attachment casts a harder shadow under it making it a bit more noticeable. I do realize that I'm a tab paranoid about them and am venting a bit about it here. Thanks for sharing your opinion. Best of luck with your Invisalign!

Anonymous said...

Sharon -- ask your orthodontist for horizontal beveled attachments they are MUCH less noticable then the rectangular that appear to be on your aligners.

TheOtherSideOfTheStory said...

Thanks for an update Sharon! I am a wee bit frightened for the buttons. Especially if he puts them on my front two teeth! Yikes.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sharon, I have a quick question for you. Have you noticed any changes in your eating habits? Are there weeks when you can't eat as much because your teeth are sore. Or has eating remained the same? Thanks in advance?

Sharon said...

The most pain that I have is usually after the first day of a new tray. I'm on my 4th tray and I can only remember one of them hurting so much that I ate softer foods for a day. Actually, the fact that you have to take them out to eat, then brush and floss and put them back in affects my eating habits more. It feels like so much work that I now forgo the afternoon and evening snacks. And forget about that midday coffee break! :)

Anonymous said...

just wondering about the attatchments, can they be put on the front teeth? and can they tell you where they are going to be put before you go ahead with having the braces?

Sharon said...

I would imagine that they could put them on front teeth, but I don't know for sure if they do. My ortho allowed me to see the ClinCheck video before getting the trays, so I knew where the attachments were going to be.

Anonymous said...

thanks for replying to my questions, im really quite worried that they mite put the attatchments on my front teeth, you cant see your attatchments but i would imagine i might be able to if they were put on my front teeth. They hadnt even told me anything about attatchments the first ive heard about them was from you. Thankyou

Anonymous said...

I just got mine put on and I didnt find out about the attachments until today! One of the attachments is on my front tooth. I'm kind of bummed about it. It's sort of shady that they don't mention the attachments to you or show any pictures of them before they sell you on the idea. Oh well. I really liked what you wrote about people reacting like you have brocolli on your teeth. Made me laugh, I've been self conscious all day and this just day one. anyway, good blog posting!

Anonymous said...

I found out about attachments just after deciding to get Invisalign. I didn't think I was going to need many because I don't think my teeth are too crooked. But at my ClinCheck I saw them on most of my front top teeth! I didn't expect to have so many!

Anonymous said...

im 13 and my teeth are a little crowded. my dentist says i need braces, and I think i might be a good candidate for Invisalign. It says you should be 14, but if your molars are fully grown, then it will work. I think Invisalign are cool because it is clear. and then i wont be a brace-face! wish me luck :)

Anonymous said...

i have invisalign and they told me that at my next appointment i will be getting attachments.. do you know how long they will be on for? will it be for the rest of the time i have invisalign?

Anonymous said...

im getting mine tomorrowwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww :D:D:D:D:D

Anonymous said...

This is such a great site! I have been to have my first trays put in this morning, I was so excited to finally get them! I was supposed to have my attachments fitted today too, but the trays were SOOOOOOO tight to get on and off (no one mentioned the torture to your nails!). Im going to wear them for a week without the attachments so the trays get a teeny bit looser and then im having them fitted next week when taking them in/out ill be a little easier.
I agree with Sharon that the trays are a little more conspicuous than what I expected, but I dont mind.
Im tempted to keep sucking them...a habit Im gonna have to get out of pretty quick!
So far so good...

Anonymous said...

Hi Sharon. I just came from my orthodontist to pick up my second set of trays (4-6). He put NINE attachments on my teeth (one right next to my front tooth) and I lost my mind. No one ever said anything about attachments! I bursted into tears! To me, they looked like Fred Flintstone teeth and you can't take them off! I made him take them off. It defeated the entire purpose of being invisible! Now, he says all my liners will have all those NINE bumps on them anyway. They feel terrible and to me they look terrible. It now looks like I have clear braces on. It's obvious, not invisible. My advice would be to ASK your doctor about these things. I also don't smile anymore. Sure hope I get over like you did.

Anonymous said...

Do the attachment ever chip and reduce in size? i have them and sometimes i hit it with my tooth brush..has it chipped of a bit for you or are they still fully there?