Hello again! I am currently into my sixth week of my Invisalign® treatment plan and I am happy to say things are going well. The most exciting part of the last two weeks has been seeing gradual changes in my teeth and their position. I am now beginning to envisage what my new smile will look like when my treatment is completed. I thought for this post I would go into some more details about how the treatment plan works.
An example of an Invisalign® aligner for an adult.
How does the Invisalign Go Process Work for a patient?
There are several versions of Invisalign® that a dentist can provide. At Portobello Dental, Dr Helen Walsh provides Invisalign Go® , a cosmetic orthodontic solution that is suitable for most adult patients with mild to moderate crowding/misalignment, but not for larger movements. This system involves a short series of clear aligners that are custom made and changed at regular, predetermined intervals to gradually aid in the movement of a patients teeth. Invisalign® uses smart technology® to map out how your teeth will move, which I found really interesting to see when I was shown the projected outcome of my treatment plan.
At my first appointment in my treatment plan, which was on a Monday, Helen fitted my first aligner and gave me the next three aligners to take home. You can read about that here. I then wore that aligner for seven days and changed to my ‘week two’ aligner, on the 8th day (the following Monday) and I have kept to that pattern ever since. When changing each aligner Helen asked for me to do it as close to the time she fitted them as possible, this is to ensure that each aligner is worn for the recommended amount of time. For me the easiest way to remember this was setting a reminder in my phone to ensure I didn’t forget!
I’ve now changed six aligners and generally it has been relatively comfortable. On the Mondays I keep to a softer diet as my teeth can be tender with the new aligner and I might have to take a mild painkiller, but that has been rare. Admittedly, the aligners can rub against your cheek and gums at times, so I use some Kin oral gel to help with the irritation but even that usually starts to abate after a day or two.
Currently my treatment plan with Dr Walsh requires me to see her every four weeks to check my progress and also to give me my new sets of aligners. I had my appointment last week and it went very well. Helen is happy with my progress and I needed to have a very small amount of IPR (Inter proximal reduction) i.e., polishing, on some teeth but this time there wasn’t any deep pressure in my mouth and teeth following this, which I had noted in my first blog.
Day-to-Day life
My Invisalign® case that I bring with me everywhere. It keeps my aligners clean and safe when I’m eating.
Since I wrote my last blog, taking my aligners in and out has gotten a lot easier, plus I am happy to report, no more broken nails! I’ve developed my own technique. It may not work for everyone, but personally I find having a piece of kitchen roll helps me to easily grip the aligners when I am removing them.
I was a little nervous the first time I went for dinner and had to take the aligners out when I was with friends but it was actually fine. When I am going out to dinner or meeting friends for a coffee having a little oral hygiene pack with me makes taking my aligners in and out in public, quicker and more discreet. I bring my Invisalign container, a floss pick and small toothbrush and toothpaste, they all even fit in my smallest handbag and save you having to worry about cleaning your aligners and teeth after eating (or losing them!)
For the purposes of transparency, Dr Walsh has had no input in my blog and all opinions expressed are my own.
