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anyone with braces want to join a thread?

110 replies

saycheeeeeese · 06/12/2012 11:50

Hope this is tbe right place to put this, i just recently started invisilign treatment for my horrible teeth and an keen to hear other people's experiences, share support whatever the type of braces you have decided on!!

hopes thread won't crash and burn :)

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saycheeeeeese · 07/02/2013 22:43

Ok I will try to help missbopeep

I got my initial consultation for free, part of the offer but it was only my dentist telling me about it, and giving me guesstimates. By the time I got my moulds etc I had agreed to it so im not sure how much they'd charge if you changed your mind after they sent it to US to produce the clincheck (the animation they base your trays on).

To he honest I did ALOT of research and there are a few forums you can join too but it really is the best thing I ever done for me. I have crowded teetg upper, my dentist was able to negotiate them away from extracting ny wisdom teeth, in toal I will need 5 teeth shave to 0.3mm which is very little. Your teeth will close up and the gaps that have been shaved will close so I cant imagine it wouldn't have too much of a detrimental effect and most brace weareres both traditional and invisible have had teeth filed, its pretty standard.

Its up to you how much your teeth bother you, im 28 now and will be 30 before im done, I hate my teeth and decided life is too short for regrets.

It is costing me 3k, im paying it off over 2years.

I will admit that the constant brushing and flossing is irritating at first and people tend to look at you weird in public loos but you get used to it abd actually become a bit obsessive about it, big advantage is it helps you to cut down on snackibg :)

The braces took about 2 weeks to get really used to them, now I hate not having them in, my teeth feel sharp and jaggy! Im on tray 7 out of 36, I can see a huge difference already and my teeth have never been cleaner and whiter because ofthe constant brushing.

I saw it as a year or two out of my life for a lot of hapoy years with beautiful teeth in return. And I do think its worth it, im loving it and get very excited with each new tray.

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saycheeeeeese · 07/02/2013 22:44

Sorry for spelling was using my phone :-)

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Missbopeep · 08/02/2013 10:34

Thanks- that's very helpful I am in my 50s- my mum had a traditional brace at 75 so by family standards I still have plenty of time to go!

saycheeeeeese · 08/02/2013 14:31

I should also mention that you will only be eligible if you have good oral hygiene and not too many fillings, I was a good candidate because I only have 2fillings.

Go for it!!

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GinAndSlimlinePlease · 08/02/2013 14:41

Hi fellow brace face folk :)

All is going well with my train tracks! They're nicely moving into position after I had four teeth removed. For the first time ever I'm getting straight teeth!

The staining has improved after my orthodontist replaced elastics with wire. The wire hurts a little more but is water to keep clean. I found out I was pregnant last week and not sure how that will work with the braces. I hope ok... It means I won't be having any jaw surgery just yet too Grin

saycheeeeeese · 08/02/2013 14:55

ginandslim massive congratulations on your pregnancy!!!

Im sure it will be fine having train tracks while pregnant! Among other health reasons I couldn't contemplate having another baby while going through invisalign, brushing my teeth made me vomit during pregnancy so I don't think having trays in would be such a good idea!

Glad to hear you're starting to see a big difference, it definitely makes the hassle worthwhile! My 'snag' tooth is nearly back in line with the rest of my teeth so im well chuffed!

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crispycake · 08/02/2013 18:40

Saycheeeeese - thank you for the link I'm sure this will come in very helpful.

I had consultations today for invisilign. I also got impressions taken by one dentist. He's the one I'm going with. I just need to go and pay my clincheck fee then hopefully it'll be all systems go :)

It'll be lovely to smile showing my teeth.

saycheeeeeese · 09/02/2013 00:02

Welcome to the thread crispy its all very exciting getting started, wait until you see your clincheck you'll be amazed!

Keep us posted, im on tray 7 out of 36 and wont be finished until next summer! But hoping it will be completely worth it, wish i'd done this years ago!!

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chasingtail · 17/02/2013 17:43

Can I join, can I, can I??!

Had Clear Step, fixed braces fitted on Friday and would love to be part of this thread.

Hated my smile forever, so finally at the ripe old age of 41, I have taken the plunge and done it.

Really pleased and just hoping the pain, embaressment and poverty will be minor disadvantages!

crispycake · 01/03/2013 19:41

Thought I'd post back.

So I got my clincheck through on Tuesday and I must say I'm pretty amazed at the end result. They are perfectly straight!
Even after 3 months my front tooth that sticks out is noticeably better. I can't wait to start which I think will be in 2 weeks.
I popped into the surgery today to pay for the next stage of my treatment and seen my dentist, who was very excited and came over to me to tell me that invisilign is even more clear than before as they've started using a new product to make the trays.
Anyone have this yet?
So by the end of sept I should have lovely straight teeth. Yay :)

Bakingnovice · 05/03/2013 14:31

I've got my final appointment pre removal today. I have a real fear of dentists so I always feel anxious before any appointment. I should be having my brace removed in 4 weeks. I'm a bit worried as some of my gums feel sore. I don't floss as its really hard to get the floss in and out of the tracks, but I have a brilliant irrigator I use. Can anyone tell me how long removal takes? I'm bricking it!!

Garydentist · 16/03/2013 23:06

Hi. I hope you don't mind me joining in but I used a German clear aligner system called In-Line on myself 6 years ago and have treated lots of patients with it since then.
I love it because patients find them so comfortable as they have no attachments and they move quicker than other clear braces because they are stronger. Most cases are 6-7 months. And no-one knows they are wearing them. I had one lady that wore her first aligner for a month and her husband didn't know she started!
The Inman Aligner is the quickest but my patients find it quite bulky and can't talk with it. Clearstep have gone bankrupt and have left thousands of dentists and patients stuck so many are using In-Line or other similar ones instead.

I can help answer some questions if you like. The IPR where you file a little enamel is very safe as you only remove a small fraction of the enamel and it saves having extractions done.
Also with In-Line you get a 3D prediction emailed to you before treatment so you see exactly how the teeth will look at the end. Invisalign's clincheck is similar.
Don't worry Bakingnovice about having the fixed brace removed. The brackets pop off really easily by a simple twist and once your teeth are polished they will feel great. It is totally painless. (Or should be!)
I would definitely go for a fixed retainer.I fit lots of them and they don't break when they are placed properly. Removable retainers can still get some relapse sometimes. I fit fixed and also give a removable over it too just to wear once a week to make sure you know the teeth don't move. It's too much money and time to risk it!

I am happy to answer any questions if I can!

DrRajKumar · 19/03/2013 22:32

As an Invisalign expert with over 780 cases under my belt, I can safely say that Invisalign is the treatment of choice when treating both arches. Most people have upper and lower arch problems.#
Inman is vey bulky and not great at complex crowding.

saycheeeeeese · 24/03/2013 09:09

Wow some really good advice there Garydentist and DrRaj thanks for joining the thread :)

I have to admit IPR did concern me slightly but glad to hear there are no detrimental effects long term.

Sorry I've neglected the thread I don't get on here much these days but wanted to report im on tray 10 and my snag tooth on the top has disappeared, it's amazing getting invisalign was the best decision ever, pain free and results already :)

crispy how exciting those months will fly in, I've had my trays for 5 months now and I couldn't tell you where the time has gone, haven't heard of the clearer trays but that sounds great though very few people notice mine anyway.

chasing welcome to the thread and well done for taking the plunge, clear step? Are they like invisalign?

To the two dentists here, I have 38 trays and im on 10/38 is it likely I will need anymore refinement trays? Is that standard? I thought once I got to 38/38 that would be me done but ive Googled and a lot of people are saying they had to get refinements?

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saycheeeeeese · 24/03/2013 09:18

Sorry I am on 11/36!!

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saycheeeeeese · 24/03/2013 09:20

I have another question about retainers (sorry I have a toddler snatching my phone and posting too early).

After invisilgn would I be better with a fixed retainer or removable? Anyone with any experience of this?

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crispycake · 28/03/2013 19:00

Well I had my attachments fitted today and I have 13 yes 13! I was worried what these would like but they're actually not that bad.
I also had some IPR done today and I didn't like this. The actual filing/spacing was ok it was the prep that was unbearable to the point where my toes where curling :( & I'll need more doing.
Do you get use the feel of the attachments?

I'm on tray 2 out of 14. I'm wearing tray 2 for 4 weeks!
Anyone else wore one for as long?

Saycheeeese - I was wondering what would be best once treatment has finished.

crispycake · 29/03/2013 11:42

After looking on the Internet last night I realised the bit that hurt quite a bit was having the grinder in between my teeth. I didn't know I was having this.
Worse thing was during the whole procedure I had a mirror above me! This wasn't a pleasent sight at all :)

LaVitaBellissima · 29/03/2013 12:03

I have been thinking about getting Invisalign as I have bad overcrowding on my lower teeth. Have a tooth related injury ATM so would appreciate some advise from one of the threads resident dentists Grin sorry for hijack!

It looks like I am going to lose my front tooth Sad headbutt from a tantruming toddler injury Sad I am 32, root canal failed as after a week I'm still in pain, my lovely dentist says although the X-ray isn't obvious he thinks there is a tiny fracture. I am due to go back next week to discuss my options. Would you recommend a bridge or an implant?
He says based on my age he'd recommend referring my for an implant, or he can do a bridge being the cheaper option.
Am unsure what to do Sad Confused

Crutchlow35 · 29/03/2013 18:19

I got my Inman today. Can anone who has had it tell me if the saliva gets better as you get used to it?

saycheeeeeese · 09/04/2013 11:33

Bumping the thread.

crispy you will get used to the attachments they smooth down too which helps. My IPR wasn't bad at all it felt like the dentist was using a miniature file between my teeth, he didn't need a grinder, what size was your IPR?
No mirror either that would have scared the crap out of me.

I only have another year to go and I should be finished, still no regrets at all :)

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Bakingnovice · 10/04/2013 15:25

Was debraced last week and felt brilliant. They took moulds for my retainer and I came home. Removing my porcelain brackets was horrid as they shattered and had to be almost tugged off. And I felt like I was going to faint. Anyway, woke up Friday and my teeth had shifted massively and I was really upset. Rang the surgery who managed to make my retainer quickly and I now have it in. I'm collected my night time retainer next week. Having the retainer in is weird as it hurts because it's pushed the shifting teeth back into position. I hope Ivey used to it.

I wanted to ask if anyone has had the bottom of their filed down a bit to level them off. I'm going next week for this. My dentist said it'll just finish off the teeth as they are quite curvy at the bottom.

saycheeeeeese · 10/04/2013 19:12

It's amazing how fast they can move in such a short period of time, if I don't wear my tray for a few hours mine definitely move. You will get used to the retainer it's not unlike the invisalign trays and it took me about a week to get used to it.

I'm getting one of my top teeth filed so interested to hear too.. oh the things we do for our vanity eh? Grin

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Bakingnovice · 11/04/2013 15:13

Hating the retainer. Worse than having a brace. I think I have to wear the daytime one for about six months as well as the night one. It feels never ending at the moment.

Crutchlow35 · 11/04/2013 15:18

I am 2 weeks into 12 wearing an inman aligner. I am finding it ok. Not wearing it as much as I would like as I just can't speak with it in so duri g the working day it is out but I see a big difference to my teeth already.