10th Trays

OK, these trays didn't hurt in the beginning, but OMG!!! For some strange reason, toward the end of my time with this set, there was a day where that one area of my gums (by the crossbite tooth) wouldn't stop bleeding!!

I had just left the house and was on my way to work when I noticed the taste of blood in my mouth. I looked in the rearview mirror, and saw that my upper trays were almost filled with blood! Now, again let me reiterate that a very small amount of blood in the trays winds up looking like alot more only because it's really spread out and can't go anywhere, but it was still alot more than I've ever had. I took them out while I was driving, and just kept on playing around in that low gumline area (where the blood was coming from, of course) with my tongue, and swallowing any more blood that was coming out. I figured a capillary popped, and it just needed time to clot.

Well, I kept on tasting blood pretty much throughout my 1 1/2 hour commute (don't get me started on the length of my daily commute to work), so I waited a bit before I put my trays back in. Around 10:30am, I figured I was in pretty good shape to put them back in, and went to the bathroom to do so. As soon as I got back to my desk -- yup, you guessed it -- I tasted blood again. Sometimes, I'm able to kind of suck it out of the trays and make the little amount in there dissipate, but when I whipped out my pocket mirror, I could see that this method wasn't going to work this time. There was too much blood.

I wound up having to keep them out for pretty much the whole day. I popped them back in before I left, to have on during my loooooooong drive home. I was really worried, and was about to call the ortho if this bleeding didn't stop. Surprisingly, there was no more blood on the way home. And the next day? No blood. Nor has there been any further bleeding since then, too. Odd, but I'm glad it's over, and I'm not worried anymore, either. Like I said before, I have a feeling that there was probably a pesky capillary that just needed some time to heal.

Despite the bloody ending, I still only wore these trays for 12 days. Since I wore the 9th trays for an extra 7 days, I decided that I'd cut back on tray time for the next 3 trays (trays 10, 11 & 12), in order to still be able to be on time for my final set of trays. I have it set in my mind that I'll be finishing my 16th (and last) trays on the last day of April, and I want to be able to stick to that as much as possible. I can technically say that my treatment only went from September to April at that point. Granted, I may wind up needing some fine-tuning trays done, which would technically then extend my treatment time, but if I can help it, I'd like to stick to the original schedule.

What was sort of cool was that, with my trays in, my crossbite tooth and the lower tooth were flush with each other. Prior to this, when I ran my finger from top to bottom in that area, my crossbite tooth was always an indentation, with the lower tooth jutting out in front.

Now, here's what my teeth looked like after this set of trays:

Center smile:


Center, mouth agape:


Lower:


Upper:


Crossbite side:

9th Trays

I have been VERY remiss on my blogging - tsk tsk tsk - I know. Well, let me get right down to it, then.

Got my next set of trays - trays 9 through 12 - at the ortho's. He said he visited my blog, and was impressed with my record-keeping. He also forewarned me about some movements and issues to expect in the upcoming trays.

My teeth are nearing the point where my crossbite tooth will soon make its "jump" from being behind my lower teeth to going in front of them. At one point, they'll be right on top of each other, and it will feel very strange when my trays are out and I'm chewing, since my teeth might hit each other there. I just need to be a little more careful during this time. Everything else looked good, and I made an appointment to see him again in 8 weeks.

My 9th trays really hurt at the beginning. In fact, I think they were the worst trays for teeth soreness so far. My 1st tray and 2nd were rough on my tongue and cheek at times, but WOW were my teeth sore with these trays! They were ultra sensitive the next day after the first night of being in, and I had to eat my lunch very gingerly. Mind you, my lunch was just chicken salad on soft white bread. I had to maneuver the sandwich to the back of my mouth in order to take a good bite without hurting myself. Luckily, though, it went away after 2 days, and my teeth were back to their normal strong selves.

I did experience gum bleeding with these trays again, though. Again, it was minor, but kind of annoying that it was happening. It still only happens by my crossbite tooth, and by the area where my gumline dips down. I know that part of my gum is loosening up, since that's where the tooth movement is the most dramatic.

I also had to keep my 9th trays in for an extra week. I won a national award at my company, and my prize was a week in NYC with some fellow winners. If I had stayed on track with my tray schedule, I would have just started tray 10 at the beginning of the trip. I didn't want to leave new trays out for the majority of the day (which I knew I was going to do for this trip), nor did I want to deal with really sore teeth when there were many dining engagements I was committed to, so I opted to leave the 9th trays in until after the trip, and really only wear them at night so NO ONE would notice at all.

Instead of changing them on Monday, 1/22/07, like I was supposed to, I didn't go to my 10th tray until Sunday, 1/28/07. More details on this later.

Here are the pictures of what my teeth looked like after the 9th trays:

Center smile:


Center, mouth agape:


Lower:


Upper:


Crossbite side:

8th Trays

Thank GOD these trays were more like the rest of them. No pain, no bleeding, no anything.

I can't believe I'll be halfway done with my treatment after I'm done with these. HALFWAY DONE!! Time has really flown by with this whole experience thus far. I can't wait to get my next set of trays from Dr. Sargiss!

No major movements. I just noticed that I can see even more space between my crossbite tooth and the adjacent incisor. I took a picture of it for you all to see, too.

Front smile, closed:


Center, mouth agape:


Lowers:


Uppers:


Side view of my crossbite area. Notice the small difference in the amount of space I've gained in this area for that tooth?

7th Trays

YOWZA -- these trays were pretty rough on my teeth. Up to this point, I had no major aches when I'd take out my trays for eating. They'd feel a bit sensitive, but nothing significant.

Well, whatever movement was called for these trays made every single one of my teeth feel so tender, that biting into a chicken salad sandwich on white bread was painful.

In addition, my gums started bleeding more than any other trays, mostly by my crossbite tooth, since that was moving a good bit. Here's a gross fact you may not have thought of: When wearing Invisalign trays with slightly bleeding gums, the little amount of blood that comes out has nowhere to go, since it would normally simply be swallowed. However, with its escape route blocked by lots of plastic, it just gets caught in the trays and stays there....swishing all around the surface of our teeth, making you look like you've got ALOT of red lipstick stuck on your teeth....or a vampire who forgot to brush and rinse after eating. Yes, this is exactly what happened to me at work one day. First thing in the morning, someone from my group comes over to ask me a question, and notions that I've got alot of lipstick on my front teeth. I grab a pocket mirror to look, and Lo and behold! It's not lipstick after all, but blood! Muhwahwahwhawah. I quickly head to the bathroom to rinse out my trays. Thank goodness it was a trusted friend who noticed it first!

These trays also showed me how much my back teeth were moving so that there could be enough space to push that crossbite tooth over to the front. It was such a slight difference, but I noticed my spit (sorry - gross, but true) swishing around in between my crossbite tooth and my canine. COOOOOOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It felt so different when flossing, since some teeth I knew were tight, now felt so spacious. Yay!

Onto the pictures!

Center, smiling:


Center, mouth agape:


Lower jaw:


Upper jaw:


Right side, crossbite area. Notice how my teeth have moved apart to make room for this tooth to push ahead? And yes, I'm biting down in this picture. My bite will be flush again once movement in both jaws have ceased.


Compare this to what my teeth looked like after my 1st tray:


Not extremely noticeable to you, but very noticeable to me. I'm so excited!

Atka's Smorgasbord of Tricks

With Christmas nearing, thought you'd like to see a little video of my favorite furball at his best in a slightly Christmasy background.

Atka shakes paws, lies down, rolls over, pounces, waves goodbye, begs, jumps up, plays dead (hear him groan as he covers up his nose, even tho his tail is still wagging), gives me kisses, then waves goodbye again.

Enjoy!

Atka's Smorgasbord of Tricks
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Santa & Mrs. Claus come to town!

And here is the amazing Santa procession I mentioned in my earlier post. Count 'em - 15 cars!!! Santa and Mrs. Claus are on their own motorized sleigh, complete with lights and Rudolph driving. For a little town like Barnegat, this is truly spectacular. I LOVE this event - it's what kick starts my Christmas season for me! Check out the movie I posted below on YouTube:

Santa & Mrs. Claus come to Town!
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6th Trays

Again, a pretty unmemorable set of trays, which can be a good thing! The only thing that I noticed this time was that my top trays were actually giving me the tiniest bit of discomfort on my tongue for the first time. I had been really trying to clench my teeth to get that "good fit", and had been sucking that stupid extra spit out of them alot, and my tongue was getting caught up in the upper trays more so than usual. Before it could get really noticable in any way, it was already time to change the trays.

Thanksgiving occurred during these trays, and my relatives came over from OH and PA. My 2 cousins are teenagers, with one still in her braces. No one noticed my braces until I pointed it out to them - yay! Here's a picture of me (in red) with my mom (in orange), aunt, and 2 cousins on our stairs. I love the fact that I can smile as big as I can, and not have to worry about my braces being noticable in pictures!


Now, for the closeups!

Center with mouth agape:


My right side (so you can see my teeth moving back and making way for the crossbite tooth to push to the front):


Upper jaw:


Lower jaw:


And finally, a smile:


We'll be getting our tree today from Home Depot, and might start on some decorating. I think I want our Christmas cards this year to be our puppy by the fireplace decorated with the garland and "PEACE" stocking holders. I'll have to get crackin' on that in order to get them out in time!

Later on tonight, Santa makes his way around our part of the neighborhood. I LOVE this event. I've seen Santa come through many different towns, but this one is, by far, the BEST! Not only do ALL the firetrucks come, but all the ambulances do, too! AND, Santa and MRS. CLAUS go around in a motorized sleigh all lit up! It is definitely the grandest local Santa visit I've ever seen. If I get a video of it tonight, I'll be sure to post it.

We might also visit "Santa Paws" as well. A neighboring town holds this event as a fundraiser for the First Aid Squad. It's pictures of Santa with your pet, and you can buy the pictures on snowglobes, frames, etc, afterwards. It's cheeesy, but it's a worthwhile cause, and has become a bit of a tradition now, so we'll probably do that, too.

Til next time!