Deciding on Invisalign

I have had a love and hate relationship with my teeth. I have had a gap in the middle of my teeth as far back as I could remember. I don't remember it bothering me as a child and I was made fun of, so I don't have any emotional scars from them.

When I was a child, I had the option to get braces like all my friends were getting, but I opted not to because I was too afraid of the pain and the way they looked. While all my friends had a mouth of metal and carried their tooth brushs with them, I felt free as a bird.

As years went by I felt proud of my gap, it was Madonna-esque, and I felt that I was being true to myself for leaving my teeth the way they naturally, or unnaturally (thanks to chewing on ice) came out to be.  My teeth were in great health and I went for my dentist checks/cleaning every 6 months, other than some cavities here and there in life, my teeth were in great shape. I floss after every meal and brush my teeth in the morning and night.

But as I grew older, I became more self conscious about my teeth. I am a working professional, and I felt that my gap made me look unprofessional. Friends and family say they don't even notice it, but once in a while I do.

Around the same time of me going back and forth, my brother just finished with invisalign, while I have one gap, he had a few on the top, his overall time with invisalign was about a year. He raved about it and his dentist. It encouraged me to at least go for a free consultation.

I set it up and went in, as I explained why I wanted them, I felt so vain, but the dentist indicated that besides it looking great, there are health benefits, such as lessing the risks of peridontis, and he has noticed his patients taking care of their teeth more, flossing and brush after every meal, and not just in the morning at night.

He made me feel at ease, no wonder my brother liked him, he was kind, and very responsive, and let me ask a million questions, like the rate of pain, and what happens after invisalign.

He took a look at my teeth and I was told I was a great "candidate"and I found out that I could potentially be an "express" case, which meant I only need 10 or less aligners. In summary this is what the process would be I was told:

• I would have photos taken of me (they actually took a few of me standing from the front and the sides)
• I would have molds taken of me and then the molds are sent out.
• Once the molds are sent out, the Invisalign company sends the dentist a 3D interactive image of my teeth, and how they will look like during the journey and I would then be told how many aligners I need.
• I would be told a price point (depending on the amount of aligners and the amount of time.
• After, it is approved, in a few week my alignments trays (the piece you put in your mouth) would be sent to them for me to pick up and start my new journey.

I decided that same day, that I would pursue it and set an appointment for my molds.