Disclosure: I am a member of the Invisalign Mom Advisory Board. My son and I are receiving complimentary treatment from Invisalign, but all opinions expressed are my own.
I mentioned a few weeks back that my youngest son and I are starting orthodontics treatment with Invisalign. We started with an initial consultation, to make sure we were both good candidates for them (get your smile assessed here to see if you are a good candidate). We both passed with flying colors – for me, however, there was one small snafu – I never had my wisdom teeth out. This initial consultation just saved me a lifetime of trouble down the road.
Typically, people have their wisdom teeth out in the late teens or early twenties – I did not. They didn’t appear to have to be removed and dentists were much more conservative back then with taking them out. Today, dentists pretty much recommend that most people have them out – they don’t really do anything for you, and can cause problems down the line – well, welcome to my story. Two of my teeth were impacted and one was pushing against the tooth next to it, prepping for problems for me in the future. My orthodontist, Dr. Nakisher, recommended they come out whether or not I start the orthodontics treatment, as they could cause some serious trouble for me in the future (find your own great Invisalign Orthodontist here.)
So, I had all four wisdom teeth removed, and honestly, it wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it would be – no big deal at all (got to watch 2 full seasons of Younger, uninterrupted – it was kind of like a vacation in my bedroom!!
Fast forward 2 months – time for my first step to my new smile – I went back to Dr. Nakisher’s office to have my treatment plan created. This consists of getting x-rays, pictures and impressions of your teeth. I am going to tell you (and show you some not so flattering pictures of me with my mouth open) about what to expect when starting your treatment.
The word impressions brought me back to the time where the hygienist would stick this horrible mold in your mouth and you would have to hold it in there for what seemed like forever while gagging. GOOD NEWS – not anymore – Invisalign obtains a digital 3-D image using a very non-invasive camera that basically takes a picture of each one of your teeth – it takes about 30 minutes or so and was a total piece of cake!
From these images your doctor will map out a precise treatment plan, including the exact movements of your teeth, and tell you the approximate length of treatment. Using the same technology your doctor will be able to show you a virtual representation of how your teeth will move with each stage of treatment. While every case is unique to each patient, treatment typically takes approximately a year for adults. For teens the length of treatments is comparable to that of braces.
I was in and out of there in 45 minutes and no yucky molds! Now, I am just waiting for my aligners to arrive and get started (this should take about 4 weeks!)
Stay tuned for the next chapter into my road to a (more) beautiful smile!
You have a great dentist and for sure the results would be awesome.