Sore Teeth

I finally got the first aligner in a series of three today.  I had no idea what to expect- I guess I thought it was like a retainer.  The hygienist snapped it on, and Holy Crap!  I about came out of the chair!  It was so dang tight.  They wanted me to “practice” taking it out, and I couldn’t.  It is such a tight fit, I thought I was going to need pliers to take it off.  I finally managed to get it off, after I broke two nails, and had drool/slobber running down my wrists.  Good times. 

Anyway, I am supposed to wear this now for the next 4 weeks, 22 hours a day.  I can take it out when I eat, or drink “staining” drinks like coffee, tea, or wine.  In a month I go back, for a tighter one, repeat the process, and then go back for the final one, which I don’t even want to think about, how tight that one will be.  I barely remembered how much braces hurt- it has been almost 20 years, but it is coming back to me rapidly, wearing this aligner less than 24 hours so far.  Once I have it in, I get used to the soreness somewhat, but when I snap it out, my teeth really hurt. 

The good news is, is it is very thin, clear plastic and you can’t even tell it is in.  Joe didn’t even notice, until I pointed it out.  Since it is so thin, it isn’t rubbing against my gums, or making me gag or anything. They took before pictures, so I’ll be anxious to see how it all works out.

The boys did well at the office.  I worked this morning, picked them up, ran to the bank, and then we went to the orthodontist.  There is a really neat wooden school bus play station  in a nice playroom , at the office, which they love.  When I was called back, I was sitting there for a few minutes, while the hygienist was gathering everything, and I hear a loud whisper, “No Coley.  You can’t go back there.”  I turned my head around and saw my two little monkey’s standing at the entry, deciding if they should go any farther.  I brought them back with me.  They were thrilled.

The nurse gave Ryan the remote control to the TV, and turned on Mulan for him.  She put headphones on him, and the thought he was all that!  Cole sat in my lap for a few minutes, and then decided to play chair operator with the buttons on the bottom of the chair.  I didn’t know this until the orthodontist tried to move my chair back up, and it was locked.  He looked down to see what the problem was, and we saw Cole pressing all the buttons.  He had deprogrammed the chair!  Fortunately, the orthodontist said he had a little button pusher at home too, so he was very understanding. 

Now I just hope I don’t lose or as lately, misplace the aligner.  I have a really “cool” case for it.  Something a teenage girl would like to slip her retainer in during lunch hour- it’s all glittery and in rainbow colors.  🙂