Prepping for Braces

Aside from the mental preparation, there are many things an Orthodontist must do prior to crazy-gluing brackets on your teeth and/or sending away for your Invisalign trays.

There are multiple x-rays and also digital photographs... so if you are shy or not overly psyched to accentuate your horribly crooked teeth in an up close shot... start prepping yourself now. The orthodontist will also visually inspect your face (straight on and profiles), jaw and mouth.

The worst part however, are the "impressions" that need to be taken in order to create the Invisalign trays. Even if you only need one set of Invisaligns, both upper and lower impressions need to be made in order to ensure the bite and placement of all teeth is taken into consideration.

Making impressions of your teeth involves pressing a tray filled with soft putty onto your teeth. After what seems like forever, the putty hardens and is removed from your mouth. The hardened putty (which is now a mold) is filled with a special type of plaster or plastic that creates a mold of your teeth. If the molds are not perfect, they will need to redo them as many times as necessary. In my case, just one time for my upper, but FOUR times for my lower.

Doesn't sound too bad... however, this "putty" is very thick and a LOT is used. So when the push the trays onto your teeth, there is a huge amount of overflow of the putty into your mouth, blocking your airway and making you feel like you are going to suffocate to death. Most teeth impressions only take 1 to 2 minutes for the putty to set. Not Invisalign... It takes up to FIVE minutes. This is a very long time for anyone to wait, especially when your mouth is filled with a substance that is choking you.

When the molds are complete, they are shipped off to Invisalign for analysis and ultimately, the creation of your trays. Depending on the severity of your teeth, you could have anywhere from 6 months to 2 years worth of trays (they are changed out approximately every two weeks).

Once the trays are complete, your orthodontist receives them, along with your "ClinCheck" -- a computer rendered animation that shows the progress your teeth will make over the course of the treatment. I have not had the opportunity to see mine yet... the Ortho said he would email me. A week later... no email yet.