I previously wrote about the state of my Teeth and how I thought IBD may have impacted them.

Today, I’m talking about what I’ve had done to improve the look of them. I don’t usually write about things that aren’t IBD or ostomy related, but after realising how many people with IBD have issues with their teeth, I thought it might be of interest to some!

When I look at my teeth now, all discoloured and wonky, I don’t remember them ever looking any different. Apparently, they did! Apparently, they were white and straight once…

I have been wanting my teeth sorted for years, but there have always been other priorities, like moving house and having surgery! I’d happily have had them all pulled out and replaced with dental implants, to be honest, but the cost is just so out of my reach!

I thought I should just go and see a Dentist, and get it done on finance so that the ball is rolling and I can’t keep letting it slip down the list of priorities.

January 19^th – Initial consultation

I went to the dentist set on having veneers. This was the second dentist that wasn’t keen on the veneer idea, and instead, he suggested straightening and whitening my own teeth. He assures me that they WILL be white at the end… It wasn’t that hard to talk me into it. I HATE the dentist. I have real anxiety about it, and I’m usually sweating before I even sit down. So, not having to have all of my teeth filed down to tiny pegs for veneers is ideal, in reality.

The dentist I’m going to is a little more expensive, and not in my town, but they were very good with me. They took the time to talk me through the options and the process. All of the staff there have been fab. They’re very friendly, and good about my anxiety without treating me like a child. I decided I’d rather pay extra for that standard of care…

So, we decided on Invisalign to straighten my teeth, and then some fillings and advanced whitening treatment. The total cost is actually more than it would have been to have veneers…

January 26^th - Hygienist

UGH. I hate it. It’s sore, and it makes my toes curl! I left feeling (not looking) sparkly clean. She again reiterated the benefits of the stupid between your teeth brushes, as well as brushing and flossing twice a day. I also had some X-rays. I was a little worried that they might reveal that my teeth are weaker than the dentist had thought, because teeth had crumbled during previous extractions.

February 15^th – Hygienist

Still hate it. Even sorer! I just have to remind myself of the end game!

February 25^th – Invisalign prep

I had multiple moulds taken of my teeth and the inside of my mouth. Then, many photos were taken; with and without mirrors in my mouth, and headshots! Staff said that they were saying just that morning that they don’t know why the small mould trays exist because they have never actually used them. Then there I was, presenting myself to them with my tiny mouth! I popped their small tray cherry! I signed the Invisalign consent, and off I went. I was there for 50 minutes!

March 11^th – ClinCheck

The ClinCheck software shows a digital representation of my teeth, and how they will move. The dentist tells me that there are 16 Aligners at the moment, but not to get excited as there will likely be revisions, which he estimated could be another 15 aligners. He tells me about the highlighted areas in the representation, which show that I might have to chew some rubber to make some of my teeth move. He warns me of soreness, which of course I expect – like a new pair of shoes! The representation also shows which teeth may feel the most pressure.

He genuinely had to state that this is just a representation of placement and that my teeth won’t be the same shiny white that they are I saw on the screen. I found this hilarious, but he told me of a case in which a man tried and managed to sue a dentist because his teeth didn’t look exactly like that digital representation when treatment was complete. I can have wire to keep my teeth straight after if I wish, or I MUST ensure I sleep with a retainer every night.  

I arrange the meal plan for the week I get my aligners to have a lot of soft food! I bought orajel, and a sample pack of tepe brushes because I figure the size I need will change as my teeth move.

March 25^th

It was a pretty simple appointment. I had attachments put on my teeth to hold my aligners in place, and I was sent off with my first aligner.

I left with a little kit in a fancy black bag, plus some chewies that I was told to chow down on for 20 minutes four times every day.

The first time I took my aligner out I felt like I was gonna pull my teeth out at the same time. The first time I attempted to eat I realised that chewing was hard. I was biting the inside of my mouth every time I closed my teeth. It was difficult to eat and chew, and considering how much I have to chew my food before I can swallow it due to my ostomy, I was gutted. Sometimes I was physically holding the inside of my mouth away, just so I could get food in me. I must also point out that it's actually incredibly annoying having to brush your teeth after every meal and every drink that is not water.

April 1^st

Really quick check-up. I had my moan about the aligners sucking, and the dentist did comment about the unintentional weight loss and difficulty eating being a godsend for some people. I wasn't some people and I wasn't amused. I left with lots of aligners to last me open until May the 13th when I was due back again.

Some weeks, my aligner made my mouth really sore. Other weeks, I barely knew I was wearing it. Sometimes I’d be biting my mouth over and over (the place would change), and others, not at all. I changed my toothbrush heads to sensitive ones, and started using gengigel. I just had to get on with it. Off I went with six more aligners and an appointment for May 13^th to check in and fetch the rest of my aligners.

May 13^th

I got more aligners which will take me up to the week before the finish line on July 15^th. At this point, he reminds me that I may need another set of aligners to “refine” the adjustments. An average of 15. Fucks sake. I’m already fed up with them, and the constant teeth brushing. It’s enough to put me off eating sometimes!

Anyway, they seem to be tracking just fine for now.

July 8^th

It’s a week before we’re due to finish, and I am supposed to pick up my final aligner. I'm aware that my teeth don't look like they'll be straight after just one more aligner. Just one tooth… My dentist acknowledges this and says it’s up to me, but he thinks I may as well keep going and finish with properly straight teeth due to it costing so much. I agree, but I don’t want to. I want it to be over already!

I went away with an appointment for August the 16th to start those. There was only such a long break because my dentist was going on annual leave.

August 16^th

I collected my refining aligners. The original attachments were removed and some new ones put on. 11 more aligners to go!

October 4^th

There’s a brief review of my teeth. Everything is going to plan.

November 1^st

And, we’re done! The attachments are taken off. My teeth need a lot of work still. Some chips need filling, and resin infiltration needs to happen to get rid of the brown patches on my side teeth and the line on the front. 4 syringes of whitening gel are included in the Invisalign treatment, so he shows me how to use that. I am to continue wearing my final aligner, and I’ll use those for the bleaching too. My dentist thinks I’m going to need a 70-minute appointment to get all of the final work done and the moulds taken for my retainer. He doesn’t have that amount of time to give me until January 27^th!

Bleaching

I was really hopeful about the bleaching, but one week in, I started getting an awful shooting nerve pain in my bottom teeth. Sometimes when I was eating, but sometimes just randomly. It would even wake me up in the night! I had to go back and see the dentist, and he gave me some syringes called soothe, to put on my teeth for 40 mins after each bleach application, and advised me to use Sensodyne rapid relief. He said I could also fill my aligner with it at bedtime and leave it on my teeth overnight. I could leave the bleach on for as little as 90 minutes, and do it every other day if I wanted. 

The nerve pain kept happening, and it was ridiculously painful, so I kept having to take breaks. I was so frustrated, and I kept wishing I’d just pushed for veneers. I was always scared to start bleaching again when it calmed down. So, by the time my finishing everything off appointment arrived, I didn’t have teeth as white as I would have liked! But, I wasn’t willing to keep causing the nerve pain either.

Also worth noting that I had to call and order FIVE more final aligners in that time, to wear as retainers, because they kept peeling or splitting.

January 27^th

What was supposed to be a 70 minute appointment, actually took 110! Resin infiltration, fillings, and the retainer moulding all got done though. What I left with was the final product. There’s no getting past the fact that I’d have liked them whiter. I’ve been looking at them and thinking, they don’t look like they’ve cost me the shit ton of money they have. But, when I look at them next to how they were before I started, I see it.