Dumelang bathong. It’s me, your favourite inconsistent blogger, back again with another post after yet another hiatus. Let me start off by saying that 2022 has been throwing hands from the jump and your girl has been fighting back, but unfortunately, that meant taking a step back from other things, one of which was blogging, but she’s back like she never left. How are you guys doing? I hope le grand bafethu and this year has been kind to you.

I am gonna talk about something I’ve talked about quite a few times, I’ve even written a post about it on this here blog. Growing up, I wanted to get braces to fix my crooked teeth but unfortunately, my parents couldn’t afford them so I had to live with my teeth and accept them as they are. It took a long time to regain my confidence, so for a good chunk of my life, I avoided smiling with my teeth showing and every time I laughed, I’d cover my mouth with my hand.

Eventually, I grew up and realised how gorgeous I am (I mean, have you seen me?) and slowly but surely worked on getting my smile confidence back. I remember promising myself that one of the first things I’m gonna do once I start getting an income is straighten my teeth. But when that time came, I wasn’t really bothered anymore, I’d become a confident and radiant person so I wasn’t so eager to straighten them anymore. That’s not to say I didn’t wanna do it anymore, it just wasn’t a priority, so I waited a few years.

Anyway, I finally straightened teeth and I opted to use clear aligners from Invisalign, and I am gonna tell you all about it. This goes without saying, but I am going to say it anyway because I know how some of y’all like to tussle; this is not medical/dental advice, this is just me sharing my experience, it doesn’t mean that you’ll have the same experience as I did if you opt for Invisalign, consult your orthodontist so you can make an informed decision, danko.

Why Invisalign?

Invisalign is a brand of clear aligners; which are transparent orthodontic devices used to adjust teeth. I chose to go with clear aligners because they made the most sense for my lifestyle. I really didn’t want the traditional braces, I just don’t like the look of them and didn’t think they’d work for me, and as shallow as that may sound, it’s the truth and before anyone who likes/has traditional braces comes for me, I specifically said I didn’t like them FOR ME. I liked the fact that they were clear – so not really noticeable (unless you’re really up close and personal, in which case, why are you in my face? back tf up), and I liked the fact that I could take them off to eat, brush my teeth and floss, so I had a bit of control. I chose the Invisalign brand because it was one of the only brands, if not the only brand that requires that you get assessed by an orthodontist to check if you are a good candidate before you can begin the treatment, unlike other brands where the entire treatment and transaction is online and you never even meet your “doctor” – scary.

The Pros

• No food/dietary restrictions – traditional braces tend to have a long list of things you should avoid eating (e.g. popcorn), but with Invisalign, you simply remove the aligners and eat whatever you want for the most part, I say that because even though you can remove them and eat just about anything, your teeth can still be sensitive so it’ll still be a challenge to eat or drink certain things.
• Brushing & flossing is easy – again, you just remove them and go about your business, you don’t have to work around the wires and brackets as with traditional braces.
• Shorter and fewer appointments – traditional braces require continual maintenance, so that means a lot of dental appointments, but with Invisalign, unless there’s an issue, the appointments are few and far between, you just have to ensure that you stick to your aligner schedule and you’re good to go.
• Less noticeable – as already mentioned, I find them more aesthetically pleasing and more suitable to my lifestyle. I am already a petite 5ft woman in the corporate world, where most people barely take me seriously because of my size, I just wasn’t interested in adding wire braces to that struggle.
• Fewer potential problems – I’ve heard stories of brackets that fell off or wires that broke with traditional braces, leading to an emergency visit to the orthodontist. You won’t have that potential problem with clear aligners.

The Cons

• You have to have discipline – you have to wear your aligners for 20-22 hours a day (I highly recommend 22 hours) to truly see the results and stick to the timeline of your treatment plan, otherwise they’ll take longer to work or they won’t work at all. If you think you’ll be tempted to take them out more often and for a long period of time, it may not be the best choice for you. My treatment took 10-11 months, and I am pretty sure it would’ve been longer if I wasn’t as diligent as I was (don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t perfect, I had slip ups, but for the most part, I really tried to stick to the plan). 
• Limited snacking and/or tea breaks – Invisalign aligners should be removed to eat or drink anything besides still water. This is because the aligners will trap food particles and will result in yellow, discoloured aligners and can cause cavities or gum disease, and you have to brush your teeth and aligners every time after eating or drinking anything that isn’t still water, so it just makes the snacking process that much tedious. I love my tea, before Invisalign, I’d probably have 5 cups a day, however after my treatment started, that meant brushing my teeth 5 times a day and I wasn’t having that so I had to make sacrifices.
• Discomfort and slight speech change – I had to change to a new pair of aligners on a weekly basis, I’ve heard some people say they switched every 2 weeks, so I guess it depends on the doctor and/or the treatment plan, so with every new aligner, I had a slight lisp for the first 2 days. It was kind of funny and cute at first, but it gets old really quickly. The first day or 2 of every new set of aligners is really not pleasant. Because these aligners are moving your teeth, there’s obviously going to be some pain/discomfort associated with that, and there’s also sensitivity during those first 2 days, so things like really cold water or hot tea are really unpleasant to consume.
• Eating out becomes a chore – they truly make going out for food a pain, because you now have to take a toothbrush & toothpaste with you everywhere you go, and excuse yourself to go brush after your meal, not to mention the awkwardness of trying to remove the aligners in public or in a restaurant. Another thing to note is that it’ll hurt like a bitch when you try to put them back on after leaving them out for too long since teeth have “muscle memory” and will slowly move back to their original position, so you really want to avoid that, trust me, I learnt the hard way, I thought I could just leave them at home when I am going out for food and I’ll just put them back when I return, 🤣 it wasn’t fun at all.
• The cost of the treatment – Invisalign is a little more expensive than traditional wire braces, it can range from around £1500 to £5500 (R48 000 and R110 000 in South Africa), whereas traditional wire braces would range from around  £1,500 and £3,000 (R25 000 to R50 000 in South Africa).

Final Thoughts

I am so glad I did this, it was a promise I made to myself and I am glad that I finally had the resources to keep it, I have no regrets and I am in love with my results. I should also mention that just like when you’ve completed the traditional wire braces treatment, you have to wear retainers, the same applies for clear aligners in order to “retain” the new position of your teeth, or else you run the risk of them moving back.

The most important part of this process is doing your research; make sure you research the orthodontist and read reviews if you can, research Invisalign, there’s a wealth of information on the internet and watch YouTube videos on both traditional wire braces and clear aligners so you can make an informed decision. I obviously recommend it because it worked for me and it was worth all the money, but it might not be the best treatment plan for you so DO YOUR RESEARCH and consult a professional.

Check out this reel I posted on my IG that showcases that journey. As always my loves, if you have any questions that I didn’t address in this post, feel free to comment or find me on my socials (@refiloepc on all platforms) and I’ll do my best to shed some light. I hope this was helpful, and remember, you are already beautiful, so don’t feel compelled to change anything about your appearance, but if it’s something you want and can afford, I say go for it. You deserve to feel like your best self!

Till next time,

xoxo, Refiloe 💕