Dentist Visit!

On Monday, we all went to the dentist and we all came out with ZERO cavities and good reports from our dentist!  Christian even went for the first time and did great! I was right beside him (getting my own teeth cleaned) and I was listening to the hygienist work with him and he did everything she asked! I was amazed! (But he has gone with me the last 4 years and the last year or so, has watched me get my teeth cleaned.)

Megan has her 12 year molars already and they did the sealants on those.  Courtney's teeth looked great too, they did a panoramic xray to make sure everything was where it was supposed to be and they were! I am happy with that!

Our dentist came and checked my teeth out and said all my restorations and crown looked good yet, then as he was walking out, he said, "You'll have to do something with your bite eventually." I mentioned to him that that I knew my options, but I don't just know what to do. I can either 1. get Invisalign and line my teeth up or 2. go ahead with oral surgery, break my jaw, and line my teeth up with braces.  Again, he tried to convince me that Invisalign would be the way to go. He said if it was him, he would try the more conservative option first.  He said there is always a risk with surgery (nerves, infection) and there is none of that with Iinvisalign. I told him I was concerned because after talking to the oral surgeon, he said there was no guarantee that Invisalign would work, he also couldn't guarantee surgery would work!

My dentist knows the situation I am in, so he offered me a deal he has never made anyone else. He said I could come in and get the molds done on my teeth and send them into the company that makes Invisalign.  From there, he would wait for them to send back information saying how my teeth would look at the end, how many trays I would need, and how long it would take. My dentist said he would do this without charging me! He said after we get that all back, THEN I could decide what I wanted to do. If I wanted to go ahead, then I would pay for everything. If not, then he is out time and money for the upfront costs. 

My biggest concern with spending money on Invisalign is my insurance benefits. As of right now, I get a set amount of money that I can put toward orthodontics once in a lifetime. If I use it now, I cannot use it again to get braces (if I end up doing surgery later down the road.)  What if Invisalign really messes me up and I have no choice but to do braces and surgery? Then I have to pay for braces out of my pocket! It's another chance I take!

I agree with him 100% that Invisalign would straighten my teeth, but does it solve my jaw problem?? No, it does not. Do I want to continue to deteriorate my teeth because they hit each other at the wrong places? Do I want to continue to deteriorate my jaw joint because of my bad bite?? Can I get by with straightening my teeth and leaving my jaw alone? Maybe, I certainly don't want to have surgery!

So I guess we will go forth with his offer and see what they can do!