It’s kind of odd that I’m writing about something so near and dear to my heart after I feel like I was just talking about this last weekend and even touched on it with my post last Sunday. But what I described was more of a love story. The story of how I met my husband, how we fell in love, and got married soon after is a wonderful, sappy, magical love story.
But I never talked about what really attracted me to him in the first place.
We worked together at a small start-up company right smack in the middle of the dot com boom. I had been working there for about four months when he came on board. He was first introduced at one of our weekly company meetings. Those meetings were supposed to motivate us, reinvigorate, and make us BELIEVE that working 70 hours per week was somehow going to pay off big for us. After four months, I was already jaded.
On that day, though, they introduced a new employee named Sean. I was only half-listening because I didn’t know if he was an employee, a vendor, or some sort of business partner. He told a quick story about his previous job and everyone laughed and I went back to my jaded thinking, wondering how I would make it through the week ahead.
One of the ways was a group lunch. The advantage of working long and hard at a small company was that we had a lot of freedom when it came to lunchtime. A two hour lunch with a drink or two wasn’t unusual. On this day in particular, we were headed to the local Mexican restaurant and as we were walking in, I realized someone had invited the “new guy.”
I think back to that moment a lot. It was one of those standout moments in my life that I will always remember. We were walking across the parking lot and I was looking at the new guy. He was tall, fair skinned, curly hair, glasses – totally not my type. And to top it all off, he was wearing a BRIGHT YELLOW SWEATER. I don’t think I’ve ever met a person who looks good in bright yellow.
And if I could go back and plant a thought in my head that day, I’d love to tell myself, “Take a good look. That’s your future husband.”
I’m not sure I would have believed it. He wasn’t my type. He was too upbeat. He was excited to be there. He was so jovial. Totally not my type. And yet…
That smile.
He had a picture perfect smile. The kind that lights up a room. And ultimately, it was that smile and everything behind it that won me over.
That’s where the love story ends but it’s a wonderful story to share considering how important a smile is when it comes to first impressions.
As I got to know Sean, I learned that he wasn’t genetically blessed and had worn braces like practically every single person in my generation. I wore them for five years (4th grade to 8th grade) and still didn’t have straight teeth. And then wore them again for two years as an adult, suffered with crippling headaches, and STILL wasn’t satisfied with my results (I have a really bad bite).
A few weeks ago, I was invited to attend a brunch sponsored by Invisalign. To be honest, I figured I’d had enough orthodontic work to last me a lifetime but I was always down for a nice brunch with my fellow bloggers. And then it happened. What every brands hopes will come out of an event like this.
I was surprised and delighted.
No, seriously.
I listened to Dr. Larry Wang from the Baltimore Orthodontic Group talk about why he and his patients love Invisalign. Let me be clear. He wasn’t being paid. This man really loves Invisalign. By the end of the session, I was totally ready to have something done to my teeth even if I don’t need anything done.
The important things I learned:
- Invisalign is roughly on par with traditional braces, in terms of cost, and is usually covered by insurance (where orthodontic coverage exists)
- The entire course of treatment is mapped out after the initial consultation using computer modeling (always subject to change though)
- The occurrence of headaches and teeth pain after an adjustment (or new set of aligners) is significantly less with Invisalign than with traditional braces
- They’re not only clear… THEY’RE INVISIBLE*!!
* I can’t substantiate that last fact with scientific proof but Amanda (@dumbparent) sat right beside me during the event and was wearing her aligners and I didn’t even know it!
So, if you’re thinking about some orthodontic work for yourself, for your teen, for your tween, or YOUNGER (the recommended age for first orthodontic consultation is 7 years old), I would totally consider Invisalign. And I’m saying that as a 7-year-braces veteran. And if you live in the Baltimore area, I can score you a discount if you decide to get treatment for yourself or your child.
But the biggest barrier to treatment that I hear from most people is the cost of treatment. No matter which route you go, ORTHODONTIC WORK AIN’T CHEAP! If you don’t have insurance that covers orthodontic care (and if you do, take advantage of it!), check out the Invisalign New Smile Sweepstakes over on Mom It Forward.
While you’re at it, stay in touch with the Invisalign folks through all their channels: Invisalign.com, Twitter, and Facebook.
Have your own orthodontic nightmare or success story to share? Let me know. I’d love to compare notes!
Disclosure: Invisalign compensated me for this post. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own and I never write about something I don’t personally believe in.
