Guest post from Rebecca Grafton of My Girlish Whims

Earlier this year I shared my weight loss story with you. I made the decision in January of 2014 to start a new weight loss journey that ultimately led to me losing 100 pounds. I’ve been maintaining my weight loss since then, but this year in January I decided it was time for another new version of me: a new me with a straighter smile! I shared my beginning experiences with SmileDirectClub earlier this year but wanted to follow up with an update since I just finished my treatment. Check out my post below for my full smile transformation.

Here’s a quick spoiler alert: SmileDirectClub worked wonders for me, and I am so glad that I decided to use their aligners!

Getting started

I was pretty lucky with my teeth growing up. They were never perfect but decent enough that I escaped the dreaded braces phase that most kids or preteens went through. When I hit my early 20s however, my teeth finally decided that now was their time to shift around, and I ended up with a snaggletooth in the very front of my smile.

Why couldn’t my teeth shift around when I was young enough for it to actually be socially acceptable to have braces?!

I know a snaggletooth is a minor flaw in the grand scheme of things, but it really started to bug me.  It was one of the first things I noticed in pictures that were close-up of my face, and I finally got tired of it and wanted to do something about it.

I knew I did not want to go the traditional braces route, so I started to look at other options. I had seen advertisements for SmileDirectClub all over Instagram. I finally met someone last fall who had been through treatment with SmileDirectClub and had a great experience, so I decided to give it a try. I really liked the fact that the aligners were not permanently attached to your teeth. You are supposed to wear them pretty much all day except when you eat or drink, but you can take them out when you need to.

Getting started is also really easy. Either you visit a SmileShop to get a 3D scan of your teeth (they have locations all over the world!), or you can do an impression kit.

I do have a promo code for SmileDirectClub: you can use code “REBECCASMILES” for 50% off your at-home impression kit or a free scan at your local SmileShop. I had a great experience visiting my SmileShop in Philly. Everyone was super nice, and the process was quick and easy.

Life with aligners

After my scan was done, a state licensed dentist or orthodontist, affiliated with SmileDirectClub, reviewed and approved my smile plan. After a few weeks, all of my aligners were shipped right to my door! I was actually pretty surprised at how affordable the program was.

I got my aligners in January, and my plan had me wear them through July. At first it was an adjustment getting used to wearing the aligners, but I have to say looking back on it now, it was 100% worth it and I’m so glad that I decided to do it! Only 7 months later, and my smile has completely changed!

You’ll wear your aligners all day and night, and only take them out when you eat or drink. You’ll also brush your teeth after you eat or drink anything, prior to putting your aligners back in. You can’t chew gum while wearing the aligners, which definitely helped me kick my bad gum-chewing habit. I seriously used to chew like 12 pieces of gum a day, which was way too much. Having to brush my teeth after eating every single time also definitely helped my dental health. And speaking of dental health: I visited my regular dentist for my normal cleaning while wearing my aligners, and he was 100% supportive of my treatment. He was impressed with how well it was working!

Even though they really were invisible, I knew for special events I would prefer not to wear them. It was comforting to know that the aligners are not permanently installed, and you can take them out if needed.

My after results

It’s amazing how fixing something so small, such as a snaggletooth, could make such a huge difference in my confidence level. Going through my weight loss journey did huge things for my confidence, but after literally losing 100 pounds, I was still frustrated with what I saw in some of my after photos because of my snaggletooth. If only losing 100 pounds were as easy as fixing my smile, I would have done it years ago! I am so, so glad that I decided to try Smile Direct Club and am so pleased with my results.

All I see in my after pictures now is a happy, healthy girl. No more snaggletooth can get in the way of my confidence or my smile anymore!

Remember: If you want to try Smile Direct Club for yourself, code “REBECCASMILES” gets you 50% off your at-home impression kit or a free scan at your local SmileShop!

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