How One Woman Completely Made Over Her Smile in 4 Months—From Home

Tara Cook, 28, has the
classic smile makeover story. She had braces as a teenager, but didn’t wear her
retainers as directed and her teeth shifted back. Then her wisdom teeth grew in
and crowded her smile even more. “I was really self-conscious,” she says. “I
was tired of smiling with my mouth closed or feeling like I had to cover my
mouth when I laughed.”

As an adult, Cook knew she
wanted to go through another teeth-straightening treatment, but couldn’t
imagine getting braces again. She looked into other invisible aligner options,
but was discouraged at how much they cost.

It wasn’t until she got
engaged that she really started researching her options. “I wanted to have
straight teeth for my wedding,” Cook says. “That’s the day I want to remember
forever and be the prettiest. I couldn’t imagine being self-conscious about my
smile or looking back at photos and regretting not having done something.”
Through her research, Cook learned about SmileDirectClub from Facebook. “I
watched a ton of YouTube videos to get other people’s opinions and see their
results,” she says. “I’m not someone to jump into something hastily, but after
doing research and checking reviews, I couldn’t give it up, especially when you
factor in how affordable the price is.”

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SmileDirectClub, an
alternative to traditional orthodontic options, provides users with clear,
BPA-free plastic aligners for a single payment of $1850, which covers the
entire treatment. As part of the custom program, dental professionals evaluate
the customer’s smile to create a treatment plan to gradually shift their teeth
to the desired position, but regular in-office visits are not required. A 3-D
scan and mold of the customer’s teeth is created either at a SmileDirectClub retail
location (SmileShop) or using an at-home impression kit. A complete treatment
plan is shipped to the customer’s home and then followed through a personalized
online portal. Check-ins with customers are conducted remotely every 90 days so
the dental professional can ensure teeth are moving as planned.

“Tara
needed to have her upper central incisors moved out a bit to meet her lateral
incisors for a better aesthetic appearance. We also needed to make more space
for her crowded lower front teeth,” says SmileDirectClub’s lead dentist Jeffrey
Sulitzer, DMD. “The invisible aligners effectively treated Tara’s orthodontic
needs, as she required mild tooth movement to obtain her desired aesthetic
outcome. Tara also had the ability to remove her aligners before eating and
while conducting her daily oral hygiene.”

“There wasn’t a SmileShop in my area, so
I used the at-home kit,” says Cook. “It took me three tries to get the molds to
come out correctly, but SmileDirectClub didn't charge me for the two extra
tries. That process took maybe a month total. After I got them approved, it
took about six weeks to get the aligners, but they sent all of them at one
time.”