Teeth Whitening for Sensitive Teeth // Practicing self care with Smile Brilliant + giveaway!

Self care has been a buzz word lately, hasn't it? I usually would roll my eyes at this notion but since becoming a mom of three(!!), I've come to value its importance. I don't get much "me time" these days so carving out little bits of time to recharge is something I'm working on. And making myself look and feel pretty has slowly become a priority (eye bags for daysss over here) so when presented with the offer to whiten my teeth with Smile Brilliant I was all over it! This post is sponsored by Smile Brilliant. All opinions are my own.

Let me preface this testimony with a little backstory first. I did a lot of research before committing to a whitening regime because I am a huge advocate for breastfeeding and I would never consume anything that could potentially pass from my milk into my baby. My pediatrician gave me the site info for mothertobaby.org and the representative gathered the info on the active ingredients, searched their potency and potential risks and then called me with a breakdown of each. It was informative and educational and nothing was harmful! Such a relief! I highly recommend using Mother to Baby if you are in doubt of a product's ingredients while nursing!

Now back to Smile Brilliant!

The at home teeth whitening company sends out a kit which includes two teeth impression trays, 3 pots of two different compounds that mix together to make your teeth impressions, several syringes of whitening gel and desensitizing gel and instructions. Each syringe holds enough gel for three plus applications.

Being a Nervous Nelly it took me several days to work up the courage to make the impressions because 1) it's a timed process and 2) I hate messing up (Type A problems) but once I got going, it wasn't bad at all and all the stressing I did over it was unnecessary. I sent my impressions off in the pre-labeled envelope and received my custom-made molds a few days later!

Because of my sensitive teeth I opted to use the Sensitive Teeth whitening kit and only did every other day applications. It was slow and steady for me but worth it to avoid pain/discomfort.

BEFORE

I was advised that since my teeth were already fairly white that I wouldn't notice such a huge color difference but experience more brightening. Now I don't know about you but I think I may have whitened up a shade! Regardless, I feel much more confident and my teeth look so pearly. 

AFTER

Some helpful hints to optimize the whitening process:

• Use a straw to drink staining beverages. Because I am now a morning coffee drinker this was a HUGE concern for me- not being able to drink my cuppa so much so I actually emailed to ask (no shame!) This trick can also apply to colas and teas. 
• If you do experience sensitivity try a coating of coconut oil on your teeth. A longer desensitizing gel session could also be beneficial. I had one(!?) tooth that felt sensitive so a good coating of coconut oil and a 35 minute desensitizing session were my combination.
• Multi-task. As part of my self care I also read while whitening. I suppose you could do some light exercising too but I wouldn't get crazy since you shouldn't drink 60 minutes afterwards ;)

Now I’m super excited to offer one of my readers the chance to win a Smile Brilliant whitening kit of their own! Just follow the widget link below. Giveaway is open from August 15th to August 22nd. Winner will be notified via Smile Brilliant. Good luck!

http://www.smilebrilliant.com/g/workitmommy

Work it Mommy readers can also get 15% off site wide with code: workitmommy15