Reading this makes me feel a bit better about my own whitening mishap. I tried to follow the instructions exactly, but I guess my teeth are just extra sensitive or something. After just two sessions, I started feeling sharp pains whenever I drank anything cold—even room temperature water felt uncomfortable. I panicked a bit and stopped immediately, switched back to my regular toothpaste, and things calmed down after a few days. But now I'm hesitant to try again, even with spacing sessions out and using sensitive toothpaste. Did you find that your teeth eventually adjusted to the whitening process, or did you have to permanently change your routine? I'm wondering if it's worth another cautious attempt or if I should just accept my teeth as they are...
I had a pretty similar experience actually. First time I tried whitening strips, it felt like lightning bolts shooting through my teeth whenever I sipped anything remotely cool—seriously unpleasant. I gave it a rest for a couple weeks, then cautiously tried again but cut the session length in half and spaced them out more. Surprisingly, that helped a lot. Maybe my teeth adjusted or maybe the sensitive toothpaste finally kicked in... either way, it got better eventually. Don't beat yourself up though; sensitivity is super common and sometimes not worth pushing through if you're uncomfortable.
Had a similar issue myself, sensitivity was no joke... spacing out treatments definitely helped. Also found rinsing with lukewarm water right after reduced that sharp pain. Glad yours improved too, patience pays off sometimes.
"Also found rinsing with lukewarm water right after reduced that sharp pain."
Interesting, hadn't thought of rinsing right away... Did you find it mattered how long you rinsed for? I'm a bit anxious about trying again, worried I'll just make things worse somehow.
Rinsing definitely helps—I usually swish gently for about 30 seconds to a minute, nothing too intense. Honestly, I learned the hard way that colder water makes things worse (trust me, instant regret). Lukewarm is the sweet spot, though it feels weirdly like rinsing with bathwater at first, lol. Just ease into it slowly and you'll probably be fine... and hey, worst case scenario, you can always blame me later if it doesn't help.
