Zoom!

Today I had my teeth professionally whitened with the Zoom! technology. They like to do four 15 min sessions, but I only made it throuh two. Boy am I ever glad I stopped at 2! The dentist told me it might tingle or burn a little and not everyone can made it through all 4 of the sessions. Well, they got me all set up and put the heating lamp on. Almost instantly I could feel a tingle that then turned into burning, towards the end it was getting pretty painful. Then he came back, asked how I was doing and applied more bleach for my 2nd session. The 2nd one got to where it was unbearable and after that was over I told him I had to stop. He told me there would be some sensitivity to my teeth and gums for a few days and that it was normal. He also told me not to eat anything with color for 48 hours...ummm...what? Haha.
So I came home and did some research online. The only things popping up in my Google searches were horror stories. Things like lips swelling and not going down, blisters, one lady mentioned parts of her gums turning black and eventually to yellow and them falling off with new gum underneath. Yuck, I thought...glad that didn't happen to me! Well, I was wrong...later on I looked in the mirror to find that parts of my gum(at the tips where my teeth meet) were dark brown to black! Luckily only on the sides and not the front so it's not so noticeable, but still! I also have some tiny blistering. The only thing that ticks me off is that at my consultation they didn't tell me any of this. They make you pay when you schedule your appt, so after going over everything at my consultation, we paid(and got a great price, btw). They only told me of some of these things after I already paid and right before they started. My teeth are whiter, though. So I'm happy about that. I really wish they would let you come back for the sessions you weren't able to finish, though since my teeth aren't as white as I'd like. They did send me home with trays and a home bleaching kit.
So, would I do this again or recommend it to a friend? Well, I'm torn. It seems to work well for some, but some people have had some serious complications. I think I'd suggest getting some molded trays and bleach for at home use from the dentist instead.