The world is a crazy, scary place right now with the COVID-19 (aka coronavirus) pandemic, and things are tough for everyone. If there’s one silver-lining I’ve discovered during this period of social distancing and self-quarantining, it’s this: now’s a great opportunity to focus on self-care. While I do love being pampered with massages and manicures, the kind of self-care I’m talking about is simple, everyday home self-care. Utilizing some of my ‘forced downtime’ to focus on myself has helped to ease some of my anxiety resulting from these tumultuous times. Right now, my latest self-care obsession is my new toothbrush. (Yes, my toothbrush.)
When I got home from my UK trip several weeks ago, I discovered my faithful, old electric toothbrush had died. It had a long run, providing me with nearly 10 years of dutiful service, but alas, nothing lasts forever. When I saw the Oral-B electric toothbrushes on sale in the March coupon book, I headed straight to Costco to pick up the latest model: The Oral-B Genius.
The Costco bundle comes with:
- 2 handles (One white and one black for easy distinguishing – which is vital if you share a bathroom with someone else!)
- 2 charging bases (Yay! No more taking turns to charge!)
- 2 travel cases (Each case has room for one handle and two brush heads – perfect for all my future travels!)
- 4 brush heads (2 Precision Clean, and 2 FlossAction.)
The Oral-B Genius has tons of cool new features compared to my old toothbrush – including Bluetooth (yes Bluetooth – but I’ll get into that later). First let me describe the six different cleaning modes:
- Daily clean: This is the standard mode and my preference setting for daily use.
- Pro clean: This mode operates at a higher frequency for an extra clean feeling. I like to use this one after eating anything that really sticks to my teeth, like caramels or gummies.
- Sensitive: This gentler mode operates at the lowest frequency and is recommended for beginners who are making the switch from standard toothbrushes to electric.
- Whitening: This polishing mode reminds me of the same oscillating dental hygienists use when they polish your teeth after your cleaning.
- Gum Care: This mode massages your gums in gentle fluctuating waves.
- Tongue Cleaner: This mode seems to be at a frequency between pro clean and daily clean – not too strong, not too gentle, but perfect for getting all the gunk off your tongue.
The Oral-B Genius toothbrush also remembers the last setting you used, so there’s no need to scroll through each mode on every brush.
This next feature is my absolutely favorite: The Smart Ring with Pressure Control. It’s “smart ring” around the top of the handle illuminates red when you use too much pressure! It’s handy to protect your gums by alerting you when you are brushing too hard, which can cause irritation and contribute to a receding gum line. I’m really excited about this feature because my dentist gets on my case about brushing too hard. Now I am learning to use a gentler hand when I brush.
Sure, my old toothbrush had a timer, but even though I was brushing for the full 2 minutes, my dentist told me I wasn’t brushing thoroughly in all areas of my mouth. He said some areas weren’t getting the same attention as others. With my new Oral-B Genius, after 30 seconds the brush head pulses and the Smart Ring light flashes, so I get both a tactile feedback and a visual cue that it’s time to move to the next area of my mouth. With the help of this quadrant timer I’m now focusing an equal amount of time on each section. My dentist is always raving about the importance of electric toothbrushes — he likes to joke that it’s “the only thing all 5 dentists can agree on.” I can’t wait to tell him about my new upgrade!
I haven’t been using my new toothbrush for that long, but according to the manual, the extra-long battery life that should last at least 2 weeks with regular twice a day brushing. (I’ll be sure to put the battery to the 2-week test on my next trip.)
Okay now onto a seemingly obscure feature: Bluetooth. Yes, that’s right, my new toothbrush has Bluetooth. Why on earth would a toothbrush need Bluetooth, you ask? Well, it’s actual pretty nifty. The Oral-B Genius toothbrush can connect to the Oral-B app on your phone (available for iOS and Android) to not only keep track of your brushing habits, but also coach you into improving your brushing routine and motivate you to practice better overall oral hygiene.
The Oral-B app keeps track of brushing streaks and you can earn badges like “Most Consistent” and “Most Improved.” It also lets you set reminders to floss, clean your tongue, rinse with mouth wash, and it can even remind you when it’s time to replace your brush head based on time and usage. My favorite part about the app is how it evaluates my brushing habits and actually shows me where I’m brushing and, in my case, where I tend to brush too hard. And I do love tracking my streak progress and earning the little motivational badges!
So, turn off the news, get off Twitter & Facebook, and try making small changes that focus on your own self-care at home. Your mind and body will thank you. And if you need a new toothbrush, or if you’ve been considering making the jump from a standard toothbrush to an electric one, I highly recommend the new Oral-B Genius.
The Oral-B Genius Rechargeable Toothbrush 2-pack (item #1399074) is available now at all US Costco warehouses. Extended through 19 April you can save $50 instantly off the regular price of $149.99, and pay only $99.99! Also available for purchase on Costco.com with $4.99 shipping & handing.
Costco carries Oral-B replacement brush head packs as well: a 9-pack Oral-B Floss Action Replacement Brush Heads (item #1819282) and a 9-pack Oral-B Advanced Clean Replacement Brush Heads (item 1819351). Both are $10 off through 19 April!
Until next time,
–the Costco Connoisseur
#GoingToAllTheCostcos
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