I am getting Invisalign in a few weeks. It will supposedly take about two years, but I’m assuming a little more.
I’ve heard a lot of horror stories about adjustments, especially with a lot of attachments (I will have a lot). Has anyone done it? Is it a hard adjustment? What’s the worst to expect? Is it worth it?
I had braces as a kid. Old school. My two front teeth slowly moved back to overlap again as an adult. I was not interested in 2 years of braces, invisible or not. For the same cost, I opted for two crowns on my two front teeth and two veneers on either side of those.
Same price, done in 3 weeks, and they look better than my original teeth (my original front teeth were more square shaped but the crowns are slightly elongated which looks better on me.)
In 20 years, I’ve had to have 1 replaced.
No regrets.
following
I had pretty crooked teeth and got braces as a a child. I remember it being super painful to eat for days (sometimes over a week) after my routine adjustment.
If you are just looking to correct a slight misalignment then I would say it isn’t worth it because your teeth will shift back.
Even though I have a permanent retainer for my bottom teeth, the bonding breaks off a tooth every 5-10 years and the wire will bend slightly whenever I get it rebonded. I noticed that one of my lower canines has become slightly crooked despite wearing the permanent bonded lingual wire retainer. This wire also makes it a pain in the ass to floss my lower front 6 teeth.
I have a removable retainer for my upper teeth, I have to wear it every night when I go to bed or my teeth will shift back. I have been wearing this fucking thing for 15 years. Initially I told myself I would stop wearing it once I got married, but I am far to vain to let my teeth shift back. Perhaps I will let my teeth go bad if I ever get fat or once I reach age 65.
Anyways, I won’t push my future children to get braces unless their teeth are so horribly crooked that it will get in the way of them getting laid/married. Straitening teeth is a life time commitment, be prepared to suffer for life.
My teeth were really crooked as a kid, I had braces. They gave me these clear plastic retainers that were basically a mold of my teeth that I could not stand wearing so I tried my best and maybe made it a few years before giving up. My teeth have shifted somewhat, maybe 25% back to the original position, before stopping.
I am pretty sure that stupid retainer was harboring bacteria and rotting my teeth no matter how clean I could get it.
I should have mentioned: Not having to wear a retainer for the rest of my life was also a huge plus for choosing the crowns/veneers over a second round of straightening. I was told it would be a lifetime commitment. No thanks.
The only part that was at all “concerning” and even that is too strong of a word, was that I was having healthy teeth filed away to prep for the crowns. I will always need crowns now. But I’m cool with that. One replaced in 20 years isn’t bad. I figure dentistry techniques can only improve.
My brother had the same issues as me. His were worse bc he never had braces. He recently opted to have several of his front teeth pulled and now wears a bridge. Was much cheaper than braces or crowns. Not what I would have done but to each their own. 
I had braces as a kid. If there’s anyone who really didn’t need braces it’s me. My teeth were never that crooked and my mom basically treated them as a status symbol.
I don’t recommend them unless your teeth are so crooked that they are causing health problems. I have a permanent retainer that I have to brush around and plaque builds up around it. My teeth are less functional than pre-braces since they were sanded down for the sake of appearances.
Really? I’ve had my permanent retainer for almost 30 years and it’s never broken off. I wonder if my experience is unusual.
Word.
I had braces for ~18 months as a kid and had rubber bands for part of it, but that’s about as extreme as my treatment got. I was given a removable retainer for my top teeth and a permanent retainer for my bottom teeth. I didn’t make it very long using the top retainer, but other than some shifting around right before I had to have my impacted wisdom teeth removed, my teeth have remained pretty straight. The permanent retainer is a PITA and I’ve thought about having it removed, but I’m kind of scared to see what happens.
I had braces as a kid. They gave me a retainer.i hated it, and it didn’t last long. My teeth returned to more or less where they were before.
My teeth work well enough. Wearing a retainer for the rest of my life is definitely not a price I’m willing to pay for straighter teeth.
I went to a dentist who thought they needed to be straighter and sent me to an oral surgeon. He said he could fix them permanently by breaking and realigning the jaw. I’d have to drink through a straw for months. He also said that it was basically a cosmetic thing, and if i wasn’t unhappy with my mouth, i shouldn’t do it. So i didn’t do it.
(The molars are fine, my only issue was/is the front teeth.)
30 years is pretty good
Usually I break off the bonding chewing something hard. Once it was a baguette and another time it was dry leftover rice. I’ve also broken off the bonding while flossing under the wire and then pulling the floss upwards to clean under the wire.
My dentist has suggested that I chew slower and floss more gently
I’ve had friends who had their permanent retainer removed and so far so good. If their teeth ever shift their dentist suggested they could fit them for a removable retainer at that time
If my dentist ever offered I’d probably take them up on it but so far he hasn’t
I broke my permanent retainer twice within the first year of having it - once it hit a bone while I was eating either fried chicken or a pork chop or something, I don’t remember what the second was. I never bothered to have them put it back in a thrid time.
So with Invisalign I would have to wear the aligners 22 hours a day until the cross bite is fixed and the teeth are straight, about two years, and then I would get a retainer for overnights thereafter, probably to be worn indefinitely.
Wow! No way I could do that. I’ve known 4 people I can think of who have done Invisalign and all have said they hated doing it but they were reasonably pleased with the results.
My stepdaughter was not pleased with her results, but she also didn’t follow all of the instructions, so
I’ve also known a few people who have done traditional braces as adults and had better results although it’s just as miserable of an experience. Better results is likely due to less choice in following the rules.
Good luck with everything!
Day one. Not painful, but not comfortable. And my tongue isn’t used to all the foreign objects yet. I’m sure it becomes just a part of life.
I would encourage progression pics (1/mo maybe?). Assuming you won’t really notice day to day. I’ve considered the invisalign route as well. Teeth aren’t horrible, but could be straighter and I might gain some confidence off that. Once we get all the crap done to the house we want to get done I’ll revisit the idea again I’m sure.
About to switch to my third tray. My tongue is still getting a little sliced up on new trays but I’ve gotten used to the feeling of having them in my mouth 22 hours a day.
I have to take photos with every tray swap for my orthodontist as I’m only going in every four months or so because covid. Obviously I don’t see a difference yet, and I wonder when I will. But most of the work I’m having done is correcting a crossbite, so it’s mostly molar movement and less stuff in the front teeth. I pulled out the trays for the halfway point (early June) and all my front teeth look like they will be pretty straight by then, so that’s exciting.
Okay so I had braces as an adult (20-22ish), and the pain was really all centered around the few days after the tightening of the metal bar (my dentist suggested Advil liquid gels were the best for tooth aches). And it was the same deal where I had to wear the retainer afterwards for at least 2 years (I don’t think I made it that long), and the movement was really targeted at my molars (3 good teeth pulled, 1 never existed, to even things out).
In my experience, the teeth move to the correct positions fast - however - as my ortho explained it’s not the movement that matters, it’s the root starting to grow in the right direction that does (and that takes a looooong time). Stick with it. Hopefully the Invisalign isn’t nearly as pokey and scratchy and awful as metal braces can be.
I have had 70 trays over two courses of Invisalign, and just got another 15 started today, so I’m looking at about two years total (at least).
My teeth are definitely straight now, and I’m happy with them, but there are some small tweaks my orthodontist wants to make. If they can’t be fixed, I don’t really care.
Oh, and this round I got some metal buttons added, so I have a rubber band mouth. That’s going to take some getting used to.