Anyone used Invisalign?

[Quicklet]

Over the past year I've noticed one of my bottom teeth shifting and grinding against my front top middle tooth when I chew. The dentist said that if left that way it could cause issues down the road, so I decided to give Invisalign a try. This is my first week, and while I did a little research into it beforehand, I didn't realize how much maintenance was involved and how common it is for people to have to do additional refinements past the first set of trays. My teeth are pretty straight to begin with. I didn't need braces growing up and just want to avoid future wear on my teeth.

Anyone have any positive/negative experiences with Invisalign (or know people who've used it)? I'm mostly concerned with increased risk for cavities and gum recession because of having the trays in all the time, and the possibility that it can shift other teeth around that were fine to begin with.

[Pikarya]

Braces are better. You'll get more pussy too.

[Vandole]

Braces are better. You'll get more pussy too.

http://www.chicagonow.com/lists-that...ult-braces.jpg

YOU REALLY THINK SO, DAD?

[Moss]

So you already saw your orthodontist and got your invisalign? I would think a retainer to wear at night would be enough instead of full timing invisalign but what do I know.

I've been wearing a retainer at night for almost 10 years now since getting braces off and it's kept my teef straight while closing a small gap between my two front teeth.

[TheTaru]

Had Invisalign for like 8 months to correct a little space in my front teeth that wasn't bad enough to need braces. If you can't brush your teeth after every meal, at least swish some water around your mouth a few times. I had absolutely no problems with it.

[Shade]

I had braces etc. back in elementary/jr high. Like a billion years later and now sans-parent's insurance, I went back to the orthodontist because one of my teeth has kinda shifted. Orthodontist gave me one of these, promising an invisible simple solution.

I hate the fucking thing. I've had it for a week. I have the same concerns as you, but I have no idea if they are valid or not. It made my gums really sensitive and bleed in a couple places, the first few days, and its putting dents in the top of my mouth where it's digging in. Yesterday I said "fuck it" and left it out. Feels good man. When I'm done with shifting the tooth, there's supposed to be one that is much smaller that you only wear at night, to keep it from shifting. I kinda want to go back and be like "you know what? The tooth doesn't bother me that much. Just give me the last one." Guess I'll keep trying for now though.


Also - so that's what it's called... lol. My doc has a thick accent, so when he asked if I had heard of it, I thought he said Indesign, and since I am a smartass, I asked "You mean the Adobe suite program?" and he just stared at me.

[Moss]

y'all should really look into getting a simple retainer like this if it can suit your needs

http://www.mynewsmile.com/images/retainer.jpg

[Shade]

That is terrifying.

[Moss]

the glitter kills bacteria

[Pirian]

Fuck braces and fuck the people advocating them <.< they tear the shit out of your mouth. I realize the implications in the faulty lining of teeth, and I'm not advocating taking no actions to fix them, but I would definitely to something like Invisalign. I can't imagine there is any higher risk of cavities than using braces, and simply based upon the fact that you can remove Invisalign to clean your teeth, I would say there is lower risk. Flossing was such a fucking pain in the ass with braces that I didn't do it nearly as often as I should of, but I otherwise took excellent care and ended up with no cavities. I've always had good personal hygiene, though

[Akiyama]

Invisalign is great. I have it now, am on Tray 11 out of 23. My top teeth were..okay in terms of straightness, but my bottom teeth are a bit crooked, so I've been on these. It's great. After you get used to it, it's easy to remove them so you can enjoy your meal, then floss/brush right after, and clean the trays (which is easy) and slip them back into your mouth. As long as you have them in for ~22+ hours a day, you're good. And honestly, after having them in for a while, you rarely even notice them.. unlike braces.

I've had a couple cleanings since I started these (about once every 3 months as the Ortho said) and I haven't had cavities, and never had them even before Invisalign. It's just so infinitely better IMO.

Probably the worst parts of these are the attachments they put on after the first tray or two, which are used in combination with the trays to correct the straightness and all that. They're hard to deal with when removing the trays, but you'll get used to it.

So yeah, these > braces all day err day.

[Ksandra]

Fuck braces and fuck the people advocating them <.< they tear the shit out of your mouth. I realize the implications in the faulty lining of teeth, and I'm not advocating taking no actions to fix them, but I would definitely to something like Invisalign. I can't imagine there is any higher risk of cavities than using braces, and simply based upon the fact that you can remove Invisalign to clean your teeth, I would say there is lower risk. Flossing was such a fucking pain in the ass with braces that I didn't do it nearly as often as I should of, but I otherwise took excellent care and ended up with no cavities. I've always had good personal hygiene, though

WAT IS THIS I DON'T EVEN.

I had braces for like ... 6 years with the most messed up teeth ever. Got them in 4th? grade. Never got a cavity until I was 22. Shit's not that hard to clean. I mean really.

[Moss]

Fuck braces and fuck the people advocating them <.< they tear the shit out of your mouth. I realize the implications in the faulty lining of teeth, and I'm not advocating taking no actions to fix them, but I would definitely to something like Invisalign. I can't imagine there is any higher risk of cavities than using braces, and simply based upon the fact that you can remove Invisalign to clean your teeth, I would say there is lower risk. Flossing was such a fucking pain in the ass with braces that I didn't do it nearly as often as I should of, but I otherwise took excellent care and ended up with no cavities. I've always had good personal hygiene, though

no one seriously advocated braces lol

[Psion]

i hated braces so much. they always scratched the inside of my mouth and i swear they are what caused me to pick up my bad habit of chewing the inside of my mouth. >

I agree invisalign is annoying as fuck, but having used something similar to keep my teeth in place for a while after braces and retainer were done, i can say they were by far the lesser of two evils. Even if it made me feel like a horse champing at his bit sometimes.

[Rhyis.]

Fake teeth since 14. Feels good man.

[Quicklet]

Thanks for all the responses.

My biggest complaint so far is keeping the trays clean. Dentist told me to only use water and hand soap to clean them and that anything else like listerine/toothpaste could scratch or stain the trays, but no matter how much I rinse/clean them it seems like they still smell a bit when I go to put them back in after a meal. I've been good about flossing/brushing after meals before putting them back in, but was wondering if this was a common thing or if I have some kind of super-potent saliva. I've read you can buy tablets to soak them in and will ask the dentist about it when I go to get the next set of trays in a week, but would be interested in hearing if anyone else has found an effective way to keep them clean.

[Drakath]

As mentioned above, why not have a retainer molded for yourself to wear at night? It wouldn't correct the shifted tooth, but it should stop them from moving any further. I've also been wearing a retainer nightly for the last 5 years and none of my teeth have shifted whatsoever.

Fuck braces and fuck the people advocating them <.< they tear the shit out of your mouth. I realize the implications in the faulty lining of teeth, and I'm not advocating taking no actions to fix them, but I would definitely to something like Invisalign. I can't imagine there is any higher risk of cavities than using braces, and simply based upon the fact that you can remove Invisalign to clean your teeth, I would say there is lower risk. Flossing was such a fucking pain in the ass with braces that I didn't do it nearly as often as I should of, but I otherwise took excellent care and ended up with no cavities. I've always had good personal hygiene, though

Cavity prevention is just as manageable with braces as it is without so long as your oral hygiene is in check. That's one of the advantages to getting them after adolescence as you're more likely to give a fuck about taking care of your mouth.

[Shade]

Thanks for all the responses.

My biggest complaint so far is keeping the trays clean. Dentist told me to only use water and hand soap to clean them and that anything else like listerine/toothpaste could scratch or stain the trays, but no matter how much I rinse/clean them it seems like they still smell a bit when I go to put them back in after a meal. I've been good about flossing/brushing after meals before putting them back in, but was wondering if this was a common thing or if I have some kind of super-potent saliva. I've read you can buy tablets to soak them in and will ask the dentist about it when I go to get the next set of trays in a week, but would be interested in hearing if anyone else has found an effective way to keep them clean.

....My orthodontist said to just use toothpaste, and that's what I've been doing. He said that they will become discolored over time, but that is fine b/c you will be getting another one anyway. I haven't been eating with it on because it grosses me out, and I haven't noticed any uh... odor.

[Quicklet]

As mentioned above, why not have a retainer molded for yourself to wear at night? It wouldn't correct the shifted tooth, but it should stop them from moving any further. I've also been wearing a retainer nightly for the last 5 years and none of my teeth have shifted whatsoever.

The bottom tooth was actually putting pressure on the top tooth and starting to wear enamel off the bottom of the tooth. That's the main thing I'm trying to fix.

....My orthodontist said to just use toothpaste, and that's what I've been doing. He said that they will become discolored over time, but that is fine b/c you will be getting another one anyway. I haven't been eating with it on because it grosses me out, and I haven't noticed any uh... odor.

I haven't been eating with it in either. As far as the odor, it's not a strong odor, but it's slightly noticeable if I've rinsed/brushed the trays, left them in the case, and then go to put them back in after eating. It doesn't smell like food or anything either, just like... dried saliva that didn't wash off, I guess.

I've heard some people have used diluted solutions of Dawn or vinegar or hydrogen peroxide to soak them in while you're eating, but haven't tried any of those yet. I was told using a toothpaste can actually cause the odor to come back worse because the abrasives can cause little pockets of air that bacteria can grow in.

It's not a big problem or anything, but I only have 9 trays for the top teeth while I have 19 for the bottom, so once I'm on the last tray for the top ones I'd like to keep it as clean as possible without staining it.

[Shade]

I haven't been eating with it in either. As far as the odor, it's not a strong odor, but it's slightly noticeable if I've rinsed/brushed the trays, left them in the case, and then go to put them back in after eating. It doesn't smell like food or anything either, just like... dried saliva that didn't wash off, I guess.

I've heard some people have used diluted solutions of Dawn or vinegar or hydrogen peroxide to soak them in while you're eating, but haven't tried any of those yet. I was told using a toothpaste can actually cause the odor to come back worse because the abrasives can cause little pockets of air that bacteria can grow in.

It's not a big problem or anything, but I only have 9 trays for the top teeth while I have 19 for the bottom, so once I'm on the last tray for the top ones I'd like to keep it as clean as possible without staining it.

Oh... hmm. Maybe we have slightly different things. I've only got the one tray, and I'm supposed to use it for 7 weeks and then come back, either to get another one, or my final night-only one. How long do you use one if you have like, twenty?