Braces/Invisalign

[Kleineganz]

Alright so I'm 40 and just getting around to getting braces for my teeth (couldn't afford them as a child and if it weren't for the fact that it's starting to affect my gums, I wouldn't even be getting them now).

I went in to my orthodontist today to get the impressions made for my invisalign braces that I'll be getting in November. Downpayment was $1,700 (ouch), but hopefully it's all worth it!

Anyone else here have experience with invisalign and/or braces in general? What can I expect from all this?

[Diorette]

I want to get them but I'm scared as hell haha
My mom'll taking me to the dentist soon, I'll probably get the clear ones.

[FireBug]

I had them for four years. To anyone getting braces, I would say MAKE SURE you wear your rubber bands. I hardly wore mine and it caused me to have to wear mine LONGER. It was worth it, but I haven't been wearing my retainer and my teeth have lost that perfect straightness, but they're not as bad as they were before.
I wish I would've gotten invisalign. Braces really set up for a lot of post-braces oral treatment. My orthodontist was not that great and left mine on longer than they should have. Even when they were perfectly straight and my dentist said they were, my ortho refused to remove it until I threatened to go to another orthodontist to have them removed. Also, cavities are a lot easier to get as well as plaque build up. But since you're getting invisalign, you'll be fine. You will definitely be sore for a few days afterwords, but ibuprofen should help.

[Diorette]

Does Invisalign works when you have like severe problems? I have "open bite" (just a little)

[Kleineganz]

Does Invisalign works when you have like severe problems? I have "open bite" (just a little)

I think that's best determined by your orthodontist. I had a completely free assessment and my orthodontist then was able to tell me if he could recommend Invisalign for my problems (crooked teeth and an overbite).

[nothinggold]

I had a terrible dentist who put braces on me way too early and I had them for way too long. I finally went to a different ortho who got those suckers off within the week of my first appointment. I think I had mine for like six years?
Braces freaking sucked. I'm sure Invislign is a lot less crappy considering you don't have actual metal glued to your teeth. My teeth still need correcting but they look good enough to me so I'm leaving them be. I am an Invisalign candidate but once again, it's just not worth the money or annoyingness of going to the dentist for me.
Good luck to you!

[helloparis]

I have braces on my top teeth for a year now and I'm 17 and a senior in high school. :/ I feel like I'm the only senior who still has braces, haha. I had to wear an expander for freshman and sophomore year because my teeth was too crowded on top. Yesterday, my orthodonist told me that I'll be getting my bottom braces next visit UM, why did he choose to do it so late?! I'm scared that I won't get my braces off before I leave for college next summer....

I never even thought about Invisalign. Don't you have to always brush your teeth after you eat with when you have Invisalign though, even in public restrooms?

[Kleineganz]

I have braces on my top teeth for a year now and I'm 17 and a senior in high school. :/ I feel like I'm the only senior who still has braces, haha. I had to wear an expander for freshman and sophomore year because my teeth was too crowded on top. Yesterday, my orthodonist told me that I'll be getting my bottom braces next visit UM, why did he choose to do it so late?! I'm scared that I won't get my braces off before I leave for college next summer....

I never even thought about Invisalign. Don't you have to always brush your teeth after you eat with when you have Invisalign though, even in public restrooms?

Yeah it says to brush after eating and putting invisalign back on. For me that wouldn't be that much of a problem. I do eat out a lot but I would just wait until we got back home to do it.

[Sunkissedlove]

I actually just got invisalign a week ago! So far they have really hurt the first few days but now they are better. Most people don't even know I have them!

[Rosewynn]

I had invisalign and then a retainer that was essentially a less expensive invisalign. I had the 'brace' part for 4 years and my teeth were 98% straight. After going to the retainer in about a year my teeth started to shift back. Now about 4 years out they are still better than they were but it wasn't worth the cost to me. I wore both as I was told to; so the 'brace' part 24/7 unless I was eating or brushing my teeth and the retainer was to be worn while I slept or for 8 hours a day. I have no idea what happened. I went back to complain about a year in and my ortho had died. They're solution for me was to get 'discounted' metal braces. I said no thank you. Looking back I wish I would have just got the normal metal kind. (I should also add I wore spacers prior and also had headgear to help before I got invisalign.) No one else has had this problem though that I know at least. Even though invisalign says they can help 'moderate to minor' problems I wouldn't trust it for another other then needing some MINOR changes. I was certainly disappointed with it.

[Kleineganz]

I had invisalign and then a retainer that was essentially a less expensive invisalign. I had the 'brace' part for 4 years and my teeth were 98% straight. After going to the retainer in about a year my teeth started to shift back. Now about 4 years out they are still better than they were but it wasn't worth the cost to me. I wore both as I was told to; so the 'brace' part 24/7 unless I was eating or brushing my teeth and the retainer was to be worn while I slept or for 8 hours a day. I have no idea what happened. I went back to complain about a year in and my ortho had died. They're solution for me was to get 'discounted' metal braces. I said no thank you. Looking back I wish I would have just got the normal metal kind. (I should also add I wore spacers prior and also had headgear to help before I got invisalign.) No one else has had this problem though that I know at least. Even though invisalign says they can help 'moderate to minor' problems I wouldn't trust it for another other then needing some MINOR changes. I was certainly disappointed with it.

Sorry to hear that.

For me the straightening is meant to help alleviate my receding gum issue, so even if they don't stay perfectly straight, as long as it helps that, it's ok. I'm also going with invisalign instead of metal braces because I grind my teeth at night and the invisalign can take the place of the mouth guard I usually wear. With metal braces, I can't wear a mouth guard at all and then my teeth will start cracking again.

[peachesnoranges]

I got braces at 18 (I'm 19 now, still have em). The only problems I had was a big over bite and I got a gap since the adult tooth started growing before the baby tooth came out so it shifted behind another tooth. My orthodontist won't give me my elastics for my over bite till my teeth are PERFECTLY straight, which is annoying. When you get them off, get a permanent retainer. If your orthodontist doesn't do permanent retainers, just go to a different orthodontist.

Make sure you brush your teeth PROPERLY. So you don't have sooo many cavities once those suckers are off. FLOSS, FLOSS, AND FLOSS!

[muh00r]

I had braces for 4 years and followed all the rules. The retainer they gave me ended up being crap so all of my teeth shifted back. I've now had Invisalign for 6 months and I'm sooo happy with them! I'm on my last set but I think I'm going to end up getting refinements. I haven't had any of the horror story issues you read about on the internet - it's just a pain sometimes to have to brush your teeth that often.

I definitely want a removable retainer, not a permanent one. Flossing was hard enough with braces - I don't want to have issues flossing because of a permanent retainer I have to have forever!

[leni]

I would love Invisalign, I hate my crooked teeth so much! Eventually when I can afford it I'll be looking into getting it

[Kleineganz]

I would love Invisalign, I hate my crooked teeth so much! Eventually when I can afford it I'll be looking into getting it

Yeah they aren't cheap. It's one reason why i waited until I was married and on my husband's insurance plan - it covered $1,500 of the cost. That still left me with over $4,300 to pay - which is why I paid the $1,700 down payment so the monthly payment would be less ($155/month for 18 months with no interest). I could have done as little as $800 down payment, but then paid $205/month for 18 months.

[leni]

Yeah they aren't cheap. It's one reason why i waited until I was married and on my husband's insurance plan - it covered $1,500 of the cost. That still left me with over $4,300 to pay - which is why I paid the $1,700 down payment so the monthly payment would be less ($155/month for 18 months with no interest). I could have done as little as $800 down payment, but then paid $205/month for 18 months.

Oh that's so expensive! I don't know how payment works over here or whether insurance convers it, but it looks like I'll be saving up for a while!

I noticed you said you're a teeth grinder, which I am too, and have been all my life (a little less now, only when I'm stressed or in a different bed etc). Did it badly affect how your teeth ended up? Because mine used to be straighter than they are now, so I don't know if it's just growing up or whether my teeth grinding has contributed!

[Kleineganz]

Yeah they aren't cheap. It's one reason why i waited until I was married and on my husband's insurance plan - it covered $1,500 of the cost. That still left me with over $4,300 to pay - which is why I paid the $1,700 down payment so the monthly payment would be less ($155/month for 18 months with no interest). I could have done as little as $800 down payment, but then paid $205/month for 18 months.

Oh that's so expensive! I don't know how payment works over here or whether insurance convers it, but it looks like I'll be saving up for a while!

I noticed you said you're a teeth grinder, which I am too, and have been all my life (a little less now, only when I'm stressed or in a different bed etc). Did it badly affect how your teeth ended up? Because mine used to be straighter than they are now, so I don't know if it's just growing up or whether my teeth grinding has contributed!

Then dentist didn't say if it affected the crookedness of my teeth - all he told me was if I don't wear a mouth guard, I'll severely crack my teeth and may lose some. He repaired the micro-cracks that were already forming. Besides being crooked, I also have quite an overbite, which may also have contributed to how crooked they are.

[volleyball201211]

so... do you wear the invisalign when you sleep? i can't get it then! xD I severly grind my teeth and have to wear this dumb mouth guard or else I get the worst headaches!

[pinksharpie]

I had a terrible dentist who put braces on me way too early and I had them for way too long. I finally went to a different ortho who got those suckers off within the week of my first appointment. I think I had mine for like six years?
Braces freaking sucked. I'm sure Invislign is a lot less crappy considering you don't have actual metal glued to your teeth. My teeth still need correcting but they look good enough to me so I'm leaving them be. I am an Invisalign candidate but once again, it's just not worth the money or annoyingness of going to the dentist for me.
Good luck to you!

I had mine for like six years as well! From elementary school to my last year of high school. Got them off the day before prom.

It was HELLA weird to feel the smooth front of my teeth after so long, that's for sure!!

[Kleineganz]

so... do you wear the invisalign when you sleep? i can't get it then! xD I severly grind my teeth and have to wear this dumb mouth guard or else I get the worst headaches!

I grind my teeth too, but invisalign acts as a mouthguard as well - so you don't have to wear a mouthguard while using invisalign (in fact that's the primary reason why I'm getting invisalign - with metal braces, you can't wear a mouth guard either).