Invisalign retainers!

[Phantom Muse]

Well, today was the day! I have my retainers!!!! They are, in fact, Invisalign retainers, and they feel much like my Invisalign trays, only a little bit less pliable. I am happy about this because I wasn't in the mood to deal with adjusting to the feel of a new sort of tray. Also, because my teeth are now naked, this is the first time in six months where my Invisalign is actually invisible!

I am feeling a bit of pressure on my teeth, however. My ortho had the retainers made with a slight adjustment to the final tray for my lower tooth that was still a teeny bit out of alignment. When he asked me to put the retainers in at the office, I got all nervous because they did not slip on like my final trays that I have been wearing for the better part of a few months! "Might I do this in private?!" I asked. "You might be frightened by my "new tray" ritual!" Well, I managed to put the tray in in front of my audience, and I am adjusting just fine. I did forget, however, to ask him for the final photos he took last visit. I'll have to put that on my "to do" list.

Although my ortho's goal is for me to wear my retainers at night only (and then eventually only a few nights weekly), he has had patients that need to wear them nightly indefinitely. I personally have no problem with that, but I'd like to wean myself away from full-time wear. The current plan is to wear them 24/7 for two weeks, and then gradually increase non-wear time so that by the end of August I am only wearing them 8-12 hours daily.

My ortho did give me an interesting bit of information about Invisalign that I had not read elsewhere. Because the technique has been around less than ten years, there is little if any long-term research about tooth stability after treatment. In my ortho's experience, he has found that Invisalign patients have a greater need to adhere more strictly to retainer wear. When Invisalign creates your treatment, the computer is looking primarily at the crowns of the teeth (the part you see) and not the roots. Because Invisalign also has more difficulty torquing teeth than does regular braces, the roots may not always find their "best" place, thereby making the teeth less stable. Also, if the teeth are straight, Invisalign isn't really designed to then move only the roots. From my understanding, traditional braces have more flexibility in this regard as well.

[liccledevil83]

Well done phantom!! Can't wait to get to that stage. Did you have a choice between fixed or removable retainers?
T x

[Phantom Muse]

Thanks!

My ortho prefers not to do fixed retainers. He likes to give patients the opportunity to retain their teeth without having to have anything else affixed to the teeth. In his opinion, as long as patients are compliant with the removable retainer, all should be well. I want to give the removable ones a good run first to see if everything settles as it should. If I need to wear the removables nightly for life, I am okay with that and would rather do that than have a fixed retainer.

The Invisalign retainer, I will say, feels an awful lot like a new tray today! It is a challenge to remove the lower one for me, so I returned to being an Invisalign "beginner" and skipped lunch! I have always started a new tray before bed so that it has a number of hours to settle, so hopefully removal will be easier tomorrow morning.

[ChicagoJohn]

Hey congrats Phantom! I haven't checked in here in a while. Does this mean that you do not have to do refinements?

I'm on 10/15 upper and have been done with the bottoms since #7. September can't get here fast enough! Man the thought of only having to wear these things at night is like being freed from prison or something. My teeth are looking really straight right now and if I had to stop at tray #10 I'd still be happy with the results. I'm not going to accept refinements because I'm done with this lifestyle after the first run. It's too much of a hassle for me. I want to resume normal living asap!

[havingitdoneintheuk]

Yay well done Phantom, welcome to the retainer club! Here's to longer meals and a more relaxed lifestyle again!

I go on hols tomorrow, I am still wearing my retainer until midday then out until I go to bed. Still not quite ready for just night time only!

Enjoy

[Phantom Muse]

Thanks for your good wishes, ChicagoJohn and UK!

John - I am DONE! No refinements were needed; that was a bit of a surprise, but the last two trays really made a difference for me. I am glad to hear that you are more pleased with your results. Five trays is not so many - so hang in there - and you'll be very pleased with the final results! September is just around the corner...

UK - My retainer is tight! Like "new tray" tight! Soooo I am wearing them 24/7 for two weeks, and then I have been instructed to wean myself until I am only wearing them 8-12 hours by the end of August. Have you worn your retainers so much during the day for so long because teeth are wanting to "wander?" If so, has the "wandering" lessened as time has passed? My upper (former) snaggle tooth wants to wander away if I leave the retainer out for any period of time. I suspect it needs more time to settle, so I will be diligent. Alas, though, I don't feel so "free" yet! My lowers - because I was in my final tray for about four months before retainers - feel more stable. Perhaps it will just take that sort of time for the uppers to feel more stable.

Have a terrific holiday!

[kimnim1]

hi phantom, my uppers have been done for since april months and after about a month my ortho said i can wear it only at night so that's what i've been doing. they do not "wander" and my tray feels fine when i put it in and always did. now my bottom has been done for a couple months and i have done night only wear with it a few times, but it is definitely tight at first. because of this i've only done it a couple times. I usually wear the bottom at work (with maybe a longer lunch!) then leave it out for the evening at home and that doesn't seem as bad. I am guessing the bottom just needs more time to settle like you said. now i go into refinements on thursday and it'll all be moving again anyway

[myhollywoodsmile]

Hi Phantom,
Congrats on being in retainers! I just wondered whether your ortho told you why your retainers were tight? Aren't they supposed to be identical to your last tray?

Anyway, hope they get looser soon.

[mommamorin]

Hi Phantom, congrats on your new smile!
I have been in retainers for 9 plus months now and I find if I keep them out all day my trays are tight! I used to be able to flip my bottom off with my tongue and after keeping them out all day I can't, they feel like having a new tray in. If I keep them out every day and wear the trays from after dinner to breakfast (6pm to 7 am) only, my teeth really shift and it takes several days of more full time wear to get them back into place. Keep a close eye on how your teeth are feeling in the trays and adjust your wear time accordingly.

[Phantom Muse]

Thanks for the kind words, all!

I have been in the retainers almost one week, and they no longer feel so tight. I do, however, still wear them 24/7 (minus meals and a little more) and will for the next 10 days or so. My ortho had my retainer made to provide a tiny bit of movement for one upper and one lower tooth that needed a little bit of movement. That seems to have worked now, and my upper snaggle tooth seems to be staying in place for longer stretches. I am still a little nervous to begin to reduce wear, but I'll be diligent - and since my memory seems to regularly fail me now - will probably chart how it feels each day.

I do wonder if part of the tightness I felt is because the retainer trays are made of a stiffer, heavier plastic. There's very little "give" when taking them out or putting them in. For that reason, I can see how the retainer will do a better job of retention than the final set of trays. For those considering types of retainers: other than the stiffness, the tray feels the same as the regular aligners - which is GREAT - and they are really INVISIBLE! I like them a lot. Can you imagine LIKING retainers?!