Invisalign - The last appointment!

With my Invisalign journey now over I thought it was time to update you all on the removal process.

I wasn’t exactly sure how the attachments would be removed as I had never had braces as a child, but my initial thoughts were that there would be some kind of solvent that would dissolve the glue holding them in place. Instead the attachments had to be filed down with a drill. I am not someone who is afraid of the dentist, though I am sure that everyone agrees having a buzzing sander in your mouth is never a pleasant experience. Luckily, it was over pretty quickly and was completely painless!

With the attachments gone the areas they had adhered to felt a little rough as my dentist was careful not to sand away my enamel (especially as my teeth are super sensitive anyway). The rough feeling persisted for a few weeks, but is slowly getting better as the remaining grit of the attachments  gets worn away. This is not something that was at all noticeable, so nothing to worry about, even if you have attachments on your incisors.

After the Invisalign removal I had a lovely clean and polish of my teeth. I always love having my teeth polished (never whitened as they are too sensitive) so I was happy with the results. Any residual staining from the trays was removed and my teeth looked clean and bright, ready to be shown off to the World!

I was given my last tray to keep along with a new set of trays made from a different plastic. I was told I should wear these for 15 mins every day to ensure my teeth didn’t start moving back into position. I have to confess I haven’t been as diligent in this as the new trays are very brittle and a little uncomfortable. I have tried to wear them a few times a week when I can remember. Mostly I use them in the mornings when I’m getting ready for work so I don’t have to speak as it’s pretty impossible while wearing them!

It is amazing how quickly I have got out of the habit of wearing the trays. When I first had all the attachments removed I expected people to notice, but in fact no one did! Even though very few had commented on the trays while I was wearing them, I thought that some may have been hesitant so as not to embarrass me, but once they were gone they would comment. Evidently this was not the case and I really was over thinking the whole thing.  I guess this really does give testimony to the fact that Invisalign is barely noticeable!

Invisalign - Back on Track

After the few months of delay that I last wrote about I am very pleased to be able to update you all on my Invisalign journey with much more positive news. I am now back on track with a new set of trays without any new attachments!

After wearing the same tray for over 2 months it had pretty much disintegrated and my teeth started to slowly move back to their original position. Luckily, when the new trays came they still fitted so I was very relieved! Even though my teeth had moved back a little they still remained ‘maleable’ in the bone so after about 2 days of discomfort with the new trays I think the previous movement had been reversed, which is great news. :)

I have been keeping close contact with my dentist and going for regular check ups every 2 -4 weeks to make sure the movement is on target as my front two teeth are yet to move into alignment as hoped. Of course as the sets of trays are made through the Clincheck process the computer can only predict how your teeth will move and make the trays to guide the movement. For some reason my teeth haven’t quite moved in the way expected. I have been told that this may be because they are small so more of the tooth is in the bone, which means there is less leverage with the exposed tooth that is being moved by the trays. To try and help with this my dentist has made some small bumps in the back of the tray (using forceps) behind some of the teeth that are targeted for the most movement. This makes the tray a little tighter in these areas and so puts more pressure on the tooth, hopefully encouraging it to move as planned. I am glad that this has been done as it makes sure the treatment is targeted to my progress and should hopefully keep my teeth closer to the movement model generated on the computer.

My dentist has also been really helpful in trying to speed up the process so I have only had to wear some of the trays for 10 days rather than the usual 14. I find that in the last days of the tray there is no movement (absolutely no feeling of pressure) so I do not think this will lessen the results. All it is doing is cutting a little short the rest phases between the movements, but since I had a break in the middle of my treatment and am keen to see results and progress I am very happy to be speeding up the process in any way I can, while still being safe and effective.

I have another appointment tonight to get my next set of trays. I do hope that the adjustments have also made some difference. Keeping fingers crossed!


Are any of you thinking of Invisalign? Do you have any queries or concerns? If you have had/are having this treatment I would also love to hear your thoughts and opinions!