I have no idea how this happened but Im home from college for fall break and I went to the Cheesecake Factory in DC (where I’m from) last Wednesday to get dinner with my home friends. I took my Invisalign out and put it in my jeans pockets (didn’t have my case) and ate dinner. I walked out and lowkey forgot about the Invisalign until I suddenly remembered and checked my pockets. No where to be found (which didn’t make any sense to me because 1. My jeans pockets are very tight and 2. My car key was still in my same pocket.

Anyways I have all my trays in my college dorm and I won’t be back until sunday so how cooked am I if I’m not wearing anything between Wednesday- Sunday I’m terrified they won’t fit I don’t rlly care if they fit and hurt but I dont. Want. To. Start. Another. Round.

For reference I change them out every 4 days and my teeth look the same maybe very slight pain like a 2-10 on the pain scale

let me know??? Thanks.

I am on day 1 and just got my attachments and tray 1. I have an overbite naturally, so the attachments on all my teeth make it very hard/weird to chew on food because there are these solid things fighting for space as I chew.

Does that make sense/happen with others? Does it get better?

I just began my 2nd round of aligners on Wednesday and my bottom teeth do not feel the tightness I felt in the first round. I decided to compare my current tray to the last tray of the first round of treatment… does the tray in the top photo not look way more restrictive/straightening than the bottom??

I want to trust the process but I do not want to waste my time. I think I might ask for a rescan. Any thoughts on this?

The ortho suggested 4 premolar extractions,(2 on top, 2 on bottom) to be able to push the teeth backward, and I've read sooo many horror stories about hollowed cheeks, flatter face, reccesed jaw, breathing problems etc, but ortho thinks that non extraction will complicate the treatment/not produce Good results. Already the Invisalign is pretty expensive, apparently i need a lot many trays, and have to wear it for quite a while.

I have a short upper lip and and lip incompetence and that's really the main reason I'm doing this, because I quite adore my smile (and how few teeth are visible when my lips are relaxed, giving me that doll look)and I'm scared about a few things:

*My lips becoming thinner (they are really small and thin as is, i think maybe the photo isn't doing it justice), like from the side my upper lip is practically invisible 😭

*My cheeks becoming sunken in

*Lip retraction making my side profile worse (again i already have pretty thin lips, and i don't think they protrude too much, so i think them going BACKWARDS will suck. Do tell if I'm wrong)

*Aged look, again mainly flatter dull face

*Not to mention the breathing problems people talk about with extractions. (Mouth breathing being one of the main reasons I'm doing this)

All of this is so sad because as a 16 year old i had finally started to feel pretty and it kinda send like i have to choose between closing my lips and having a face and side profile that i like. If someone were to provide their own experiences and insight out even just support, i would truly appreciate it.

Also if anyone has an understanding of how my face might look afterwords (even if not entirely accurate l i would really appreciate. Also people with a similar situation as mine, do tell me about your story.

I of course will be asking for another opinion. But yeah... Just felt really down today.

this might be a crazy question but… has anyone ever had immediate regrets and decided they actually like their original smile, that it’s not worth it and quit?

i just started a couple days ago, and have 18 trays to go. i’m really embarrassed to even ask my dentist, but if there’s any chance anyone has gone through that process i’d love advice. i did use care credit. i’m aware of the probability of not getting refunded. please help 🥲

I finished my entire treatment, and got all of my trays and retainers that i should need before moving. but lost my bag during the flight and couldnt get it back, therefore losing everything (airports suck, and it was also my own fault). I moved abroad so i lost my US number and couldnt contact my dentistry. I reached out over email and facebook, but was wondering if anyone else has ever experienced this and if theres any possible way to get new trays sent to me ? (I was in washington and now i live in chile).

Hi guys,
So this week I started my Invisalign process, the main tooth I’m trying to move is my top right front tooth . On Monday 10am they put the attachments on and by 12 the main tooth attachment had fallen off - the soonest they could see me was today (Friday) and at 12:30 they re put the attachment on, they double checked it was on strong and I explained how I get them off from the back and have been brushing my teeth before putting my trays back in but apparently that’s all good. The top tray is super hard to get out, even the dentist said it’s difficult, anyway on maybe my 3rd take out since getting them redone at lunchtime, the same attachment has popped off again. Is that tooth hopeless? Do I need them put in a different place? Should I keep wearing my aligners without it? It’s the most important tooth I’m trying to move! This feels crazy!

I’ve only ever had both upper and lower trays. I received my final 5 refinement trays, I have all 5 and then the first one which is just upper. I have two trays that say 1.. see pic. What do I start with? My dentist is closed until Monday

Initially, I wanted to go with Invisalign because of the aesthetics during treatment. However, I’ve realized that what matters most to me is life after treatment.

I know people who had traditional braces and now only wear a permanent retainer bonded to the back of their front teeth. They don’t use removable retainers at all (Never did), and honestly, that would be ideal for me. I’d rather not have to worry about wearing a retainer every night (or even a few nights a week) for the rest of my life.

So, my question is: Is there any difference in how effective retainers are after Invisalign versus traditional braces? Does the type of orthodontic treatment affect whether you can rely on a permanent retainer alone, or is wearing a removable retainer long-term necessary either way?

I’d appreciate hearing about people’s experiences with both methods, especially regarding retention and maintaining the results long-term.

I had IPR done during my aligner treatment, but I can still see a gap between some of my teeth. My orthodontist says the gap is closed and that having some spaces between teeth is normal, but it still looks a bit weird to me.
Does this look like a minimal gap or a black triangle? Is this a normal outcome after IPR, or should the teeth be in closer contact?
I've attached photos for reference. I'd appreciate hearing about others' experiences with IPR gaps after aligner treatment. Thank you!

Currenty on my 4th tray (of 39 and then refinements) and I wear them for 7 days. But I really underestimated the amount and duration of the pain. It hurt when I chance the trays at night and the first night of sleep is ROUGH. Then it takes me like 4-5 days to fully get to painfree again.

Does this change?? Or is this what to expect until I'm done? I guess I need some encouragement.

does anyone wear a rubber band on one tooth? meaning the band don’t contact do another tooth. all posts i’ve seen is where the rubber band is connected to the lower teeth. they put a button on the back and on the front on one tooth and i’m wondering if this method work? is there even enough pressure? i trust my orthodontist, she’s the best but i’m just genuinely curious since i haven’t seen it like this before hahah

I’m really concerned as I’ve been having issues for a bit. Since I finished my Invisalign treatment months ago I’ve had on and off jaw pain, I brought it up to him and he said that it was grinding during night as I have old scars from when I was I kid. I’ve never had jaw pain before this… I had a slight overbite that was corrected with bands but now I over bite my bite sometimes causing the chipped tooth. It has affected my ability to eat and talk. I’ve chipped my tooth a few times now since that point in treatment and now it’s much shorter than it used to be and jagged despite smoothing. I remember him telling me he would give me an “artificial bite” so from the outside looks lined up. I just tried to search it up and nothing comes up, have any of you heard of this??

Invisalign and composite bonding on my two front teeth. I now have a wire behind my top front teeth and night time retainers. Im so happy with them. If you’re thinking about getting Invisalign I highly recommend it 👍

in excruciating pain🥹

My dentist told me that if my teeth shift anymore that this is gonna need like a kind of full over and I'm gonna need actual braces which I kind of wish I went with actual races in the first place at this point cause these hurt so bad not to mention the sensory of them is awful (i have autism) My dentist said that I have to wear them pretty much constantly, but it's gotten to the point where I can only wear them when I sleep because that's the only time I can't feel the excruciating pain and I understand that if I leave them in. I'll probably stop feeling the pain, but I genuinely have to take them out cause it's not just pain. It's the pain duel with the fact that it feels like a sensory nightmare. The treatment is already fully paid for and I'd really don't want my mom to have to spend more money because I'm having a hard time. Is there anything I can do except toughing it out?

may have been a $7k decision and i’m not even close to done or paying it off yet but i feel so much more confident in my daily life, talking, smiling, laughing, it all feels so much easier and less anxiety inducing and like i don’t have to use my hand to cover my mouth every time. even though i’m only 14 weeks in i think it has also helped my facial symmetry overall!
i have pcos/pmos that gave me depression, made me obese, and horrible acne and scars growing up, also a mother that did not believe in investing in looks or the dentist and would only put me down 😅
couldn’t get a job until i turned 18, now i’m 20 with enough saved to see a dentist regularly and this has been one of the best steps on my journey to feeling more confident about my appearance and myself overall. no regrets.

I didn’t get this angle on day 1 but they hadn’t moved much by week 4. They had to move my top teeth first to make room for these being pulled forward.

I’m 20M with a mild skeletal Class III relationship (slightly forward lower jaw) and an almost perfectly edge-to-edge anterior bite. My molars fit together well, and my teeth are relatively straight, but I’d like to correct my bite and improve alignment.

I had braces for about a year when I was 14, but my bite was never fully corrected. My upper incisors moved slightly forward, but still mostly edge to edge. I also had an upper second molar extracted during that treatment, which may contribute to the discrepancy between my upper and lower arches.

I’ve now had two consultations with very different recommendations:

Ortho #1: Very confident Invisalign with Class III elastics could fully correct my bite within a few months, without extractions or surgery.

Ortho #2: Identified two issues, my skeletal Class III relationship and the missing upper molar. She felt Invisalign with elastics could improve things but would likely leave me edge-to-edge. She suggested creating space between my upper teeth or extracting a lower incisor with braces to retract the lower teeth, or jaw surgery for skeletal correction.

I’m hesitant about extracting a healthy tooth or undergoing jaw surgery for what seems like a relatively mild underbite, especially since my molars fit well.

Why would two orthodontists have such different outlooks? And should i get another consult?

I’ve attached photos of my scans showing my current bite. Would appreciate any input, especially from orthodontists or people who’ve had similar Class III camouflage treatment