I just finished up a year of invisalign. I had overlapping front top teeth and crowded lower teeth. I had a total of 12 aligners on the bottom and 11 on the top (would have been 6 but I had a “refinement” series to correct my bite).
You must commit to wearing them 22 hours a day for the best results. I soaked mine daily in denture cleaner and they stayed decent looking – most people did not notice them on me. It did cut down on random snacks and coffee drinking, since you can’t drink hot beverages with them or they can warp. I would change to the new aligners right before bed, so when I woke up, I didn’t have pain. I didn’t have much discomfort at all, really. I did have to have enamel shaved off 4 lower teeth – about .2 mm worth – to make them fit together. It is completely unnoticeable now.
The cost was $4300 for mine – insurance paid half since I have orthodontics coverage. I have Hawley retainers now – those are the traditional wired kind – because they are more effective than Essix (clear invisalign-type retainer) and can be adjusted if needed. I wear them at night --uh…for as long as I would like straight teeth.
I am pleased with the results. My teeth are straight now and I didn’t have to have a mouth full of metal.
Cool, thanks. Hot beverages are not a problem as I don’t drink them and I don’t usually snack between meals. Thanks for the hint about the denture cleaner. I have an appointment on tuesday so we’ll see.
I take it Invisalign are intended to be worn for longer than just the sleeping hours? I had my braces taken off about 7 years ago, wore a retainer dutifully for about 3 years, but in the last 4 years my bite has completely shifted. It’s now a combination cross-/over-bite. My dentist has been telling me for about a year that I should see an orthodontist (again…), and I think Invisalign is the only way I’d do this. I don’t relish the idea of wearing them throughout the day, though. I think I could only tolerate wearing them at night.
I had regular braces (twice) but did want to comment on this:
I had braces as a kid, didn’t wear my retainer and then had braces again at age 30. I might have been old for braces, but I’m so glad I did it. Now, as a responsible adult, I wear my retainers every night and my teeth are gorgeous. It was a great investment - time, money and the embarassment of wearing braces as an adult.
Even now, 10 years later, I’ll sometimes flip down the mirror in the car and smile to admire my gorgeous teeth. WORTH IT.