Invisalign

emeejeeayen

Just started yesterday. I had braces as a kid, so I know this isn't worse, but it's SO MUCH MORE ANNOYING THAN I THOUGHT IT'D BE! You can't snack at all without brushing your teeth afterward. It's 8pm, and I've brushed my teeth 6 times today. 

At least it promotes a healthy mouth, right?

And ortho said 6 months until straight teeth. Not so long... but wahh... 

Anyone else straightening their teeth before their wedding? (I needed to do it anyway - crowding was p!ssing off the dentist - but this gave me motivation to actually get it done.)

JordynLeighx3

Nope. I had braces for four years. That was enough for me to make sure my teeth never returned to their original form.

emeejeeayen

I lost my retainer at the end of high school and just figured, "Meh, how bad could they get?" 

My bottom teeth got real bad, haha.

Cortney1982

I had braces taken off 1.5 years ago.  The invisilign problem is exactly why I went the traditional braces route.  I like to eat every two hours and did not want to brush and floss every two hours.  I wear the invislign-ish retainers to bed every night.  I hate them.

CleverThought

I just got my braces of 3.5 years off, and you better believe I will not be going against my ortho's rules about retainers.

I would recommend you get a toothpaste that helps strengthen enamel, brushing your teeth after eating/drinking, especially after something acidic (pop, fruits, spaghetti sauce), will promote enamel erosion.

SD210

I did Invisalign about 4 years ago - - like you, I wore them "full time" for about 6 months.  Today, I still wear my bottom retainer to bed 4-5 times per week.  I had braces in high school and never wore my retainer afterwards (I think I lost it in college and like the poster above, I thought "how bad could it get?"  Well, my bottom teeth moved a lot.  They STILL move, to this day, if I go more than 3 days without wearing my retainer.

As for the Invisalign, I remember when I first put them in, I thought "there is no way I can do this for 6 months."  It was ALL I thought about - - and I thought my speach sounded different, etc.  You do get used to it and soon you can wear them without even noticing they are there.  It does get easier.  It will definitely hurt for a few days each time you swap out retainers to a new one, but that just means your teeth are actually moving!   As for brushing, it is a pain.  I did brush after meals, but honestly, I'm sure there were snacks where I just drank some water and left it at that.  Do the best that you can with it. 
Good luck!

SD210

Also, I actually kept my first pair of Invisalign retainers, from when my teeth were really crooked.  Sounds stupid, but I look at them every once and while when I get lazy about wearing my retainer - - helps me recall what my teeth DID look like prior to Invisalign, and let me tell you, the change is HUGE.