To ask if you have had braces as an adult

[pattyhoo]

My teeth both upper and lower have got more wonky as I've got older. I'm 35 and the past five or so years seem to have got worse. They don't stick out, but overlap a lot and I feel like I now look like a cartoon-character English person.

I'm thinking of having braces but I'm worried about the cost and how long it will take. I'm also concerned that people will laugh at me

Have you had braces as an adult? How long did it take, which type did you have and how much did it cost? Is it worth it?

Thank you

Best money spent ever! Go for it. You wont regret it.

Getting mine fitted on the 25th!! Metal ones as white ones a bit thicker and not as suitable for me. £1500 with £400 deposit and pay a bit at each appointment after that. Time frame 6-9 months.
I am 47!!

I'm currently having Invisalign. Should take about 7 months in total and has cost £3000. They let me pay a chunk up front, then I just pay a bit off each time I go in. They offered finance too, but the application would've slowed down the process and I was keen to get going.

If any of you are in SW London would you please mind recommending your orthodontist? Thank you

I started a thread about this the other day so I’m really interested in the responses.

@Bitchywaitress your transformation is amazing! Did it actually take 6 months?

For those of you who have had Invisalign, how visible is it? How close do people need to be to see it?

Invisalign best £4k spent - I smile all the time now!

@Joyeuxjoel - I have lots of 'attachments' on my teeth, so the Invisalign is more visible than for most people. The attachments are little filling type things stuck onto your tooth. Some people don't need many, but I needed bloody loads. Still, they're not noticeable in photos unless really close up and definitely are less noticeable than standard braces.

I'm in the middle of Invisalign type braces now and I am so pleased with it. I wavered for YEARS and then finally just got on with it recently and I'm kicking myself for not doing it sooner.

I'm doing top teeth only and it is projected to take 3 months and will cost about £1500 in total (the price varies according to how long it takes/how many retainers you need). The way my orthodontist does it is scans/impressions of your teeth and then a set of retainers that you wear for x weeks before moving on to the next set and your teeth gradually get straighter. I'm having 7 retainers and I change them every fortnight.
I paid some upfront and then £200 every time I get a new retainer.

OP- There has been a massive visible difference already, a month in so it's definitely worth investigating now as it's likely much can change before your wedding.

I have to take my retainers out to eat and to have hot drinks, so actually it's changed my unhealthy snacking habits too

For the PP asking for S London recommendations, I go to Tooth which is near Waterloo. Not sure if that's close enough for you but I really recommend them.

Grawnye Can I ask how frequently you need to visit your orthodontist? Do you have to go each time you get a new retainer? I'm put off by the idea of having to make fortnightly trips.

@GinaLinetti99
Thanks for this, it’s really helpful. I’m off to investigate these ‘attachment’ things now!

@grawnye
Only 3 months? Wow, that’s really quick. Is that because there isn’t much movement required?

childrenofthesun
I have to visit each time I get a new retainer. The dentist checks my teeth and occasionally she needs to file between them to ensure there's space. I don't know if everyone has their retainers replaced fortnightly or if it's specific to my treatment plan though so you might find you don't need to go so often.

jolie
I suspect mine aren't an extreme case but o don't know for sure. My issue was mostly with one front tooth being crowded out so it overlapped and stuck out in front, however to move that one, obviously everything else has to be shuffled and expanded so I'm not sure whether, in a way, it's all the same really! Maybe it just depends how far the teeth have to move and that's what takes the time.

I've got three attachments on my front incisors and one front tooth and they're not too noticeable but I agree with PP that they're the most noticeable things. It's more because of the shape than anything else- they're like little dots that stick out.

Can I just ask that for those of you who used Invisalign, do you need to wear retainers of a night when the treatment is finished?

@TroubledMuchly

Will you PM me your blog or post it here? I’d love to see it!

I had 6 month smiles but it took around 14 months i think (but i did have a baby in between so couldnt fit in some of the appointments!)
They were clear but got stained so easily!

@Childrenofthesun, different orthodontists/practices do things very differently. I get 4 sets of aligners at a time (and am currently only changing them fortnightly, but hope to change to every 7/10 days pretty soon), but my ortho uses an app to check on my progress weekly. It prompts me to take photos and video clips with and without my aligners on which are then sent to my orthodontist so he can see if my teeth are tracking as expected and call me in if he spots any issues.

As I said upthread, I'm only a few weeks into my treatment, so I can't vouch for how smooth the process will actually be, but in theory I'll only need to go into the office every 6-8 weeks.

My brother has just completed his treatment with a different orthodontist, who had him in once a month to check on progress, and gave him 2/3 sets at a time to get him through to the next appointment.

I've even seen some people online saying they were just handed the whole set of aligners in one go and sent on their way, with only ad-hoc monitoring along the way when requested by the patient, so it's definitely something to enquire about with each orthodontist you speak to.

@SundayWellSpent, I'm only at the beginning of treatment, but my orthodontist has made it clear that retainers will be a life-long commitment. I'll have fixed metal bars behind my front teeth, but will still need to wear removable retainers every night.

I had an Inman aligner, which is great if the issue is only with your front 6 teeth. It's only really suitable for cosmetic fixes, think it has its limitations for complex cases but it sorted out my overlapping teeth in about 14 weeks.

A little more obvious than Invisalign, and I did have a slight lisp hehe, but could take out for eating and special occasions. I think I paid £2000 all in, for all treatment and 2 retainers.

Doesn't seem to be a popular choice, I presume because it can only correct certain issues, but if you're suitable, and you can find a dentist that offers it, I'd say it is well worth looking into. I would never have gone for 2 years of fixed braces to fix my relatively minor wonkiness, but so pleased with my quick and (relatively!!) cheap result.

Adult braces are pretty common now, no one will laugh.

Joyeuxjoel yes it was 6 months bang on pretty much. My dentist said it could be finished in 5, or could take 9, but I was done by 6 months. I had a small retainer fitted at the back that I can’t feel anymore.

I had tram tracks in my early 20s, my teeth reverted to their original position within 2 years of them coming off. At 34 I had Invisalign and nine years later my teeth are still straight (I wear a retainer 2 nights a week, something which wasn't ever suggested with the fixed braces). It cost me £6,000 (£3,000 each for top and bottom jaw), but I think it's come down a bit in price now. The dentist offered a 0% payment plan over two years, so it was £250 a month.

Hi OP, I had braces from 27-29 years old, I had a huge gap in my front teeth that was getting bigger and bigger and causing the others to start moving too. Wore a fixed train track style brace for 2 years and now I sleep with a plastic retainer.

I opted for the ceramic braces rather than metal as they were a bit more subtle. All in cost me about £1500, I paid £400 upfront and the rest in monthly instalments. One of the best things I ever did, it has transformed my confidence and I smile with teeth and no longer cover my mouth like I used to.

Make sure you wear your retainers for life- all of you

I had train tracks from 31-33y, cost about £2900 (up front payment of about £500 then monthly). They took slightly longer than expected to do the job, but I was very happy with the result. I have fixed retainers and wore the plastic ones every night for about 6 years then less so, I gave up completely when pregnant with DD and was very sick, then never started again. No noticeable movement since.

I got metal train tracks for top front teeth for £1800 last year, including whitening. It took 6 months and I'm very happy with the result. I'm in Scotland. Also, no one laughed or made fun of me.