To ask if you've had Invisalign braces?

[Sundiamond]

I'm considering getting braces. I'm nearly 50. The dentist suggested Invasalign braces which I've never heard of until now. I don't mind the clear railroad tracks.

Are Invaslign easy to use/wear and look invisible? Are they better than the traditional?

I have had Invisalign! They are not totally invisible as you have to have little attachments (white) put on your teeth to create pressure points, these help the teeth move more effectively. Obviously it depends how much movement you need how many and where they are placed.

I had loads of attachments first time round and a lot on my front teeth which made me feel they were very obvious but I must say that many people didn’t comment and none of the children I work with said anything (and they are well known for being brutal!)

They were completely worth every second though and every penny. My teeth were awful! Crooked, overlapping, sticking out and they ruined my life but I have lovely straight teeth now

Oh also! They were pretty easy to work into my day to day life. I was probably over zealous as I really wanted my teeth improved so had them in as much as possible. I know someone who hasn’t wore hers much and her progress is not great

Not had them but assisted with the Invisalign treatment many times as a dental nurse and they're brilliant.

Also you would have to wear a retainer after your treatment just like you would with normal braces, usually at night. Otherwise your teeth will start to shift back. Not everyone is eligible for Invisalign though so before you say yes or not be sure your dentist does the scan first!

I had them about 10 years ago. One of the best things I have ever done. I was very good with the rules ( only take out for eating, only drink water with them in). My teeth are lovely. The added bonus is that as you can't snack you lose weight!

Had them. Love the result - totally worth the effort, and money

I had them about 9 years ago. Brilliant - most people didn't even notice them. Can highly recommend, go for it!

Oh, this is encouraging. Thanks.

I've had tooth whitening trays - they look similiar, but I'm assuming they don't feel the same or hinder speech?

Also - I have to wear a retainer at night after? Really?

And how much did people pay, on average, for both upper and bottom teeth?

I had them and don’t have a retainer now- I have a retaining wire placed behind my teeth instead. It means I can’t floss as effectively (as can’t get floss down past the wire) so have to make sure I go to the hygienist every 6 months but it’s so much easier (and less grim!) than having a retainer! I had 7 sets of trays, so 14 weeks- very straightforward and much better than the 1.5 years of train tracks I had as a teenager!

I had them and they take a bit of getting used to and can be a pain taking in and out for eating etc but they're not too bad once you're used to it.

However I only wear the bottom one overnight now and had to change to a fixed one on the top as it wasn't working as well as they hoped and they ended up having to remove teeth.

So kind of a mixed experience but I don't regret it as my teeth are so much straighter now

Hi, I'm on week two and tray two now. I've had attachments on nearly every tooth. You can see the attachments but not as much as conventional braces.

My teeth are prob as bad as you can get fof invisalign for crowded teeth. I have to have alot of filing down of my teeth to make room (ipr), I opted to not have extractions.

I'm also having to wear elastics at night.

I haven't found it painful or difficult in any way.

I'm paying £3500 for top and bottom inc refinements (extra trays of needed), visits to orthodontist when needed, whitening, a night time retainer set and fixed retainers. This is with an orthodontist rather than a dentist and is invisalign comprehensive not light. You can go on the invisalign website to see what experience dentists/ orthodontist have with it.

There is an invisalign facebook support group which is great and from reading on there prices vary massively so def shop around. Maybe worth you having a read on there if you are on facebook.

Sorry OP to jump on this thread, I am also very interested including how much it might cost!

I also wonder how wearing the retainer combines with wearing a night guard? I currently wear a night guard on my top teeth to stop grinding, and I would need invisalign on my bottom teeth. Does anything have any experience of this?

I was around £3800 for both top and bottom teeth.

I had a wee bit of a lisp for a couple of weeks until I got used to my trays but friends and family swore blind it wasn’t as bad as I heard it in my head!

Mine were £4,000. It was amazing watching my teeth get better and better with every set. You get used to it including wearing it at night and removing it in restaurants to eat. It feels weird not wearing it in the end but that joy when you finally have the plastic bits filed off. Totally recommend it.

Dh has them years ago and they were great (except the one time the dog got hold of a months worth of trays and chewed them). Think he paid about £4K for upper only but this was a while ago now maybe 10 years.

I had 6 Month Smile braces but my retainers are actually Invisalign. I hate wearing the Invisalign so I'm glad I went for the short sharp option of braces. Having said that 6 month smiles is only suitable if you don't need your back teeth straightening out.

I'm coming to the final trays of my year-long treatment now (would have been shorter but for lockdown) and it'll feel really weird not to have them in when I'm done. I paid about £3500 for upper and lower sets, with check-ups, etc.

The difference in my teeth isn't dramatic to anyone but me - my front teeth were starting to overlap and a couple of upper teeth have always been slightly twisted - but I wanted to do it before they got any worse (I'm 45). I used the Trayminder app and was vv diligent at first, averaging a solid 22 hrs a day, and minimal snacking, but have to confess things have slipped a bit in the final straight - the hardest thing for me is that you really can't linger over a coffee or have a second one.

Also annoying - lipstick tends to smear on the aligners; extended talking can feel a bit strange, so I take mine out for important calls/Zooms; you will put them in a glass of water while you eat lunch in a cafe, then forget and have to sprint back inside to retrieve them before the table's cleared.

Other than that, it's been surprisingly easy and my teeth are nearly perfect now! Just get past the first week, while your mouth's getting used to wearing a gum shield 22/7 and you think you've made the most expensive mistake of your life.

You asked about hindering speech - I used to find this happened for a few hours when I put a new set in. A bit lispy but nothing too bad and it settled down quickly. I love the results I got and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend. Mine was 11 years ago and I still have wires on and wear my retainers occasionally at night. I did find last year one of my front teeth had moved ever so slightly, and the orthodontist was brilliant in just doing a little adjustment with one new brace

@MidnightFlit - the not lingering over coffee alarms me! Can you explain what you mean? My coffee is a huge part of a morning ritual for me...

I got quotes 4K and 4.5k for invinsalign and a longer treatment time than train tracks at less than half the cost. I'm going train tracks!

Well I had them years ago and wasn’t that impressed actually. My teeth were t mega crooked, it was just one overlapping the the other, the rest were straight.

It did move them but not to the point I thought ‘wow look at my new straight teeth’. It was more ‘erm is that the end result? Surely I need a few more retainers?’ I even questioned the dentist.

I would probably have the train tracks if I had my time over. Yes the Invisalign looked much better but the results just weren’t what I’d hoped

I went with Straight Teeth Direct and they’ve been brilliant. I’m almost done now; on my penultimate set of aligners!

Straight Teeth Direct are £1350 for top and bottom; price was a huge consideration for me. I was personally recommended them because of their value for money and their responsiveness and care during the process - can say this is completely true. They respond so quickly and are happy to answer any questions.

Had to sign a form to say I understand the risks (I know my teeth and gums are healthy, so was happy to do this) and the whole process has been done from home. Haven’t had a single Orthodontist visit, as theIt Clinical Team review your progress via photos on their app.

Also no need for those white contacts on your teeth, or IPR, which seems to be needed with other aligner brands, but not Straight Teeth Direct.

I’d check out their website before going with Invisalign - see what you think!

P.S. r.e. Not lingering over a coffee I’m a huge tea drinker (and coffee) so this was a bit of a culture shock, but I let them cool down just enough to drink now and take the aligners out and drink in 5-10 minutes. It’s because you have to have the aligners in for at least 22 hours a day for it to work and you can’t drink hot drinks with them in!

This is very sad to admit, but the not being able to drink coffee/tea over the course of a morning is really BAD NEWS for me. I write. I drink coffee. It's almost impossible to imagine that not happening....

Maybe I'll be better off with train tracks

I had Invisalign, it was brill! You can drink tea/coffee with them in, but you would need to take them out and rinse the trays and your mouth every couple of hours or so (basically when you go to the loo) to prevent staining. You obviously can't eat with them in.

You definitely will need a retainer for the rest of your life, this is the case with train tracks too - once you're an adult it's too late to fix teeth without a retainer. I now wear mine once a week at night (I was treated 13 years ago). My teeth are still straight.