First Day in Invisalign
Congratulations! You started your Invisalign treatment today!
What to expect
- Aligners feel tight
- Teeth may be sore
- Placing and removing aligners is awkward
- You may have extra saliva
- Your bite feels off both with the aligners in and out
- Attachments feel sharp (until they get worn down by the aligners)
Advice:
- Use a pain reliever recommended by your physician or parent. We personally find Advil to be helpful.
- Use the chewies as recommended – these will help decrease teeth tenderness. It is recommended to do this AFTER you use the pain reliever of choice.
- Whether you experience extra saliva OR dry mouth, we recommend keeping a water bottle close by for the first two weeks
- Over the first few days, removing and placing aligners will soften the edges of the attachments.
- The aligners may feel sharp too. Your tissues will become more resistant to this feeling the more you wear your aligners. If you have a sharp spot, polish it with a clean emery board. If the aligners are sharp two aligners in a row, then you should bring the whole box of aligners in and we will polish them for you.
- Wax works well on sharp aligners too.
- The first few days in treatment, your teeth will be sore. Please eat softer foods during this acclimation period.
- During the course of treatment, we are moving teeth into the correct position. The journey your bite experiences may not always be comfortable. This is normal.
Frequently Asked Questions
When do I start my rubber bands (elastics)?
You start your elastics 24 hours after you start your Invisalign. Your elastics should be in whenever you have your aligners in. We expect they should never be out of your mouth for more than 30 minutes at a time. Our goal is 22 hours of wear per day.
How often do I change my rubber bands?
You change your rubber bands 4 times per day. (1) – take them out for breakfast and replace, (2) – take them out for lunch and replace, (3) – Take them out for dinner and replace, (4) – Take them out to brush your teeth before bed and replace.
How should I care for my Invisalign?
We created a post on how to care for aligners and retainers HERE. These tips work very well with Invisalign too!
COMMON ISSUES:
I'm having problems getting my aligners out
Watch the videos in this POST
Bouncy aligners
Use your chewies more, wear your aligners a minimum of 22 hours per day
Sharp trays
Wax, clean emery board, bring them by for us to polish