Tough to Adjust at First, but SOOOO Worth It Now - Rhode Island

I can tell you when I first got Invisalign I cried because I couldn't figure out how to get them out of my mouth. Don't let that discourage you. The trick is: first bend the trays a bit back and forth and up a down to get them a bit flexible. Don't bend or stretch too much or the tray will split.

When you put them on, your teeth will ache and be a bit sore for a day or two. It's normal. Take a Tylenol and you'll forget about it. The trick to removing them is to grasp the back left and back right with each hand then pull up and OUT to the sides of your mouth to release the tabs on the front and then pull up. If you just try to pull up, it'll never happen.

Also, sometimes just taking them off from left to right or right to left works depending on the placement of your tabs. Other than that, and the hassle of removing them every time I ate and drank, they have been amazing. I have noticed such a difference. It's been seven months and I can't WAIT to get the tabs off and show off my new beautiful teeth. I will post pictures when they are done!

So here we are a year later after my first Invisalign experience. All in all, it definitely got much easier to handle than at the beginning. The trays came in and out much easier, the chewing of the inside of my cheeks was reduced to minimal, and the knobs weren't as bad as time wore on. Towards the end, I did get a little lax on wearing them for 20 hours- maybe waiting a little longer to put them in after lunch and dinner than I should have, but I was still pretty religious. Towards the end, though, I will admit, I did sip the occasional iced coffee with them on. I know, I know, that's bad, but I was so diligent otherwise!
Ultimately, I went through one whole set, and then the dentist recommended a 'refiner' set which added another 26 weeks. Booooo at first, but I am glad I did it. They had to sort of manually reduce/shave my teeth on the sides in between which wasn't fun, but it's just uncomfortable. No pain or anything.
When I was done with that, the dentist recommended another refiner set to straighten out two of the top teeth that he thought could have used a bit more aligning, but alas, I am not in the pursuit of perfection, so I stopped after two and did not opt for a third round. I now have to wear a retainer most of the day for the next 3 months to ensure that they don't move back. I am okay with that, but I predict the wear will be more like 18 hours a day than 24. :) I am extremely pleased overall. It was well worth the price and the effort. My dentist was excellent and I would highly recommend this experience to others.