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What It Is Really Like To Have Invisalign Treatment As An Adult

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My daughter and I received complimentary Invisalign® treatment, but all opinions expressed are my own. Full disclosure.

A couple of years ago I remember feeling very self-conscious about my smile. It was something that had bothered me for a while and then one day Emmy asked me why I had one tooth that was “higher” than the others. I’m sure my cheeks turned bright red and as much as a three-year-old doesn’t really understand how the things they say can upset us, the truth was, my tooth was higher than the rest and it was because I didn’t wear my retainer after having braces as a teen. That is exactly what I told her and I tried not to let her see that I was embarrassed.

From then on I had a major complex about my smile. I love smiling at people but I also noticed I started doing it less, or not smiling as big as I used to. I knew that if my teeth were straighter, I would feel more confident and better about myself, but I also knew there was no way I was going to have braces again. No way!

So that was that when it came to my teeth, or so I thought.

Then one day I saw an article about Invisalign treatment. The article was geared more towards teens, but I decided to see if they had anything for adults too. In my mind, I couldn’t imagine them only having a solution for teens and I was right. Invisalign treatment can be great for adults and teens!

Fast forward a couple years and I not only started Invisalign treatment, but I have completed it too, so I wanted to write this post about what it is really like to have Invisalign treatment as an adult. I think this is the right time to talk about it because it was very complimentary to my life and as that goes, I will probably not remember the small details for too long!  

Here is what it is really like to have Invisalign treatment as an adult:

  1. It is pretty much the perfect solution for adults, in my opinion, because you can take it off and put it back on again. This doesn’t seem like a big deal, but if you are having an important meeting over let’s say lunch, you can just take your Invisalign clear aligners off before the meeting and then once it is done brush your teeth and your aligners and put them right back in.
  2. Unless somebody really looks, Invisalign clear aligners are virtually invisible. The aligners are clear and fit snugly to your teeth, making them hard to see or notice, in my experience. Each time I switched my aligners (every 7 days or depending on your Orthodontists recommendations) I would get a slight lisp for a couple hours as my tongue adjusts to them. Nobody has ever commented on it and I think I could hear it because I was looking for it, but what I did to avoid that was to switch them at night, right before I went to bed. See #3 for more reasons why I did this.  
  3. In my experience, it wasn’t very painful. I’ve had metal braces, so I’ve experienced both types of orthodontic treatment. I felt some discomfort for the first few weeks as my teeth got used to the idea of moving and wearing the clear aligners. I started changing them at night so that I was asleep during that transition period and then I would wake up feeling great, with little to no soreness.
  4. You can eat and drink anything, you just have to remove your aligners first. That means popcorn, sticky candy and all those things you can’t have with braces you can still have with Invisalign clear aligners. I had to have attachments put on my teeth to keep my aligners in place. They are little pieces that match my teeth, but those can get stained so I avoided things that stain like tea and cranberry juice. Those can also be changed if they do get staining. Other than that, I didn’t really do anything different than before Invisalign treatment.
  5. People who have had Invisalign clear aligners will stop you and want to talk. I’ve had this happen quite a few times and I laugh each time. It is like a secret club. We all are so excited to be seeing our new smiles that we can’t help but stop and say hello to fellow Invisalign clear aligner wearers. It’s actually pretty cool!
  6. Invisalign treatment will get you a straight smile a lot quicker than you think. My total Invisalign treatment time took less than two years from start to finish. Invisalign treatment is now up to 2x faster (due to weekly aligner changes) than it was when I first started, so just imagine how quick you could have the smile of your dreams!

If you are thinking of starting Invisalign treatment, click here to find an Invisalign provider near you to learn more and get started!

Did you make any self-improvement resolutions for 2018?

Heather Reese
the authorHeather Reese
Heather Delaney Reese is the storyteller and photographer behind the lifestyle and family travel blog, It's a Lovely Life®! For the past decade, she has vacationed over 150 days a year with her family. She is a vegan, and loves being by the water, spending time with her children, husband, 2 Shih Tzus and Cat.

27 Comments

  • This seems like such an easier choice than braces. I love that the patient can still still eat and even more that they can come off so that feeling of restriction is not there. My granddaughter needs some slight improvements and I dread her having to wear braces.

  • I’m so interested in getting these for myself and for my 13 year old. Probably my 13 year old first since I’ve waited this long already. They seem like such a great solution.

  • My mom just got Invisalign! She said her dentist recommended it because her bite was out of line and the pressure from that was actually wearing her teeth away but Invisalign came help save them. Pretty cool. She just showed me how the look last week when she visited and I am impressed. I could barely tell they were on until she pointed it out.

  • These sound like a better and pain free option than braces. I’ll have to keep this in mind, should anyone of us in my family need them.

  • I have always wanted to do Invisalign myself. I think it’s great to see others share their experiences as it helps make better choices. I think I’d much rather this than braces!

  • That’s great! I’ve never had braces, but thought if I wanted a little bit straighter teeth, then this would be the route I took. I first noticed Invisalign with my boss. He wore them and started talking in a lisp one day and we were all like what’s going on. He then told us. I think its great when you can change your teeth without all the metal garb.

  • I’m currently doing invisalign right now! I am only three weeks in but already see a difference!

  • My oldest has expressed a desire to do it. He was so adamant about not getting braces when he was a kid that I didn’t do it. I was a very young mom. These days it would be a ‘let’s go to the Orthodontist to get your braces fit,’ because I’m older and wiser. He now wishes I had done that too because he has a hearty gap between his two front teeth..

  • My oldest has expressed a desire to do it. He was so adamant about not getting braces when he was a kid that I didn’t do it. I was a very young mom. These days it would be a ‘let’s go to the Orthodontist to get your braces fit,’ because I’m older and wiser. He now wishes I had done that too because he has a hearty gap between his two front teeth..

  • I wish we had been able to do Invisalign. It was just hitting the market when my kids got braces. They hated having the metal braces. This is such a better option.

  • I have been thinking of getting Invisalign and you have definitely talked about some of the things I was curious about. I’m really worried about how long it will take and if I’d stay committed to wearing them for that long!

    • Hi Kelly,

      That wasn’t an issue at all because you see results pretty quickly, or at least I did and that motivated me to keep wearing them!

  • That’s great to have Invisalign! My daughter has the same issue. Her retainers for her lower teeth broke and she never told me because she knew it would be an added expense. I will let her know about this. She is gainfully employed and I am sure she’d be able to pay to have her teeth aligned!

  • It’s so nice that it can also be an option for adults. I like that it gives you the chance to have your teeth realigned without worrying about wearing braces when you’re over 20!

  • I tried to avoid the topic of getting braces for a long time. I was lucky enough to avoid them throughout the year and I’ve decided to do Invisalign because my teeth were a mess.

  • The invisalign looks really good, I like how you cant really tell you have them, unlike traditional braces. This is a great idea for anyone looking to get those teeth aligned!

  • I have always wanted to look into this for my own teeth. I had braces back in the day but that was before my wisdom teeth came in and gave everything a good shift. My teeth aren’t bad there’s just a few fixes I would like to get.

  • While I think these are a nice option for minor adjustments, I’m still think braces are the better option. But the bottom line is you have to do what makes you happy and feel comfortable, so it’s nice to have options for aligning your teeth.

  • I really wanted these! I was scared it would hurt but you are saying yours didnt hurt I might still consider it.

  • I got my impressions done yesterday for Invisilign and I am so excited to see the upcoming changes. thanks for posting your experience. It definitely is encouraging to hear someone’s success story!

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