Metal Mouth Message Board

I also got permanent lingual top and bottom and an upper Essix that I was told to wear full time for the first few months.

The permanent retainer does not hold all of your teeth in place. That is why you have the other retainer which you need to wear 24/7 since you just got your braces off. Maybe after 3-6 months, you can revisit the retainer wear time with your ortho.

In the beginning, most of use are told to wear our retainers 24/7 except for eating. My friend got her braces removed earlier this year and her teeth are moving back already because she doesn't wear her retainer. Her ortho told her full time wear for 3 months....then night time only. She didn't listen...what a waste!

Very common, actually.

I made the mistake of not wearing my retainer as I was told. Won't do that again.

dono wrote:I made the mistake of not wearing my retainer as I was told. Won't do that again.

Ditto.

And here I am spending another $5K.

Someone else pointed out that the bonded isn't on all of your teeth, it's on the ones most prone to relapse. Yes, we all will have to wear removables 24/7 for some period of time. I'm going to be the most dedicated retainer wearer in all time history after these things come off!

I have permanent wire top and bottom. No retainers. I will see Dr. in a month just to make sure the perm bonds are enough. If not she said I might need an Essix for the bottom teeth only.

zdenka wrote:I have permanent wire top and bottom.

How's flossing?

I know a few people who have both permanent and removable. Punboi01 just make sure you wear them 24/7 as ordered by your ortho.

Am I the only one who was instructed to wear plastic retainer full time for 3 days then just nightly?

Matilda wrote:

zdenka wrote:I have permanent wire top and bottom.

How's flossing?

Little weird but nothing compared to full ortho.

I have top and bottom Vivera (plastic tray) retainers that I wear 24/7 except for eating. I think I was told to wear them for the 1st year this way. I can't wait until I get to nighttime only wear. And I'm so glad I don't have bonded lingual wires. My teeth are staying put.

My daughter just got her braces removed last week, and she has Essix retainers top/bottom. She's been very good about wearing them (probably because I've made it VERY clear that any relapse is her responsibility, completely!!). She was told full time for 9 months, then night only.

It's amazing how different these orthos think.

The funny thing about retainer instructions from orthos' is that they vary just like people do. Some say wear 24/7, some say 12 hours a day, some say only at night etc.

Wearing retainers for how long and how often is a choice you have to make for yourself. Just because someone says "wear them full time for the first three months" doesn't mean one will do it. We have spent thousands of dollars and many years wearing braces so if you don't mind spending additional money and spending more years of your life having to wear braces again, then by all means, don't wear them.

Everyone has/had braces for a specific reason. Most of us are adults so for the years pre-braces, our teeth were in a specific position. We got braces to fix our issues, whether we spent 2 or almost 4 years in braces, just because the brackets and wires have been removed, doesn't guarantee the teeth will stay. Retainers are meant to retain. It only makes sense to continue to wear your retainers as long as you want to retain the end result. As adults, our teeth will shift over time regardless. Wearing retainers should be a lifelong commitment. Maybe not 24/7, or only at night....but maybe once a week.

If you really don't want to be "stuck" with retainers, ask your ortho about a positioner. It is a heavy duty gummy/plastic mouthpiece that after the initial wear, you can go down to only wearing once a week. It puts your teeth right back in proper place, even if you go months without wearing it. One of the ladies at the office only wears hers on Sunday nights and she has been out of braces for over 10 years. Her teeth look amazing beautiful still!

I have seen photos of the relapse from those who just have bonded retainers and choose not to wear the removables, it wasn't pretty.

Good luck to all of you!

Snowglobe32 wrote:The funny thing about retainer instructions from orthos' is that they vary just like people do. Some say wear 24/7, some say 12 hours a day, some say only at night etc.

Wearing retainers for how long and how often is a choice you have to make for yourself. Just because someone says "wear them full time for the first three months" doesn't mean one will do it. We have spent thousands of dollars and many years wearing braces so if you don't mind spending additional money and spending more years of your life having to wear braces again, then by all means, don't wear them.

Everyone has/had braces for a specific reason. Most of us are adults so for the years pre-braces, our teeth were in a specific position. We got braces to fix our issues, whether we spent 2 or almost 4 years in braces, just because the brackets and wires have been removed, doesn't guarantee the teeth will stay. Retainers are meant to retain. It only makes sense to continue to wear your retainers as long as you want to retain the end result. As adults, our teeth will shift over time regardless. Wearing retainers should be a lifelong commitment. Maybe not 24/7, or only at night....but maybe once a week.

If you really don't want to be "stuck" with retainers, ask your ortho about a positioner. It is a heavy duty gummy/plastic mouthpiece that after the initial wear, you can go down to only wearing once a week. It puts your teeth right back in proper place, even if you go months without wearing it. One of the ladies at the office only wears hers on Sunday nights and she has been out of braces for over 10 years. Her teeth look amazing beautiful still!

I have seen photos of the relapse from those who just have bonded retainers and choose not to wear the removables, it wasn't pretty.

Good luck to all of you!

I think this a PERFECT response to the retainer question.

Do you want your new smile retained?
Yes - wear your retainer as instructed/needed.
No - don't wear your retainer.

It's not only to wear them, but to be smart and knowledgeable as well. If you do wear them, and you notice things shifting, visit the ortho. Don't wait. If your retainer breaks, visit the ortho. Keep an eye on bonded retainers and know when one of the points has come loose, or the wire has broken.