Retainer wear - how long before teeth settle idown.

[Duffle]

Hello,

I had my braces removed last week, woohoo!, and was given a fixed retainer on both bottom and top arches and yesterday I picked up my Essix retainers for night wear. I'm supposed to wear my Essix retainers every night for a 'few' months, (exactly how many months will constitute a 'few' is still to be decided), then perhaps once a week thereafter. Now this all sounds pretty good to me. Apparently the fixed retainers will do about 70% of the work by keeping my front teeth in line but the Essix will keep my bite sorted.

What I wanted to ask is how long before your teeth 'settle' in their new places. I know that everyone is different and that teeth are dynamic and will continue to move but it'll be good to hear from those of you who've worn retainers for a while now and who've perhaps noticed a 'slowing down' of movement in their teeth.

[downhillsnowskier]

In my experience, they never really settle. Its different for every person. There's no fixed amount of time you need to wear a retainer, its just an insurance policy.