when is too soon?

If you have finished with your orthodontic treatment and are wearing retainers (or will be soon), this is a special place to connect with others in your (enviable) situation. Ask a question or make a comment about life post-braces.

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clearstepuk
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu May 08, 2008 6:20 am

when is too soon?

#1 Post by clearstepuk »

I'm due to be debraced. I wore the clearstep system (like Invisalign) for 1 year, then retained my teeth using the last tray (like an Essix) for 3 months 24/7 as instructed. The instructions now say that that i need only wear it at nights.

Now my question is I am a bit loathe to debrace during the daytime incase my teeth move. The longest I went without was 4 hours and when i popped the retainer back in it felt tight on my teeth as though they had wanted to shift a little. Is this normal, is this what it feels like to you guys when you pop your retainer back in? Or should I retain 24/7 for a little while longer to be safe?

Procrastin8er
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Apr 22, 2009 7:20 am

#2 Post by Procrastin8er »

No, if your teeth are stable it should not feel tight at night. You should check with your orthodontist, but my teeth moved a bit after years of wearing a retainer only at night, and for the whole time I wore it at night it was never tight. So imagine if had been tight! If it had not broken I would have continued wearing it as much as I needed to feel like it did not put any pressure. And mine was a Hawley style retainer so a lot more visible and affected speech.

You know your body better than anyone else can. If you are OK with continuing to wear the retainers a little bit more, why make yourself sore every night and risk messing up all that nice work? Maybe cut down bit by bit until you find the longest you can leave them out and have them feel comfortable when you return them, and cut down gradually. It could be the way you use your mouth when you talk or eat, or the natural shape of your face and jaws, could give you a greater tendency to relapse.

clearstepuk
Posts: 11
Joined: Thu May 08, 2008 6:20 am

#3 Post by clearstepuk »

Thanks for the reply...even my reply back to you is a little belated!

I also thought that I should leave it in for longer - it's not been bother considering I had these for a whole year. It's now the start of June and I am much more confortable having the retainer out for a longer amount of time. Feeling freedom!!! I think I read somewhere that rather just using the retainer overnight which in my case might only be 7 hours that you should retain for 12 hours for the first year or two. So I have been popping my brace back in either early evening or for a few hours in the afternoon which seems to be working fine and makes me happpy.

How nice is it to be able to talk, smile, sing and feel absolutely fantastic, know you look great and feel so confident in my case for 39 years. So just to say congratulations to everyone here who put themselves through braces and have now come out the other side! A big pat on the back for everyone!! :lol:

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