Essix vs Hawley

[Jami1]

Hey Everyone,
I got my braces off a few weeks ago after about 17 months. Ortho gave me Essix retainers and said I only needed to wear at night. Well.... that makes me VERY
nervous so I have chosen to wear them as often as possible. Here are my questions:
1. Do Essix retainers stain? I had clear braces and drank coffee through a straw. I remove Essix retainers for drinking coffee and wine (both of which I sip frequently)
2. I spoke to ortho and due to the above, asked him to have a Hawley made so I can wear it while imbibing in my coffee and wine. He readily agreed stating that the night time wear is a bare minimum ( I sometimes don't go to bed until midnight and am up with the roosters)
3. Do Essix retainers "hold" teeth firmer than Hawley? He suggested a type of modified Hawley with the clear Essix type area over front teeth, however I stated that since I felt the reason I wanted the Hawley was due to staining, I opted for the traditional .
I would appreciate any of your thoughts... my Hawley will come in a few weeks.

[jem]

I think essix retainers will stain if you keep them in for drinking tea or coffee.

I have both bonded, essix and hawley retainers . I paid extra for the hawley as I wanted a more durable retainer for the long term. My ortho told me to wear the removable retainer for 12 hours per day initially. She did not mind whether it was the essix or hawley. I chose to wear the hawley, in part because I need not remove it for drinking or eating.

The hawley baseplate is clear acrylic which has stained as a result of drinking coffee without removing it. I think the modified hawley you describe would have the same type pf acrylic added to the labial bow as is used to make the baseplate. The acrylic is used on a modified hawley to get a more exact fit on your front teeth. My ortho achieved the same outcome by having the technician bend the labial wire to fit round each of my front teeth.

Congratulations on your debracing. please make sure you wear your retainers!

Jem

[assertives]

I have both the essix and the hawley. I was told to wear the essix in the daytime and hawleys at night. I'm supposed to wear my retainers for 24/7 and to only take them out when brushing and eating.

I don't wear my essix retainers when I eat or drink anything that's not water. It does stains quite easily. I once saw brown staining on my essixs when I put them in after breakfast. I had residual tea on my back molars. I had to scrub them out and soak them with retainer brite before the stains would come out.

As for fit, they are now both not as tight as when I first got them. The essix was way tighter than the hawleys when I just got them though. I personally prefer the hawleys because they oddly feel more comfortable to me than the essix. As for the acrylic portion of the hawleys, I know some orthos let you choose colors for the acrylic. If yours does, you can choose a darker color where staining isn't going to be much of an issue. Mine doesn't, and comes with the clear acrylic like Jem's.

[Nozzelnut]

I prefer Hawleys too; if they're made right. Essix do work; but if you clench or grind you might grind through them.

One issue I have with Essix style retainers; they never let teeth actually touch. If they made them with a flat area that distributed the pressure simulating bare teeth together I'd like them more.

[LemonTree]

I've never had Hawley but really noticed my Essix loosening up after several years. I've broken a few of them just through wear too.

[jordyke]

I suffer for hawleys, had Essixs before but had a lot of problems with my bite.

[Mndstevens]

I love the idea of having both. This past week my daughter got her braces off and I requested the Hawley to have in addition to the Essix they provide. My orthodontist told me that it would not be a good choice for her. She told me that the Essix retainers hold the teeth in all dimensions. She told me the Hawley only prevents movement front and back, but not up and down or side to side. She told me that based on the issues my daughter had that the Hawley would not hold her teeth properly.

I still have a while to go in my braces, but I really was hoping to have the Hawley to use for work. I’m a nurse who works long night shifts. I sip on coffee through the night at work and you really can’t drink with the Essix as it will sit in the trays causing tooth decay.

[Mndstevens]

Mndstevens wrote:
> I love the idea of having both. This past week my daughter got her braces
> off and I requested the Hawley to have in addition to the Essix they
> provide. My orthodontist told me that it would not be a good choice for
> her. She told me that the Essix retainers hold the teeth in all dimensions.
> She told me the Hawley only prevents movement front and back, but not up
> and down or side to side. She said that based on the issues my daughter
> had that the Hawley would not hold her teeth properly.
>
> I still have a while to go in my braces, but I really was hoping to have
> the Hawley to use for work. I’m a nurse who works long night shifts. I sip
> on coffee through the night at work and you really can’t drink with the
> Essix as it will sit in the trays causing tooth decay.

[Mndstevens]

BTW, how often do you replace the Essix retainers?

[Braceface2015]

I ended up replacing my Essix retainers every 2-3 years, almost always because they’ve cracked somewhere. It’s pretty annoying to have to replace them so often, so I recently gave up on retainers lol

[djspeece]

Not quite relevant to the topic (and I note that this thread started a long time ago), but I'd recommend the Vivera clear retainers. There often is an up-charge, but for me they were aesthetically more acceptable than either Essix or Hawley. I got 4 sets, and I am still on the original two (one at another location, one at home). They are holding upvery well after six years.