Invisalign Tips for Surviving Your First Week

Invisalign tips

Clear Aligners

It is with much anticipation and appreciation that new patients receive their first set of clear aligners, excited and ready to begin the journey to their new smile. If you’re looking for an Invisalign in Everett, you’ll have to wear clear aligners for 22 hours per day, which is a tremendous commitment. Pain and discomfort are common but with the right tips and tricks, you can start on the right track and experience maximum comfort all through the treatment. Good Invisalign tips are based on one simple rule: establishing a healthy, consistent routine that you can maintain throughout the treatment.

Protecting Your Tongue

As you begin the journey, you’ll experience sores in your mouth. This will also be the case at the beginning of the new tray cycles and is due to the plastic edges of the clear aligners, which tend to irritate you. However, with time, your mouth will toughen up. You can improve this by learning how to use dental wax to cover rough spots and sharp edges. You can take a pinch of wax, roll it into shape with your fingers, and apply it in areas that bother you. If the whole section of your retainers is rough and jagged, and wax isn’t working, you can ask your doctor to file them down. To heal those minor oral irritations and provide gum pain relief, use a bottle of peroxide-based mouthwash such as Colgate Peroxyl.

Treating Pain and Discomfort

Clear aligners exert pressure on your teeth, forcing them to get into position. This can hurt, and many people report experiencing pain and discomfort in their jaws and teeth. Chewing exercises several times per day can help, especially when reinserting the trays can really hurt. Chewing exercises produce a massaging effect on the gums, stimulating the flow of nutrient-rich blood to your mouth. It also helps the trays to fit tightly around the teeth, for maximum effect. The blood flow plus the chewing helps with pain relief.

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Wear Time

It’s always a little difficult to adjust to a new routine, and Invisalign treatment is no different. During the course of your treatment, you’ll be taking them out often, as is recommended by orthodontists. But you should always try to wear them for the recommended 22 hours, otherwise, the flexibility can extend your treatment. You can use mobile applications such as TrayMinder, to track how long you’ve worn your aligners and to remind you when you need to change them. You can also carry with you Invisalign accessories such as an extra retainer case, which can help you remember.

Safe Removal

When removing the Invisalign, you need to be sanitary and safe. As your treatment progresses, the trays get tighter and removal becomes harder. You’ll have to find new angles for removal, and you can use tools such as Ortho Key instead. Many patients cheat, as some try to sip a glass of wine or the last sip of coffee with their trays in. However, it should not become a habit. Be mindful of your schedule and safe practices to protect both your teeth and the trays. If you notice the clear aligners are getting a little funky or dingy, you can use a sanitizing spray or pump. Do this before wearing your trays when they’re out to ensure they remain clean and fresh.