Tips & Tricks To Get The Most From Your Invisalign Clear Aligners

TIps & Tricks
To Get The Most Out Of
Your Clear Aligners

These Invisalign tips can help you improve your treatment success and make the treatment process as easy and comfortable as possible.

Wear your aligners!

The biggest mistake you can make is simply failing to wear your aligners as often as you should. The goal is to get in 22 hours per day, removing them only to brush and floss your teeth. If you leave your aligners out for too long, it can extend the treatment process or hinder results.

Change your aligners on time

Dr. Hansen will give you a schedule for when you should change your aligners and in which order they should be changed. Each set is typically worn for two weeks. We do not recommend switching to the next set of aligners too soon, this could affect the movement of the teeth.

Combat tenderness as you adjust to the aligners

Dr. Hansen and her team will always take extra care to ensure that the aligners will sit comfortably in your mouth. Still, some people do experience some discomfort while adjusting to the aligners.

The good news is you can take steps to combat the tenderness and soreness to feel more comfortable during the process. We recommend trying these Invisalign tips if you experience sore gums:

  • Avoid crunchy, chewy, and crispy foods when you notice soreness . 

• When it’s time to switch to a new aligner, make the switch early in the day. This gives you plenty of time to adjust before you need to sleep.  

• If you feel a rough edge, let us know right away and we can take care of it.

Keep the last set of aligners

eak or lose your current aligners. This way, you have a backup while you wait for the replacement set. Wear the last set of aligners to prevent unwanted changes. Once your replacement set comes in, restart the 2-week process to avoid delay in your progress.

Rinse, brush, and floss regularly

You will need to take your aligners out at least twice a day to brush and floss your teeth and use mouthwash. Remembering good oral hygiene is still required to ensure your mouth stays healthy and clean while wearing Invisalign.

Invisalign Fun Fact

There can sometimes be a learning curve to speaking normally with aligners in place. At first, you may speak with a slight lisp. Keep practicing talking with the aligners in; it shouldn’t take more than a few days until the lisp isn’t noticeable and you’re back to your normal speech.

Attachments can speed up your treatment

Don’t be afraid to opt for attachments or “buttons” to speed up your treatment. These attachments can hold aligners in place, move a tooth, and treat a broader range of orthodontic cases that the plastic aligners could not otherwise treat. The “buttons” are tiny tooth-colored dots of bonding material placed in strategic locations. These attachments work by ensuring there is the right amount of force in the right places to pull your teeth into alignment.

Take care of the aligners

The aligners are easy to clean and take care of with warm water and antibacterial soap. Regular soap and water are usually fine to clean the aligners but you may also use cleaning products specifically for plastic orthodontics. At our office, we always make sure our patients have the correct and most effective cleaning products for their aligners. We recommend never using toothpaste to clean the trays because it can scratch the plastic.

Wear your retainer after treatment

Once you’ve finished using the Invisalign aligners, you will need to use a retainer to help hold your teeth in their new positions. Unfortunately, some patients think their retainer isn’t all that important because their teeth look straight and perfect. If you skip the retainer though, your teeth may drift back out of alignment. So, we always recommend working with us to determine how often and for how long you should wear your retainer upon completing treatment.

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Patient Testimonials & Reviews

Dr. Hansen's expertise, professionalism, and dedication to patient care is exceptional. My family and I (all Dr. Hansen's patients) are so grateful to be under her care. From a comprehensive initial evaluation, thorough hygienic visits and state of the art dental care (customized crowns made on site!), we are very pleased with the care we receive. The staff is very welcoming, knowledgeable, and trained very well. Dr. Hansen's dedication to quality and optimal patient care is superb. We have had several dental emergencies in the last year and Dr. Hansen has gone above and beyond to help us get thru them safely and with the best outcome possible. Thank you Dr. Hansen! We are so lucky to have you! The Lazarov family

After not seeing a dentist for several years, my teeth needed a lot of work. Dr. Hansen pointed out the most critical areas, presenting options for the remainder. Never had a prior dentist been as concerned for the long term health of my teeth. Dr. Hansen planned treatments in order of importance, and completed all within a year. The highly competent staff set up appointments for me when an outside specialist was required—and their work is highly commendable as well. Every member of the staff is courteous, gentle, supportive, and knowledgeable. They did an excellent job of explaining care and prevention of my teeth and gums. I was shocked at how little I knew about dental care before I went to Dr. Hansen. Now I have healthy, beautiful teeth that I know how to take care of!

I have a fear of doctors and this entire staff went above and beyond to reassure/comfort me. They validated my experience, feelings, and concerns. Norma modified the schedule to assure I was seen in a timely manner. Before my visit Christine emailed me several time checking and re-checking my feeling on coming to confirm I would be greeted and treated in the unique way for my comfort. At first I was reluctant to answer the questions truthfully (I did not want to seem needy) but eventually I did in detail. Something that stood out to be the most was: they rearranged the staff to all female because i mentioned a fear of male professionals.They took their COVID-19 precautions seriously. Meme met my outside to go over a few things and walk me to my room.

TIps & Tricks To Get The Most Out Of Your Clear Aligners