Your journey with Invisalign is just beginning! Invisalign is an effective treatment that teens and adults choose as their number one option to straighten their teeth. It’s convenient, allows you to eat all of your favorite foods, and usually only takes one year and a half to complete the process. As a new Invisalign patient in NYC, you need to consider the following tips to help you maintain your clear aligners and stay on schedule.
Tip 1 – Wear Your Aligners
You are required to wear your Invisalign trays 20 to 22 hours every day. They should only be removed from your mouth to eat, brush and floss your teeth. Since you just started your treatment, you might forget to place the aligners back into your mouth. An excellent tip is to set a reminder on your phone to alert you a couple of times a day to assure you are wearing your aligners the recommended time frame.
Tips 2 – Change Your Aligners
Your NYC orthodontist will provide you with a guided plan on when is the right time to change your aligners. Generally, this time frame is every two weeks. However, every patient is different, and your orthodontist will provide the best-suited schedule for you. Always adhere to the schedule otherwise you can interrupt your progress and cause yourself unnecessary pain.
Tip 3 – Brush and Floss Daily
Just because you are wearing aligners, it doesn’t mean you get to ignore the standard brush and floss daily recommendations from your dentist. Always brush and floss after every meal to assure food particles are removed from between your teeth. Avoiding brushing and flossing can cause bacteria to build up in your aligner trays that can lead to infection of the gums, odor and tooth decay.
Tip 4 – Keep Your Aligners Clean
Although you will only be using your aligner trays for two weeks, you still need to keep them clean on a daily basis. Try to soak your aligners while you eat your meals to assure they are clean before placing them back into your mouth.
Tip 5 – Keep Track of Your Aligners
A common reason patients lose their Invisalign aligners is that they place them on a napkin while they are eating. This scenario happens at restaurants and homes on a daily basis. While it’s polite to cover your aligners with a napkin while you are eating, it also causes most people to forget and accidentally throw the aligners out. This mistake causes your teeth straightening treatment to get delayed since you need to wait for replacement aligners. Placing your aligners in their storage case will help prevent this situation from happening.
Allow yourself to become comfortable and familiar with using Invisalign trays. The first time you place them into your mouth and click them into place you might feel uncomfortable because it’s a foreign object in your mouth. You might even speak a bit differently until you get used to having them in place. This feeling is temporary, and once you get used to them, you will forget the aligners are in your mouth.
Are you ready to start your Invisalign treatment with clear aligners?
Dr. Jacquie Smiles began her career in orthodontics dentistry at Boston University and became the first female Director of B.U.’s Predoctoral Orthodontic Department. Since then she has become an expert in orthodontics and opened several offices in New York and New Jersey.
Schedule Your Invisalign Appointment
Contact us today for your no-obligation Invisalign appointment in NYC. You may also call Dr. Jacquie Smiles at 212-972-3522. Our office is conveniently located near 30 East 40th Street Park Avenue, New York, NY 10016.
