Adult Orthodontics/retainers/long term use

[BABY_EINSTEIN'S_MOM]

I suppose this can be a budget question since I'm
sure my budget will come into play! LOL
Has anyone every had braces only to have to end
up wearing their retainer for eternity to keep their
teeth in place? I ask this because I got braces in
my 20's and am now in my 30's and have been
wearing the retainer ever since! If I don't wear it
for a few nights, my teeth start to move out of
place!

The hygenist where my kids go said this was the
norm when people get braces as adults. Anyway
the problem is that now it appears that this lovely
metal apparatus is wearing my back teeth down!
It appears that I now have some teeth that are
going to have to be worked on!

I am making an appointment this week to
see what needs to be done before it gets worse.

But, I just wonder what I will need to use
"forever" to keep my teeth aligned, since
the metal is causing trouble? I wondered
about the "invisaline" being a possiblity?
Anyway, I'm sure the cost will be dramatic,
as it always is in orthodontics..and most
insurance does not pay for orthodontics
for adults!

 

[camlace]

I also had braces in my early twenties and I am now in my mid-30s and MUST wear my retainer every night. If I do not wear my bottom retainer for even one night my teeth easily move out of alignment. My top teeth I can go a week or so without noticing a difference, but I have a night guard/retainer for the top due to grinding my teeth. If I don't wear that I wake up with an awful headache!

I have not seen a problem with the metal on the bottom retainer wearing down my teeth...maybe its because I have the night guard so I am not directly pushing/grinding the bottom retainer into my teeth?

 

[Adi12982]

My DH uses his invisalign retainer several times a week. . . much better than metal I think. . . He feels his teeth move if he hasn't worn it in a week or two, but not as quickly as you. . . he still tries to wear them a few times a week.

Not sure about the metal - but he has to soak the invisalign in efferdent after used (usually not until right before he is using them again) to clean them. . . but they are great and hold up - he has been using them for the last 4+ years

 

[HugsForEeyore]

Yep - I wear my retainers every other night. And I intend to wear them till I drop dead. I had braces as an adult for 3 and a half years, from ages 33 to 36. I got them off 2 years ago. I have the classic hawley retainer (with the metal and pink parts). It works fine for me, fortunately.

At my "old" age, I have to wear them or everything will shift, especially my lower teeth (one tooth already leans back, and it never straightened the whole time I was in braces). So if I want to keep my new smile, I have to wear retainers forever.

It's the price you pay for the asset of a great smile - no way I ever want to return to my crooked teeth days!

 

[DiZneEChIcK]

I had braces when I was 17, teeth weren't that bad, just had a baby tooth that never came out so needed dental surgery...but anyways, my orthodontist put in a permanent retainer behind both my top and bottom teeth. The top is just a thin wire held on by glue drops on the back of my front 6 teeth, the bottom one is a metal retainer glued behind my teeth as well, but the bottom one looks more like braces, but not as cumbersome. Originally I felt them and they were annoying but now, 16 years later I don't even feel them at all. The only pain is that my dentist has a fun time cleaning behind them and you have to brush a lot more carefully to get all the stuff out.

HTH

Oh, and my front teeth have not moved at all.

 

[kiteri]

I also got my braces in my early 20's and now am in my 30's.

I got the same permanent retainers glued to the back of my top and bottom front teeth as DiZneEChIcK.

You do have to clean more diligently... but I just continued to use my water pik that I used to use on my braces so it wasn't a large inconvenience.

I also don't even notice them back there on my teeth anymore.

There is NO way I could wear a retainer every night. I fall asleep on the couch watching TV or drift off when I tuck kids in and end up snuggling with them all night. I like the spontaneity that I get by having the permanent ones in place!

 

[Honeymooner04]

I have braces now....for the second time. I had braces the first time in my early twenties and didn't wear my retainer as I should have and everything moved again. I spoke to my orthodontist as to why I didn't wear the retainer the first time (I had a hard time with the traditional type that crossed my palate - made me gag) and apparently they have an invisalign type retainer that is clear that will fit over my teeth. We'll see how it works when I get my braces off in a month!!! I plan on wearing my retainer all the time this time because I'm not going through this again. I've been kicking myself since I had the braces put back on two years ago.

 

[leahjade]

I had braces in my 20's as well and wear my retainer once every week or so (whenever I remember or feel them moving!) Once good thing about having braces as a kid is not having to wear retainers all your life!

 

[1PrincessMomma1]

Add me to the bunch. I have to wear mine very night and will always have too.

 

[Karpelt1]

Sorry, but my experiences with adult braces and retainers have been so negative, that it is hard for me to believe that anyone would be willing to wear a retainer for life. As an FYI, I am an older adult. I compare my 1 1/2 years with braces to having to wear a cast on your arm for 1 1/2 years. It impacted my life in so many ways, from lisping like a 12-year-old missing two front teeth, to having my eating/snacking so restricted that I lost 25 lbs. Although I suppose the weight loss was a good thing, in some ways. I was not even remotely prepared. I compare having to wear a retainer nightly for life just to have good looking teeth, to someone telling you you have to wear a arm cast nightly for life just to have good looking nails. There is no way that is a good trade-off! My retainer may just have to go in the wastebasket soon, and I'll consider it a $5,000 lesson. Don't let anyone do anything to your body unless you know 100% what you are getting into.

 

[pintamino]

Sorry, but my experiences with adult braces and retainers have been so negative, that it is hard for me to believe that anyone would be willing to wear a retainer for life. As an FYI, I am an older adult. I compare my 1 1/2 years with braces to having to wear a cast on your arm for 1 1/2 years. It impacted my life in so many ways, from lisping like a 12-year-old missing two front teeth, to having my eating/snacking so restricted that I lost 25 lbs. Although I suppose the weight loss was a good thing, in some ways. I was not even remotely prepared. I compare having to wear a retainer nightly for life just to have good looking teeth, to someone telling you you have to wear a arm cast nightly for life just to have good looking nails. There is no way that is a good trade-off! My retainer may just have to go in the wastebasket soon, and I'll consider it a $5,000 lesson. Don't let anyone do anything to your body unless you know 100% what you are getting into.

I had braces as a child... When I stopped wearing my retainer and my bottom teeth shifted, my ortho (who was old school) told my family we can expect 80% of perfection to retain... Which is fine for me - wearing a retainer for the rest of my life was never going to happen. I have a permanent retainer on my top teeth (front two) but eventually I'll have that removed as well.

Having braces as a child does not preclude you from having to wear a retainer "for life"... Maybe it makes it less likely.

 

[auralia]

I got my braces off at 15. I am almost 30. I have a teeth grinding guard i wear up top to stop me from grinding and hold the top teeth in place. On the bottom i HAD a permanent cemented retainer. On christmas eve, oh yes christmas eve. One side of the retainer detached. The other side was firmly in place and there were no dentists to be had. It was a miserable two day and my teeth began to shift immediately. My mom's dentist (we were 2000 miles from home ugg) managed to fit me in 3 days later and cut the wire off and made me a flimsy temporary retainer (but only charged me 40$ so I thought that was fair) to get me through tell i could see my dentist.

Anyway, long story short. It is costing me 517$ (of which insurance is paying 50%) to have a removable retainer made. To have a new permanent one placed would have been as much, if not more. So theres some $ numbers for you if it helps any. I am thankful that my moms dentist was willing to see me and give me a "patch job" while I was visiting home. My dentist offered another permanent retainer but I told her i didn't want it breaking like this one did at such a bad time. I had that wire flapping around my mouth for 3 days and couldn't eat anything but mashed potatoes and beverages. It was very very disappointing because my mom goes crazy making things for christmas and I couldn't chew any of it ah but my waist line appreciated it i guess. So something to think about when considering a permanent retainer!

 

[MinnieForMe]

My braces came off at 13 and I wore my retainer until 23 (when I got married). One of my biggest regrets is not wearing that retainer a few nights per week. My top teeth stayed in place beautifully but my bottom teeth moved. Now, 20 years later, I'm considering rebracing my bottom teeth.

I wouldn't worry too much about the cost of the retainer, just keep wearing it as the replacement certainly is cheaper than another set of braces!

 

[Straitlover]

I had braces for 17 months (put on when I was 41). I have permanent retainers top and bottom behind my teeth. I also have an invisalign-type upper retainer to wear at night. I don't wear it every night, although I should. If I miss more than one night, it's pretty tight going back on for a night or two.

I don't have to clean mine w/ Efferdent like a PP mentioned; I just brush it w/ my tooth brush w/ toothpaste inside and out.

 

[Sadie22]

I had braces as a teenager. When they came off I was given a rubber device which the ortho referred to as a tooth positioner. After a few years the rubber started to crack and I eventually threw the thing away. The ortho had passed away and I did not see a new ortho. I have had several dentists tell me my teeth have virtually not moved at all in the 40 years since I underwent orthodontic work. Old fillings have cracked and I cracked a tooth which I had to have extracted and replaced with an implant, but overall I have been lucky. I didn't realize how unusual it is for the teeth to stay in place.

 

[reelmom]

I wore braces from age 12 to 16. I am now 38 and still wear my top retainer every night. If I skip a night, my teeth start to shift.

 

[CandleontheWater]

Ugg, sometimes I consider getting braces again as an adult, because my teeth shifted after getting my braces off as a teen.

When I got my braces off at 14 my ortho told me to wear my retainer full time for 6 months (I wore it full time for a year) and then wear it at night for an additional year (I wore it at night until I was 19).

Despite going above and beyond with my retainer, one bottom tooth moved and is a little crooked.

I'm not sure one tooth is worth the expense and hassle of braces, but I am really angry that I kept up my half of the bargain but my teeth didn't!

I really think that if you do not want your teeth to move at all, you really have to commit to retainers for life. I don't think getting braces in your teens absolves you.

 

[8esther8]

I am 50 and have had braces *twice*. The first time in my teens I didn't wear my retainer and my wisdom teeth came in an crowded my bottom teeth together. The second time I was around 40. The dentist felt my teeth would wear unevenly and cause me problems if I didn't get it fixed. I wear a old fashioned wire and plastic retainer on the bottom, and a clear plastic one on the top. I had to wear that set for a year, 24/7, when the braces came off. Now I wear them every night. Don't mind at all. The clear one is nice because it's less noticeable and doesn't make you want to gag. My teeth look great so it's worth the trouble. I'd feel naked without them now

 

[packofjedis]

We're in the planning stages of getting braces for my DS12 (almost 13). I was told by the ortho that whether he chose invisalign or traditional braces, he would be wearing his retainer at night forever. She said the same thing for my other DS who has 2 teeth out of place. Once they move them, the teeth want to go back where they were.