How well does your middle schooler handle Invisalign?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My middle schooler had Invisalign and said she wished she had gotten traditional braces. And that was a very appearance conscious 7th grade girl. It was inconvenient and annoying to take them in and out as others have said.

I had braces again as an adult and then had Invisalign like retainers to wear a few months after and they were annoying.

I had Invasalign as an adult for a very, very minor spacing issue and hated them so much I wished I had just gone for traditional braces as goofy as that might look on a 40+ woman. SO annoying.

[Anonymous]

I was skeptical about the Invisalign as we grew up with metal braces. But, DC is handling Invisalign with no trouble at all. The initial appointments were even easier and the consecutive checkup appointments are almost 2 months apart, so way less ortho trips. DC only feels a tiny pressure on day 1 of a new tray. DC has no issues with taking them in and out to eat. In fact, their hygiene has improved because now they brush after every meal. Also, they quit snacking and only eat at meal times, so junk food and candy has been completely eliminated from their diet. You barely can see them on their teeth since they are clear. Moreover, you get a new tray every week so they don’t turn yellow. I thought it was a gimmick at first, but they do seem much less painful and are working just as well as metal braces. A genius product.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why would you put that responsibility on a middle schooler? There’s no reason to choose Invisalign over traditional braces for a child.

Omg there are a million reasons. Damage from braces is real. Be thankful it never happened to you or your loves ones.

[Anonymous]

Pros and cons with both

DC1 - traditional braces. Had a few broken brackets and we had to go back to the dentist for repairs. Sometimes a wire would I pop out and that would be another dentist visit. Brushing concerns.

DC 2 - Invisaligns. - less pain, only 1 thrown away tray and we just used the next one. Brushing concerns and later, we sound out these resulted in spots on the teeth because kids this age really don’t brush well and there pressed against the teeth

Neither are great about wearing the retainers. It’s years later. I don’t think DC1 wears his sf all anymore and DC2 is wearing it less and less. Personally, I’d wait until they are much older and more mature to do either. Save Jodi money until you know they will wear the retainer nightly forever or there is no point.

[Anonymous]

My kids has braces at 13 and she’ll be done after 18 months. I got Invisalign and I hate them. Wish I just had traditional braces which I did when I was a preteen. Much easier to take care of and works faster than the trays.

[Anonymous]

We put braces on our 12 year old boy. Then got the insurance on the Invisalign retainer after the braces came off.

[Anonymous]

My 12 (almost 13 year old) DS loves his Invisalign and is doing great. He hasn’t lost any trays and it’s making such a difference in his overbite and crooked teeth. He’s just learned to adapt and he doesn’t do mindless snacking - he just has bigger meals. His hygiene has actually improved as he brushes his teeth around 3 times a day and he has hand sanitizer at all times at school. When he’s at school, the only times he takes it out is lunch. He chews 2 pieces of gum, puts on hand sanitizer and pops the retainer back in. We also have a UV retainer cleaner that he uses a couple times a day to keep the retainers clean. He has to change them out completely once a week so they never get that dirty anyway. He loves that he has no restrictions on food too. It depends on the kid but if you have a kid who is disciplined like mine (and highly motivated to fix his teeth) it can be great.

[Anonymous]

Get braces. So much better.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pp. Btw— you always save the previous week’s tray just in case you lost a tray. This has never happened to us yet. They give you a case to set them in while you eat. The trays are only coming out during eating time. Then you pop them right back in. I wish they had these 30 years ago.

You need to brush and floss after eating before you put them in. I have them and I hate them. They told me 30 weeks, it’s been 60.

[Anonymous]

Both of my kids have opted for Invisalign and it’s been great. Totally depends on the kid. My DD is about 1/3 of the way through and my son finished a little ahead of schedule last year (he was wearing the trays more than what they had estimated and so things moved faster).

[Anonymous]

We love the Invisalign. The kids are very happy with them. It is easy to brush your teeth because there is no wire for food particles to hide behind. It’s also simple to floss because there is no wire. They wear them all day except during meals. There are no complaints. The orthodontist said they will shorten their time estimate for wearing them because they are excellent with wearing them all the time. The best thing is that they are not getting hurt on the inside of their mouth by the wire and their teeth barely ever hurt at all because the weekly trays move your teeth gently and gradually a little bit each week, not one big tightening of a wire with metal braces. They are clear so barely anyone notices them either.

[Anonymous]

We went with Invisalign because my 13yo plays a wind instrument and does theater and contact sports, and he’s pretty responsible about compliance. The cost and treatment time were the same.

So far he’s doing great with them. He’s only lost one tray, which disappeared overnight while he was sleeping and never turned up. We looked everywhere around his bed. I suspect he may have sleepwalked and taken it out and shoved it in a drawer somewhere. Since he was nearly at the end of the week, we just moved to the next tray.

The buttons do pop off periodically and need replacing, but it’s not a big deal. They’re a lot more comfortable for him than braces and he doesn’t have to miss after school activities for frequent appointments.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Why would you put that responsibility on a middle schooler? There’s no reason to choose Invisalign over traditional braces for a child.

I've previously posted here about our daughter, who fractured her teeth doing gymnastics. She is not a candidate for traditional braces, but it turns out she was a great one for Invisalign (they can move other teeth and stabilize the fractured one longer). So it's not correct to say there's "no reason."

And OP, she is 100% compliant. Has never ever lost a tray.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pp. Btw— you always save the previous week’s tray just in case you lost a tray. This has never happened to us yet. They give you a case to set them in while you eat. The trays are only coming out during eating time. Then you pop them right back in. I wish they had these 30 years ago.

You can also pop the next one in.

[Anonymous]

My 8th grader, who is otherwise not the most responsible individual, has done very well with it. I was skeptical going in but all has been well. She is now almost done with her treatment and has obtained great results.