I’m getting my teeth straightened. Yay! My parents never had the money before but dad’s new job is waaaay better. Because I’m in high school my parents are getting me Invisalign. I’m super excited about having invisible braces but wondered if I’ll have to wear a retainer afterward. That won’t be invisible too, will it?

Lacey B.

Dear Lacey,

Congratulations on getting Invisalign. It has a very high patient satisfaction rate. I think you’ll love them, not to mention how much you’ll love having straight teeth. After any orthodontic treatment, it’s common to wear a retainer for several months to a year. This helps to keep your teeth in their proper position. It used to be the only option you had in a retainer were the metal bars. That’s no longer the case.

Retainer Options After Invisalignwa

• Traditional metal bar retainers.
• Lingual retainers. These are metal retainers that fit behind your teeth where no one can see them.
• Retainers with clear aligners, like Invisalign

The key is letting your dentist know ahead of time that you want options for your retainer. Tell him you’re hoping to have discreet treatment, such as you had with your Invisalign.

It’s also a good idea to talk to your parents about it too, hopefully ahead of time, so they’re not blindsided at your appointment. They’ll likely be grateful you’re already taking the initiative and are doing the research ahead of time.

Compliance with Invisalign

It used to be that Invisalign was only for adults. The fear with teens is that they would lose the aligners or wouldn’t remember to keep them in the prescribed amount of time. While Invisalign is an incredible treatment and will likely work faster for you than traditional braces, they only work if you keep them in the right amount of time.

You sound like a very responsible teenager, so I don’t think that will be an issue for you.

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