My Invisalign Experience with a Top Retainer {Only}: The Bad and the Ugly

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You can read about the good stories of Invisalign everywhere you look. I’m here to tell you about the bad and the ugly. Ever since I naively scanned their QR code in my dentist’s office just for kicks, it’s been one surprise Invisalign experience after another. Worth it in the end? I’m not quite there yet. But yes.

Here are my before and after digital scans: notice how the overbite improves! They can show you what your teeth will look like in the end.

With that said, I’m going to write about the bad and ugly things nobody will tell you about Invisalign. Or at least they don’t tell you until after you eagerly proclaim, “Let’s do it” to your dentist.

My Invisalign experience: Gaps and attachments and lisping, oh my!

1. You need a dentist.

Am I the only one who thought Invisalign was a mail-in aligner company where you get a retainer tray every few weeks, and a few months from now: perfect smile? Nope, you need a dentist or orthodontist.

Trained dentists can offer Invisalign because the cases that work for it aren’t severely crooked teeth.

2. Your Invisalign setup appointment isn’t pleasant if you’re a gagger

Boy oh boy, am I a gagger. They have to fit this oozing gunk the size of a cutie into my tiny mouth. It didn’t fit. I grabbed my pregnant hygienist’s hand and gently directed it elsewhere as I violently gagged on the ooze that was descending into my throat. The second time the tried: I almost threw up on him. He was visibly frustrated, and I was emphatically pissed. I was ready to call it off right here.

Finally, they wheeled over the digital scanner that they use for crowns. *Digital scanning was an OPTION this whole time?

3. You’ll get “buttons” or attachments cemented to your teeth.

My dentist calls the attachments “buttons”. I think this is just to give folks the warm and fuzzies. I refer to them as deadly shards of cement. They are sharp, unyielding shards cemented to your teeth to help your retainer stay in place while moving the teeth to their desired positions. I have 8 on my top teeth–each person’s amount of shards will vary depending on which teeth need moved where. My tongue will not leave the shards alone, and the shards do not like my tongue, nor my gums. Shards are friends with no one.

I hoped my cute little “buttons” wouldn’t be on my front teeth and therefore less noticeable. Just my luck, I have two placed on my right front tooth. One is near the bottom and therefore blatantly obvious to anyone standing within a few feet of me that I apparently have food stuck on my tooth. I’ve gotten into the habit of smiling small so that folks can’t see my shards or Invisalign, but that bottom shard likes to show off proudly anyway.

The shards are especially visible from the sides. See how they hold onto coffee stains a little more than the actual teeth do?

If I’m daydreaming, sometimes my fingers also will not stop touching these annoying little shards, even after two+ months in. They just feel so bizarre–especially that wonky bottom one hanging onto my front tooth for dear life.

4. In my Invisalign experience, the dentist had to give me some gaps

Check out the before/after:

In order for the teeth to move the way they needed to; my dentist had to shave some off some enamel in between several of my crowded front teeth. This was alarming at first because it gave me some small gaps where there weren’t any before. Including between my two front teeth! I’m not talking about a Madonna gap, but any gap between your front teeth that wasn’t already there can make your heart do a flip. Those gaps quickly get filled within a month or so by moving teeth. Still, it’s a nice thing to know beforehand.

It’s fun that Invisalign gives you a link to your own digital teeth pictures where you can hit the play button and watch how your teeth change with each new tray. It makes it exciting to see what the future holds for your smile. I didn’t realize I had so many gaps towards the back. See how they all are filled by the 14th tray?

5. You’ll brush and floss and floss like you’ve never blushed and flossed before

Ok, this probably shouldn’t be a bad thing. And every individual’s experience may differ here. Some may be more “meh” about it, and some may brush six times a day instead of three times a day like I do. But trust me, you’ll want to brush. Those cute shards that stick out of our teeth like barbed wire will trap anything and everything. Even if you’re eating something non-stringy, like crackers, those bad boys will gather up all the excess cracker goo and just hold onto it–menacingly.

Ever hear of the Invisalign diet? It’s a real thing. This may or may not be a bad thing as well. Basically, you’ll snack less because you don’t want to have to constantly brush after. I have IBS, so the less I eat, the less my stomach hurts. It’s not unheard of for me to now skip breakfast and coffee in the morning, then just have non-fruit yogurt for lunch. The fruit-filled yogurt will make flossing at work a necessity. Of course, I’m ravenous when I get home, but then I feel free to pig-out on dinner and brush and floss thoroughly after. If I just drink water in the morning, and eat yogurt for lunch, I can be laxer with the flossing. I can do a quick brushing and then I’m off, and this makes mornings easier when I’m working anyway.

Have I lost weight with my Invisalign diet? Nope. I make up for the lack of snacking by eating way too much for dinner.

6. My Invisalign experience has given me a lisp

I didn’t realize the extent of the lisp until I introduced myself as a class’s “substitute teacher” the day after implementation. Saying your s’s will really bring it out. My husband says it’s gotten better and was only noticeable in the first two weeks. I feel like it’s still plenty noticeable, but it doesn’t bother me much. I’m a forty-year-old woman; who am I trying to impress?

7. Invisalign is NOT invisible

Contrary to the name, my Invisalign is quite visible. It’s made even more apparent by the buttons that I’ve found like to catch the light and almost sparkle when they’re shiny with spit. All I can do is laugh it off and hope that it’s more endearing than revolting.

I notice when people notice. You’ll start talking to someone and suddenly their eyes shift downward to your teeth. As you keep talking, you’ll see the “Aha” moment in their eyes when they realize what sparkling feature in your mouth is catching their eye. Then their eyes quickly divert back to your eyes in the hopes you didn’t notice they noticed.

8. My Metlife insurance does not cover Invisalign. Does yours?

Bummer.

9. Invisalign costs HOW much?

When I first journeyed into this fun-packed adventure, my dentist guesstimated It’d cost around $2800 for the lite Invisalign on my upper teeth only. So just the top tray. I have a permanent retainer bar on my lower teeth, so those aren’t as crooked. When all was said and done, that total got bumped to $3250. Why the jump? Good question.

I haven’t bought braces yet for my kids yet, but back when I had them a few decades ago, I was very aware of the cost. They cost $3000, and “I’d better take care of them or else.” *Cue me NOT wearing my retainer for the next 22 years, and here I am needing Invisalign.

I’d venture to guess that braces cost a little more now like everything else does. Especially for 2022… because. But so will Invisalign for most people if they’re not doing the lite upper-retainer only version. The range I kept seeing on forums for a full set of Invisalign is anywhere from $4,000-$5,600. My upper-only retainer cost $3600 in January 2022.

There are a few things you can do to save money on your Invisalign experience. For one, shop around. I didn’t do this, because I didn’t think that was a thing. But after I put $3k+ on a credit card, I wondered if I could’ve done better. Who knew Invisalign offers are on Groupon! Is the quality as good? You’ll have to be the judge of your local dentists, but for my area, the dentist offering it had great reviews on Google. Once you start with a dentist, you’ll have to finish with that dentist.

I found more savings in the form of a cashback Chase Sapphire credit card. You get $750 back when you spend $4000 in the first three months of owning it. I consider that cash back as 23% savings off my Invisalign cost. Keep in mind there’s also a $95 fee for this card, which I’ll cancel after the first year. I use the “pay yourself back” feature to apply my cash back as a statement credit, but you can also spend the rewards on gift cards or travel.

10. Invisalign makes you tighter with your dentist.

Now I’m not saying this is a bad thing to have to visit your dentist, especially if you like the guy. I have love for Dr. Cook, but he’s still a dentist, and I’ll probably never get pleasure out of a dental visit of any kind. Plan to visit often–I did every 6 weeks in exchange for 3 trays each time. Then for trays 7-9, I wore them only 10 days each and went back in a month. I’ll wear all 14 trays from January 6th to July 6th–six months.

While dental visits might not be a bad thing to some, this can be cumbersome if you work full time or perhaps if you don’t like your dentist.

So, do I regret this Invisalign experience?

“Geez, Holly, betcha wish you didn’t get it. After all, you’ve whined informed readers of legitimate facts about Invisalign for nearly 2,000 words now. You must really regret this misadventure of an Invisalign experience, huh? “

Do I regret getting Invisalign? Heck no. Haven’t you seen all the good stuff Invisalign can do for your smile?

I just found out I can refer folks and both parties get a $50 credit for the referral. Leave a comment if interested.