Retainers After Invisalign: Protecting Your New Smile

Your last Invisalign aligner and your first clear retainer may look almost identical, but they do different jobs. Each aligner moves your teeth a little closer to their planned positions. Your retainer holds them there while the bone and tissues around their roots adjust. As you finish treatment at our Downey office, we’ll explain when to switch to your retainer and how often to wear it.

How Long Should You Wear a Retainer After Invisalign?

Teeth are especially prone to shifting in the first few months after treatment, and they can continue to move throughout your life. That’s why we recommend making retainer wear a long-term habit, even years after your teeth first settled into place.

With a removable retainer, we may recommend wearing it during the day and at night at first, taking it out for meals and oral care. We’ll let you know when you can switch to nighttime wear based on how well your teeth are holding their positions. If there’s a gap between finishing your last tray and picking up your retainer, ask us what to wear in the meantime.

How to Care for a Clear Retainer

A few of the habits you learned with Invisalign will serve you well when you switch to a clear retainer.

• Take it out before meals and before drinking anything other than plain water.

• Put it straight into its case. A clear retainer wrapped in a lunch napkin is easy to throw away.

• Rinse it with cool water when you take it out. Clean it daily with a soft toothbrush and the cleaner we recommend.

• Keep it away from heat. Hot water or an afternoon in a parked car can warp the plastic and change the fit.

If you have a bonded retainer, the thin wire behind your front teeth needs daily care, too. We can show you how to guide floss under the wire to clean between those teeth. Let us know if any part of the wire feels loose.

What if Your Retainer Feels Tight?

A retainer can feel a little snug after a missed night. If it still slips fully over your teeth without pain, resume the schedule we gave you. If one side lifts, you see a gap over a tooth, or it hurts to put the retainer in, leave it out and call us. Biting down to force it into place can damage it.
 

If the fit changes, bring your retainer to your visit so we can check both the tray and your teeth. If you’ve lost or cracked it, call promptly so we can advise you about a replacement.
 

Finishing Invisalign or noticing a change in how your retainer fits? Call Ofir Orthodontics in Downey, CA, at (562) 396-9820 to talk through your wear schedule or book a retainer check.