Before you get your Invisalign, it’s really important to have a full check-up to make sure that there’s nothing going on with the teeth. That there’s no holes, that your gums are okay, and then you can go onto have your Invisalign. When we do the Invisalign, we take impressions, we take photos. I design the new smile, and we can look at a simulation of it. That’s one of the really nice things about Invisalign, as well, over other brands on the market, is that they allow us to view a ClinCheck, which is like a little movie of what the proposed end result’s going to be like.
Once that’s all done and we’re happy, we can order our aligners. They arrive. We put the attachments on the teeth and I teach you how to put the aligners in and take them out. You have to wear them 22 hours a day, so you only remove them when you’re eating or drinking anything other than water. You can brush them with a brush. You’ve got to brush your teeth. You have to look after your teeth. There’s no point straightening them and then having holes. That’s not a good look. So make sure you look after them. If you do not wear your aligners as directed, I will know.
And then I will ask you to wear them for longer, which is going to prolong your treatment unnecessarily, so you have to wear them. And after we are done with the Invisalign, then we can get the retainers made. And generally those initially are worn about 14 or 15 hours a day, and then we just drop down to night time wear. We see you every six months to make sure that everything is still in good order, and that’s a chance to do your check and clean as well and get your whitening.