Considering braces? Maybe it’s time to go wireless

by | Family, Parenting & Family, Sponsored

Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post.

As always, all thoughts and opinions are entirely my own.

I had braces as a kid, and it wasn’t pretty. As if being twelve wasn’t awkward enough, I had braces for years, and they came with headgear.

My dad used to joke about using me to improve the TV’s reception.judy braces

Up until the point my braces were installed, I was flourishing as a novice clarinetist. I was in fifth grade, but had worked my way up to second chair in the sixth grade band. Then  after my braces were installed, the orthodontist told my mom I would have to stop playing the clarinet. I was not happy.

To make things worse, all those wires and brackets ripped the insides of my cheeks to shreds, and the headgear gave me tear-inducing headaches.

I first learned about Invisalign a few years ago when a coworker got them. I was impressed. So was she. She said she was thrilled with the experience.

Rather than brackets and wires that are installed directly on the teeth, Invisalign uses a series of custom made, clear, removable trays to gradually, and unobtrusively realign the teeth.  The trays can be removed to eat, brush teeth, and participate in sports activities, and there is no need for the child to have school photos like mine. (Invisalign can not help with the ill-advised perm.)

Will my child need braces?

It is too early to tell yet if my little girl will need braces; she has not even started losing her baby teeth. But I know the possibility is there, given the teeth that run in the family. If she does need her teeth adjusted, Invisalign Teen is my first choice, and there are a number of reasons for that:

  • Sports: Take a look at the picture of me with those braces. Now, imagine a sports injury, such as a fast ball in the face. Those wires and brackets would make a facial injury so much worse than it would have been without the braces. With Invisalign, there is no mouth full of wire and metal to exacerbate injuries, and the straightening trays can be removed during practice and gameplay.
  • Music: There is no need to stop playing a musical instrument to complete teeth straightening with Invisalign.
  • Food: Because the alignment trays are removed to eat, there are no dietary restrictions. She can continue to eat popcorn, pretzels, caramel, apples, carrots, celery and all the other foods that I was banned from eating during my traditional wire and bracket braces experience.
  • Expenses: the cost of Invisalign is similar to the cost of braces with wires and brackets, and Invisalign is covered by most dental insurance policies just like traditional braces.
  • Fewer Dental visits: With Invisalign, there is no need for the weekly adjustments that I endured, so there can be a great deal more time between visits to the orthodontist. And there is no need for emergency visits due to a broken wire. They went wireless.
  • Accountability: Invisalign Teen is available for teens and preteens. The teen line has compliance indicators on the aligners that fade as they are worn, so parents and doctors can quickly check to make sure they are being worn as required. Additionally, the Invisalign Teen line includes 6 free replacements in case they are lost. Studies have shown that teens actually do tend to wear their aligners 21 hours per day as recommended.
  • Quality: Invisalign was designed with the help of top orthodontists, and it can be as effective as old-school wire and bracket braces for correcting common alignment issues.

When I first heard of Invisalign, as cool as it was, I thought it was only capable of making minor adjustments. But the the amazing team at Invisalign continues to make advancements and increase the complexity of issues that can be treated. Invisalign can correct severe bite issues such  as underbite, crossbite, deepbite, and overbite. They can deal with overly croweded teeth as well as widely spaced teeth.

Take the Invisalign Smile Assessment to find out if Invisalign is right for your child.

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Have you or someone you know had experience with Invisalign? What was that experience like?

Judy Schwartz Haley

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