I’ve been undergoing my treatments for Invisalign for a little over a year now—having started the process back in May of last year. Prior to getting Invisalign done, I can’t begin to share the amount of time put into researching what Invisalign was all about, reading and watching videos about the pros and cons of Invisalign. I was trying to make the best possible decision on whether to go ahead with it or not.
If you’re like me, you like to do A LOT of research before making any big purchases. I treated Invisalign as a big investment. It was one that I wanted to be 110% sure that I wanted and was worth the time, money and effort into ensuring the treatment was right for me. I wanted it to be something beneficial for more than just vanity purposes.
I share quite a bit of my Invisalign journey on Instagram but I didn’t share this –
Prior to my current orthodontist, I actually had signed up and paid to do Invisalign with my regular dentist. That said, it just didn’t feel right and I wasn’t confident in getting them done. My prior appointment said that I needed to get attachments done—which I was very against. But more on that later,
If you’re like me and need to know as much as you can about Invisalign before biting the bullet, this piece is for you. I found it SO difficult to find a comprehensive review of what to expect when I was looking myself.
Disclaimer: I received a discount on my Invisalign treatment with Orthologie. That said, this blog post is not sponsored. The review is completely based on my own experience.
Here are 6 things you need to know before getting Invisalign:
Okay so backtrack. If you haven’t heard of Invisalign before, it’s an alternative to braces that helps you straighten your teeth without the complicated and painful process of having wires in. It’s also removable and clear, which is FANTASTIC! It allows you to easily take them out whenever you want and then put them back in.
Invisalign creates a treatment plan based on scans and technology that creates custom clear aligners that change throughout your treatment to adjust where your teeth sit. If you’ve had retainers before, these are very similar. You’ll get a new set of these clear retainers every so often depending on your treatment plan to adjust your teeth.
Why I decided to get Invisalign done:
I get this question quite a bit because. If you’ve met me, my teeth are pretty much very straight. I’ve always loved my smile and I smile with my teeth quite a bit— my smile is one of my favourite features and that gives you an idea of how much I value it.
When my wisdom teeth came in, I noticed that my two front teeth started to shift minimally. Now, it wasn’t something very obvious to other people, but to me, I saw it all the time. Basically, my right front tooth started shifting in an angle and you can kind of see it in the photos here:
But that wasn’t what made me decide to get Invisalign done.
As it progressed, I started feeling more pressure on my lower jaw. It was increasingly more awkward for me to smile with my mouth closed. It just got to a point where I became so irritated with it and how it looked, that when Orthologie reached out for a partnership, it felt like it was meant to be!
What I found through research BEFORE getting Invisalign done
Invisalign is actually perfect for anyone looking to improve their smile and gain a little more confidence. While it’s mostly adults that sign up for the treatment, it is becoming more popular with teenagers as well because of its flexibility and ease of treatment.
The things I found through other Invisalign reviews and YouTube videos:
- Invisalign hurts ALOT
- You have a lisp when speaking during the first few weeks of your first trays
- No more wearing red or bright lipsticks
- You need to have attachments to help teeth movements
- It’s easy to scrape or cut your tongue
- No manicures or nice nails anymore
- It’s difficult to take the aligners out
- There’s a whole lot of spit
- You need to brush your teeth constantly
- It’s expensive and a commitment
So yes, there were quite a few negative reviews on the process during my research. But what I found after personally getting Invisalign done is that it REALLY differs from individual to individual and how much movement your teeth require.
The great thing is that you can get a consultation done first before committing to anything!
My Experience with Invisalign after 1 year
Alrighty! I’m going to be sharing my personal experience getting Invisalign done with Orthologie. I don’t denounce any of the other reviews and experiences that I’ve researched prior because everyone is different, but here are things through my eyes!
Firstly, you NEED to be comfortable with your dentist or orthodontist that you’re seeing. Trusting them with your smile is probably one of the most important things to do. lt makes or breaks your experience! I opted out of doing the treatment with my general dentist because it didn’t feel right with me.
With Orthologie, I had my consultation with Dr. Derek and he is specialized and trained specifically with Invisalign treatments—which is a big deal! I felt 100% confident in getting it done with him right from the get-go. His experience with Invisalign and listening to my concerns (i.e: never wanting attachments on my teeth) and finding a way to work with that, made me feel confident. More on the process later on!
My experience with Invisalign against what I found other reviews said:
What other people said : Invisalign hurts A LOT
I would say that because the shift in my teeth was pretty minimal. I may not have experienced excruciating pain BUT it does hurt. My very first tray was the weirdest feeling. It’s like a foreign object enveloping your teeth but you get used to it by the 2-3 tray.
It hurt for me for the first 2 days of almost every tray change I did. I changed trays about 1-2 weeks apart and it was more of a dull ache that made it just irritating to have. But again, nothing excruciating.
What other people said : You have a lisp when speaking during the first few weeks of your first trays
Yes, this is true and it was weird haha. I think for my first month of having the aligners in, I found it really hard to enunciate and pronounce my words. My speech was definitely less comfortable than usual. Basically, I had to take them off for meetings at work. But, again, you get used to it. After the first month, I could speak and project my voice exactly the same as I would without aligners in.
What other people said : No more wearing red or bright lipsticks
This is yes and no. Again it really depends. For example, if you’re someone who speaks in a way where you get lipstick stains on your teeth anyway, then having aligners in probably will result in the same deal.
It wasn’t a huge hurdle for me because I wear nude shades a lot. Though I did get a stain on my aligners once and it was a tad harder to get off- so keep that in mind.
It’s not life-changing or anything though.
What other people said : You need to have attachments to help teeth movements
OKAY! Again, totally depends on your teeth. For me, my two front teeth were my concern and I ABSOLUTELY did not want any attachments on because it’s ugly. I do so much camera work that I didn’t want to be self-conscious about it or need to wear aligners during my segments. This was the biggest make or break moment for me.
My first dentist said that I had to get attachments in order to correctly move my two front teeth.
Whereas with Orthologie, Dr. Derek said that we would try to go without attachments and see how my teeth ended up moving. I’m at the very last leg of my treatment and have not needed any attachments in because *tada* my teeth decided to be nice to me and move on its own without attachments.
What other people said :You can easily scrape or cut your tongue + You can’t have manicures or nice nails anymore
I wouldn’t say it was EASY to scrape my tongue. If you play with your aligners with your tongue a lot, yes it would increase the likelihood of scraping it. But don’t be a baby, it’s not that bad. You can scrape your tongue with hard candy too.
Yes, you can totally still get manicures done. I had my nails done as usual and it was completely fine. Though regular polish may chip off, it chips off anyway.
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What other people said : It’s difficult to take the aligners out
It may take some practice over the first few aligners, but I found that after time, it was as easy as popping it on and off. Oo, and I did find *don’t quote me on this* but I found that my teeth really filled out the aligners after that ache curve. It does feel more fitted over the week before the next aligner change.
I remember the first month, I would always pop to the washroom to get my aligners off so I could rinse them. But honestly after I got used to them, I just quickly pop them off and put them on…wherever.
OF COURSE, covering my mouth with a napkin—gosh guys, I’m not that gross 😉
What other people said : There’s a whole lot of spit
A whole lot is relative. I had a mediocre amount of spit.
What other people said : You need to brush your teeth constantly
Dental hygiene is important to begin with. I just gargle after every meal before putting my aligners in.
An important note is that you should NEVER drink or eat anything except water when wearing the aligners. Keep those gums and teeth healthy!
What other people said : It’s expensive and a commitment
This is indeed correct! For the Invisalign treatment to work effectively, you are recommended to wear your aligners daily for at least 22 hours—basically the whole day minus eating time.
It may sound hard and I’ve definitely had days where it went below that 22-hour mark. But it’s not that hard to do to be honest. It becomes a habit over time and my orthodontist would just tell me to keep them on for another week if we’re not where we want to be in terms of teeth movement.
Price-wise, Invisalign is a hefty investment but I look at it as an investment into your smile and confidence!
Like Papa Sito always says, ‘the most important investment is in yourself’.
At Orthologie, they do offer competitive pricing that is slightly cheaper than other places. This doesn’t include other options for Invisalign that you see online. I personally did research on the cheaper options as well but I felt uncomfortable not having a certified orthodontist looking at my teeth. I found that a lot of horror stories with these cheaper options surround the fact that it was purely based on teeth movement for appearance. These other options didn’t look into the bite – which is the functionality of how teeth move for daily use.
You can get Invisalign done with Orthologie at $5000 (Single Payment) or $250 (Monthly). I personally did the monthly option! Important to note: The payment is inclusive of x number of trays you’ll need to get to the smile you want, so it’s nice that there aren’t any extra hidden costs midway.
Now, let’s talk about the Invisalign process:
First Consultation
My first consultation went very smoothly. I met Dr. Derek who would be working with my teeth and we had a discussion about what my goals were, what I was looking for and timing. He gave me a full breakdown of the process, how Invisalign works and the potential costs I was looking at.
First 3D Scans and Virtual Overview of the Treatment
In that first consult, I was pretty much ready to get them done since I had ample time to research and think about it. We took a 3D model scan with this handheld device—it took maybe 5 minutes and that created a 3D movable scan on the computer. Ah, technology.
I found it VERY cool because with that one scan, he could show me where my teeth were at. I got to see how it would evolve through the Invisalign treatment. It was important because through the scan, I could see where the changes would be and one of my earlier concerns was whether it would change my facial structure.
The reasoning is because the treatment would widen my lower teeth slightly to allow more room as my smile was pretty narrow. That said, Dr. Derek was very reassuring that the widening would be very minimal. Fast forward to now, I definitely see my smile as a tad wider but in a good way!
Ordering your trays and the first aligner fitting
Once all the scans were done, all I needed to do was wait for the aligners to be made. Once they arrived, I came into the clinic to have my very first fitting. As I shared above, the first fitting felt weird but if you missed story time, feel free to scroll back up!
Weekly Virtual Check-Ins via a Mobile App
This is one of my favourite parts because it’s so tech-driven! I’m not sure if all dentists/orthodontists use this because my initial dentist consultation told me I had to come in bi-weekly in person for check-ins so best to check with yours.
With Orthologie, we use a mobile app called Dental Monitoring to do all weekly scans prior to switching aligners. This app is available for free on both iOS and Android devices and is linked to my treatment. My orthodontist so he can request scans, make comments on it and send me notifications to switch my aligners to the next, or to keep them on for another week.
The app is so handy dandy. I was given this mouth contraption that’s very similar to that party game where you use that device thing to open your mouth. ANYWAY, all I need to do is scan my smile straight from the app on my phone weekly and that takes like 5 minutes of my day at most.
Definitely makes a difference if you compare it with driving to the clinic every two weeks just for a quick scan.
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If you’re considering Invisalign, I hope you found this post helpful. Feel free to DM me on Instagram or tweet me if you have ANY questions and I’ll be happy to help!
As well, do check out Orthologie, I can’t recommend them enough. This whole process has been so easy and my smile now is just SO much better than I thought, without that lower jaw pain too.
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till next time,
xoxo Sam