For many people, the idea of getting braces as an adult is so embarrassing that they simply refuse to do it, no matter how crooked their teeth may be. While braces may be inconvenient and uncomfortable, there shouldn’t be any shame in wanting to straighten your teeth. Not only will straightening help to make your smile more beautiful, but it’s also good for your overall oral health and it can give you a tremendous boost to your self-confidence.
However, for some, even these great benefits are not enough. The hurdle still seems too high. Fortunately, there are alternative solutions to traditional braces that don’t require awkward metal brackets to be fixed in your mouth indefinitely.
With Invisalign, you can straighten your teeth using nearly invisible aligners that can be removed if necessary.
If you’re looking for Invisalign clear aligners in Camarillo, read on to learn all that you need to know about this easy and effective alternative to traditional braces that can save your smile without killing your confidence.
What is Invisalign?
Invisalign is a relatively new orthodontic treatment that straightens teeth using clear removable aligners, rather than the fixed metal brackets found with traditional braces. The idea behind Invisalign is that the retainers are more discreet than metal braces, eliminating the unwanted attention that can come from the traditional methods for teeth straightening.
Invisalign trays are disposable and must be worn for around 22 hours a day over the course of treatment, generally only being removed for eating, drinking, and practicing oral hygiene. Despite the small window in which the aligners are allowed to be taken out, they still offer considerably more comfort than traditional metal braces.
The amount of time required for Invisalign to straighten your teeth varies depending on your individual case, but the average treatment lasts about one year. Treatment time is determined by your dentist’s assessment of your teeth using digital imaging.
Advantages of Invisalign Near You
On top of being more aesthetically pleasing than traditional metal braces, there are a number of other great benefits to using Invisalign treatment to straighten your teeth.
Treatments Are Quicker and More Comfortable
Traditional metal braces typically take 16 to 18 months to work, but can sometimes take as long as two years. That’s twice as long as the average length of time that an Invisalign treatment requires. Not only that, but metal braces can easily cut your gums and the inside of your lips and cheeks. With plastic aligners, your mouth is a lot safer from harm.
Maintaining Oral Hygiene is Easier
With traditional braces, it’s easy to get food and other yucky stuff stuck between the wires in your mouth, which can be difficult to remove, and flossing becomes a considerably harder task to perform. Removable trays eliminate both of these issues.
Eat the Things You Want
There are a bunch of foods that are considered to be off-limits when you wear traditional braces. Because Invisalign trays are removable, most of these foods are totally fine for you to eat while receiving your treatment.
The Process of Straightening Your Teeth with Invisalign
If you decide that you’re interested in straightening your teeth with Invisalign, your first step is to find a dental clinic in Camarillo that offers the treatment. You can Google “Invisalign dentist 93012,” but we’d recommend that you instead request an appointment with Woodcreek Dental online in order to receive your consultation to determine whether or not Invisalign treatment would be an effective solution for you.
If you decide that you’d like to follow through with the treatment, you will need to take the following three steps in order to successfully straighten your teeth:
Receive a Treatment Plan for Invisalign Clear Aligners in Camarillo
On your first visit, you will need to have an individual treatment plan created specifically for you. To do this, your dentist will take digital images and X-rays of your mouth and make a mold of your teeth in order to create a virtual 3-D model that will allow your dental team to predict the ways that your teeth are likely to move. The model will then be sent to a lab so that your custom-fitted Invisalign trays can be created. This process takes about three to four weeks.
Wear Your Aligners Exactly as Prescribed
Once your custom-made aligners are prepared and sent to your dentist’s office, you will return in order to retrieve them and receive specific instructions on how to use them. Your aligners should be worn for around 22 hours a day, every day, meaning that you should only remove them when you drink or eat a meal and whenever you need to brush or floss your teeth.
After two weeks, your teeth should have shifted enough that you’ll need to switch to your next set of aligners in order to continue your progress. Be sure to keep up with this process or your treatment might take longer than expected.
You should not drink with your aligners in your mouth. Hot drinks can warp the plastic, rendering the aligner useless, and sugary or acidic drinks can become caught beneath the aligner, causing tooth decay. Certain drinks can also stain your aligners, defeating the purpose of clear braces.
Wear a Retainer to Maintain Your Progress
The process of your Invisalign treatment will generally take about a year, but your treatment could be complete in as little as six months, depending on your particular situation. Once you’ve followed your treatment plan through and you’re now the proud owner of a brand-new, perfectly straight smile, you’re going to need to wear a retainer in order to ensure that your teeth don’t shift back to their original position before enough stabilizing bone is allowed to develop around them. This process usually takes around 9 to 12 months from start to finish.
Looking for a Dentist in Camarillo?
If you’re in need of a dentist in Camarillo, CA, look no further than Woodcreek Dental! Contact us or call (805) 482-6389 today to learn more about the ways that Invisalign treatment can help you to get the beautiful smile you’ve been looking for.
