DOES INVISALIGN HURT MY TEETH?
The major concern of most people who intend to use Invisalign to straighten their teeth and have a better smile is ‘does Invisalign hurt?’ All orthodontic treatment which involves the movement of teeth comes with a level of discomfort, but the good news is, the pain that comes with Invisalign treatment is not as intense as that of traditional braces.
This doesn’t mean that Invisalign doesn’t hurt at all, but the pain is not unbearable, and it can easily be managed. Knowing the level of pain treatment with Invisalign comes with and how to alleviate the pain can help your treatment process be more bearable. Read on to know how much Invisalign hurts and how to alleviate the pain you might feel during treatment.
What is the level of pain of the treatment with Invisalign?
Straightening the teeth with Invisalign does hurt, but generally, it is not as painful as the traditional metal braces or any other type of orthodontic treatment that involves moving the teeth. The pain usually subsides after your teeth adjust to wearing the aligners and after changing to a new set of aligners. The discomfort of Invisalign comes from a few sources which include:
1.Tooth movement and aligner fit: About half of Invisalign users experience minor discomfort during treatment due to teeth movement. This pain is commonly described as tenderness or pressure. Often, the discomfort also is noticed when wearing the aligners or when they are taken out to eat and clean the teeth.
2. Tongue and gum irritation: This happens when the edges of the aligners are long or positioned in a way that they rub against the cheek, tongue, floor of the mouth or gums. The irritation may become severe if it is not controlled early enough.
The pain of traditional metal braces comes from the brackets rubbing against the inside of the mouth and from the way the wire is placed. The pain is usually intensive during the first few weeks of treatment before the mouth can develop callouses to manage the sensitivity, pressing, rubbing, and scratching of the metal components against the mouth.
The same thing happens for Invisalign aligners but on a smaller scale. The edges of Invisalign trays are not sharp but can irritate the gum and the insides of the lip. In the first couple of weeks, the mouth tends to get used to the feeling and adjust to wearing the aligners by developing the necessary callouses to prevent irritation. By the time a new set of aligners will be needed, the mouth would have completely adjusted to wearing aligners and there would be no pain.
Invisalign is not completely pain-free because the main aim of wearing the aligners is to move your teeth into a straighter position that will make your smile and oral health better. For this to happen, the aligners have to put pressure on our teeth. This pressure leads to soreness, especially during the first few days of every new set of the aligner.
It is common for you to run your tongue along the rough or sharp edges of Invisalign in a bid to get used to the aligners in your mouth. This can cause you to cut your tongue with the sharp edges of your aligner, which causes pain. This can easily be sorted out by simply contacting your Invisalign provider to straighten out any rough or sharp edge.
Only a few of Invisalign users describe the discomfort as pain, but the majority of people who use Invisalign simply say it is a discomfort that can easily be overlooked.
Ways to alleviate Invisalign pain
For most persons with high pain tolerance, simply waiting out the pain for a few days each time they get a new set of the aligner is the best way to handle the discomfort because the pain is only noticed a few days after a new set of the aligner is used after which the jaw and teeth would no longer be sore.
Some people may continue to feel discomfort throughout their treatment and finding a way to reduce this discomfort and pain is a priority.
Taking painkillers is a good option. Most people have their preferred painkillers and the dosage to take. The painkiller to take depends on what exactly is causing the pain. For example, if the pain is caused by inflammation and irritation due to the aligners pushing against the teeth which are common in the first few days of using a new aligner, a painkiller that can reduce inflammation will be the best option.
If the pain is as a result of you tensing your jaw or grinding your teeth, a painkiller that helps relax the muscle would be the best option. Sometimes, a little bit of pressure can help you relieve the tension in your teeth. You can also try chewing on something and taking cold or hot drinks to calm your toothache.
If the pain is caused by the sharpness or roughness of your aligner edges, smoothing out the edges will be a good idea.
Generally, to make your aligners more comfortable, you should
- Put in a new set of aligners just before going to bed to help your teeth gradually settle into the new position
- Try to relax your jaw and avoid bringing your top and bottom teeth together
- Avoid crunchy or hard foods during the first few days of wearing a new set of aligner
- Try to wear your aligners for the recommended number of hours daily
If you need Invisalign to straighten your teeth or your Invisalign hurts a lot, consult an orthodontist for invisalign in London today.
