My Invisalign Experience – Before & Afters

I am officially finished with my Invisalign journey with Dr. Souders at Afinia Dental here in Cincinnati, OH and I cannot wait to tell you all about it! It was honestly the best thing I have ever done for myself. When I tell you that my smile has been a lifelong journey, I am not exaggerating the slightest!  Let me catch you up on my smile journey over the past 15+ years. I had braces in high school, which then shifted after not complying with wearing my retainer. Then prior to my wedding I had a short round of Invisalign. But, ultimately pregnancy and other factors caused my teeth to shift AGAIN! About a year ago I started talking with Dr. Souders at Afinia Dental about starting Invisalign. She felt like I was a great candidate and would see wonderful results. I had my free consultation and immediately got started.  It has been about a year in the making and I have taken you all along with me.  You may remember I shared the details on my initial free consultation Here. And then followed up with a Q&A with Dr. Souders, which you can find Here. 

That before and after!!

I often get questions from you all about my Invisalign journey so I am going to answer those below. But, before I do I just have to say that if you are considering Invisalign I 1000% recommend! It has boosted my confidence and I had the most seamless experience. And if you are local I cannot recommend Dr. Souders at Afinia Dental enough.

How much does Invisalign cost? This is always the first question I get asked, when I am chatting with someone about Invisalign. I believe mine was around $5,500. But, that being said every single person has a unique smile so the cost is very dependent on your individual needs. Some insurances will cover part of the treatment. And at my providers office you have the option to pay in full or do a payment plan. 

Did you have button attachments? I did and honestly I got so used to them I forgot I had them. If you are not familiar the button attachments are clear “buttons” they put onto specific teeth that will help to guide the aligners for optimal movement. They do not hurt at all and you will likely get used to them very quickly. 

How often do you switch out trays? For me personally, I switched to a new tray every single week. 

Was it painful? No! There were times where I would wear a new tray and the next day my teeth would be slightly uncomfortable but completely bearable! 

Do you wear the trays all day? Yes, my dentist stressed the importance of wearing them about 22 hours a day. Only taking them out to eat/drink. I will say the longer I had the aligners the lazier I got, but I *really* did try my best! I am so happy with my results so I think I did a decent enough job!

Do the trays get gross? Good question! I switched to a new tray every single week so they really didn’t get too gross! But, my dentist gave me cleaning crystals that help when they get gross. 

Did you have to do more trays than you initially anticipated? I did. But, my dentist made it very clear from the very start that I would likely need more than the initial plan. I don’t know how many weeks I ended up doing in total. But, it went so fast for me! The additional trays were no extra expense, it was all included in the initial treatment plan cost.

Do you get to whiten your teeth now? Yes! my dentists office gave me a whitening gel that I put into my retainers, it seems to be working so well! 

What does life look like now that you are done? They recommend that you wear your final retainers as much as possible those first few months as things can still shift. After about 3-6 months I can move to wearing them just at night! 

I hope that was helpful! Again, this was one of the BEST things i’ve ever done for myself! It was truly such an easy and wonderful experience!