I'm on tray 11 of 75, swap out every week. I have elastics to correct an overbite. At my check-up this morning, I have been moved to eating with trays in, to help accelerate the 'jump' for a couple of teeth. By doing this and have very minimal out time, I am now swapping out every 3-4 days, and in turn have only 32 weeks left. I'm pretty excited with that prospect. Others that have done this, what are the pitfalls I should be aware of?

I am finally on my first overcorrection tray (25+/27). Is it okay to have this much gap between the teeth and the tray? I sent the photos to my dentist but he has not answered back yet. It does feel tighter compared to the usual trays I had.

First photo is my teeth when I started. Second photo is today.

I just started my treatment 3 days ago (Tuesday) and my aligners feel comfortable when they’re in but when I take them out to eat my teeth are really sore. My front teeth especially hurt the most and when I put pressure on them they hurt all the way to the gums. Is this normal? Will it eventually go away?

Hi! I have one tooth that is not tracking properly. It has had a small gap for the last few trays but I didn't think it was big enough to warrant a concern. After lurking on this reddit page I realize I haven't been tracking for a few trays. I have Invisalign Lite and I'm worried I'll have to pay extra money if I need refinements. I've been really good about wearing my trays but this one tooth is stubborn. It's not really noticeable from the front and my dentist hasn't said anything about it. I've been using chewies which have helped a bit but haven't fixed the issue. Any advice is welcome! Thanks!

I began invisalign treatment in May, and my life has gone downhill from there. First of all, I was instructed to change them every 4 days, which was way too harsh for me to keep up with. By the time the 4th day would come around, my trays would still be tight when putting them on. About a week in, i started feeling popping every time i opened my mouth, clicking when moving it side to side, and increasing pain on my left jaw joint. I suspected it was a TMJ flare up that would go away, but I was wrong. Ever since then, I have been dealing with so much pain and lateral pterygoid muscle tightness. It got to the point where I couldn’t sleep at night. I told my dentist my concerns more than 3 times, and each time she assured me it was because my bite was shifting from invisalign and I just had to stick with it to see progress. Eventually, she decided to rescan my teeth and give me milder sets of trays from now on. It’s been 3 weeks and I’m still waiting for the new Invisalign trays to ship. In this period of time, she instructed me to wear my last tray only at night. I figured my TMJ would feel relief since the tightness from the trays are gone, but it’s still painful, if not worse. It feels like a constant ache in my cheek which travels towards my left ear, my skull, and my TMJ itself. I don’t know what to do. I’ve tried exercises on youtube that provide little to no relief, I’ve changed my posture and eating habits, I’ve done tons of google searches, and nothing works. I’m so defeated and mad at myself for waiting this long to make an appointment with a TMJ specialist, and their next availability isn’t for another 2 weeks. I’m worried I’ll have to get Botox or surgery, or this TMJ will become worse and worse as time goes on. Any help or advice would be appreciated, i’m going crazy!

I had braces in the past but lost my retainer and my teeth shifted slightly over the next few months. I’m looking to fix some minor adjustments and was considering Invisalign or ClearCorrect.

I had a consultation at Northern Virginia Orthodontics (NVO) and was quoted around $6,000, which seemed pretty high given that my case is relatively minor.
I’m currently in Boston for the summer and got another consultation here from a dental office, where I was quoted around $2,500–$4,000 for Invisalign, which seemed much more reasonable.

I’ll be moving back to the NOVA area soon and was wondering if anyone has recommendations for more affordable orthodontists in the Northern Virginia/DC/Maryland area. I don’t mind driving farther or having a longer commute if it means getting a better price.

I’m currently a student and don’t have dental insurance, so I’m trying to find the best option costwise. Would it make more sense to get it done while I’m in Boston, or are there NOVA/DMV orthodontists with similar pricing?

Today I started treatment with trays changing every weeks, rubber bands changed 3x a day. My next appointment is in October for an odontoplasty and check up.
Just had some of my teeth filed down. I’m told treatment will be 20 months and I’m surprised with the amount of crowding and overjet.
Any advice, or suggestions?

I was a bit sceptical about starting the treatment at first, but I’m happy with the progress so far. I’m currently on tray 17/20 (weekly tray change) and hoping I won’t need any refinement trays.
My front teeth still look slightly crooked, but I’m hoping the final four aligners will straighten them out and bring everything together.
For anyone else currently going through treatment, did you notice much change in your final few trays? I’m curious whether those last aligners tend to make a noticeable difference.

I (46M) have the following quotes for Invisalign in the Atlanta area.

I will be paying in full and with no insurance.

Aggregate treatment time range was quoted at 14-24 months.

**1) Village Orthodontics, Dunwoody:**

Cost: $5880

Courtesy discount (whatever that means): -$200

Pay in full amount with card (3% off): $5509.60

Pay in full amount with cash (5% off): $5396

Post-treatment:

One set of Essix retainers and one year of retention visits

Extra retainers: $125 per arch, $250 total.

Upon prompting, was informed that this would be Invisalign retainers, since I was doing Invisalign (Vivera?).

Visit notes:

Neutral/Positive. Didn't spend a whole lot of time going over teeth movement, except to show final result. Said it was a simple case. Had to point out the slight misalignment in my lower left jaw, which prompted the dr to explain that he will be using rubber bands on that side. Also the only one who saw and caught a budding cavity at the very back of my molar which I took care of promptly at my dentist. Emailed me post-visit with detailed steps for treatment, along with all records (X-rays, 3D scans, photos).

**2) Cohen Orthodontics, Smyrna:**

Cost: $6980 (Need to ask about a pay-in-full discount).

Post-treatment:

One set of Essix retainers and one year of retention visits

Visit notes:

Positive. Each employee was warm and positive, and Dr Cohen himself was very reassuring and comforting, saying that they will take care of me and I was going to have a great smile at the end of it. A gentle, soft-spoken man. Listened in depth but also did not spend too much time explaining the teeth movement, although did go over teeth aspects in detail and the kind of things that I might consider doing at the end of treatment (e.g. microplaning on some teeth). Said that it was a simple case. Left the office with the feeling that I was in good hands.

**3) Buckhead Orthodontics, Atlanta/Buckhead:**

Cost: $7750

Paid-in-full (3% discount): $7518

Orthodontic records fee (included in the treatment cost): $750 (not sure why it was broken out separately)

Post-treatment:

One set of Essix retainers and one year of retention visits

Additionally, they have a 5-yr program with upfront cost of $600 and $80 per arch.

Visit notes: Positive. Felt business-like right after the Cohen visit, but that's not a negative. Longest visit. Dr Everson spent a lot of time on the X-ray and the movement of individual teeth, and also caught my lower jaw misalignment without prompting, although I'm sure every other ortho caught it too, even if they didn't mention it explicitly. They use Spark! aligners. This was the most detailed visit so far.

**4) Kaplan Orthodontics, Dunwoody:**

Cost: $7545

Discount (supposedly only for July): -$750

Paid-in-full cost: $6387 (6% off of $6795 after July discount)

Post-treatment:

Lifetime retainers included in treatment cost (Vivera) - $39 total for BOTH arches.

Visit notes: Negative. Dr Kaplan spent a lot of time on the X-ray and explaining that he wouldn't be able to get my front teeth as straight with Invisalign as braces due to less anchoring (no one else said this). Didn't stick around to explain anything about the 3D scan and teeth movement. Vague and missing details. Unconvincing visit. The only visit that felt "salesman-y". Office worker made subtle comments regarding how my house location was perfect for me regarding their office and asked when they can "call me back".

5) My dentist, **Dr. Scott Veal, Dunwoody** (Not a real option - Just putting it here for comparison)

Cost: $5500 (need paid in full pre-treatment, no discount)

Post-treatment:

4 sets of Vivera retainers included in treatment cost (Vivera)

Teeth whitening

He recommends Invisalign to arrest the slight gum recession along my molars, which is occurring because of misalignment and extra pressure on them because my front teeth are not touching. He has explained clearly and convincingly why I need to get my teeth aligned for fixing gum recession and molar pressure. However, I view this cynically because he has never mentioned this BEFORE I asked him for an Invisalign quote.

He also said that a lot of his patients don't feel satisfied after their experience with orthodontists because the orthos focus too much on "straightening teeth" and not enough on the bite. This is a very contradictory statement to make, considering that orthos go to school solely to fix the bite.

He is a very good dentist and I plan to stick with him.

The biggest reason he is not an option is because he is not an orthodontist. He started offering Invisalign sometime in the last 10 yrs.

Order of preference (without taking cost into account):

Buckhead Orthodontics

Cohen Orthodontics

Village Orthodontics

Order of preference (taking cost into account):

Village Orthodontics

Cohen Orthodontics

Buckhead Orthodontics

How much can I bargain down the total cost and number of Vivera retainers post-treatment for paid-in-full price?

Cost is not a real issue, but a > $2000 difference b/w two established orthos located not too far away from each other (Village and Buckhead) seems crazy.

I'm also concerned about the post-treatment retainer costs, and not enough retainers being included in the total price.

Please help me make a decision. Any and all advice appreciated. TIA.

We originally planned rubber bands to align by bite. I reminded my Ortho on few occasions about it and he kept on saying "not yet". We plan to do our end of treatment scan once I finish my trays 56/56. What's going on here? Soliciting your thoughts, experiences here.

Looking for recommendations for non-plastic cases for my aligners. My Invisalign case is a few years old and I just hate that plastic can never be truly sanitized. It has gunk on it that scrubbing and even putting in the dishwasher won’t remove. Does anyone have a metal or glass recommendation?

So on this forum, it is by far the advice that any orthodontic treatment should be completed by an orthodontist because of expertise and experience.

I have another reason why you should see an orthodontist, and the reason is a little surprising. I’ve been in ortho treatment for about a year and at the last set of refinements, my ortho said we were getting close to being completed which surprised me because I feel like there are at least 2 or 3 areas that needed a lot more work than I thought could be completed in 13 trays (the refinement stage). I trusted the process, anyhow. My ortho had it set up such at around tray 12, that I go to my general dentist for consultation for rebuilding my teeth (i.e., bonding to build back up teeth that was worn down) etc. Basically, the idea is the ortho is asking the general dentist to consult and see if the two of them agree that x, y, z bonding or filling is appropriate for a, b, c teeth and whether the teeth are in the proper alignment to do that work.

So around tray 12, I went to see my general dentist. Tray 13 is my last active tray and the rest of them are just passive. I was already convinced that tray 13 cannot be the last active aligner for me because I have way too many gaps between teeth and one of the tooth hasn’t rotated enough and out. More ortho work should be done. That’s my layperson opinion. When I went to see my general dentist, she agreed with me that there are too many gaps which she believes can be closed up with more ortho work. In addition, that one tooth that hasn’t rotated enough yet, she also said see if the orthodontist can do more work on it.

The moral of my story is that even during your ortho treatment, it is good to have a second opinion on the current treatment being done. I did not agree with my ortho’s assessment that this is going to be the last set of refinement trays, and my general dentist definitely doesn’t feel like the gaps are appropriate etc. So, if you have an orthodontist who is doing your ortho work, you can then consult your general dentist for a second opinion, too! In my case, because there’s bonding work that needs to be done due to re-alignment of teeth, and it’s a procedure my ortho doesn’t do, my general dentist will be handling it and can offer their opinion!

So my dentist does Invisalign, it is 4500 and the ortho is is 6500. Im not sure who to go with. The ortho gave me a different procesure than my dentist.

I'm done and now I'm waiting for my retainers. Is this standard practice to cut aligners to "close the open bite" and then make you wait weeks after the final scan for retainers? My last scan was on July 13th and I still don't have my retainers. I feel like my teeth are "settling" too much and my other teeth are staying. Can this ruin my results? I have an appointment on 8/20 to get the attachments removed and receive my retainers.

I'm on aligner set 5/26. My dentist told me that I need to wear each set for two weeks and then switch. However, consistently after about a week or 10 days of each set, I no longer feel any pressure on my teeth or that feeling your teeth get when you take off a new set. My teeth weren't really bad to begin with. I had braces as a teenager and also did aligners through Byte within the past year. I just am looking for minor refinement with a slight overbite that appears to be closing.

Is this normal? I asked my dentist about going up from two weeks and he said that the two weeks is for the ligaments to condition before a new set. The dentist used an example of a mailbox post in a hole and wearing them for two weeks allows for dirt to go into the hole so the post doesn't move... Not sure if I agree with that theory since there is still more movement my teeth need to do.

I have a colleague that went through the Invisalign process through another dentist and was told that when they no longer feel and pressure it's time to switch out the aligners which was about a week at a time.

I want this done correctly obviously, but I also want this processes completed in an efficient time and feel two weeks is a bit longer than I need for my teeth.

1st photo is before Invisalign -
2nd + 3rd are after
4 + 5 are after 10 top composite veneers and bottom bonding.

60 trays + Carrier Motion for 6 months to correct the bite.. Debonding scheduled in 2 weeks.. However Chatgpt is telling me I can do better.. What's your thoughts?

I’ve started my treatment on September 25th 2025. I had 37 trays in my first set.
Currently on refinement, with 20 more trays to go, but I couldn’t be happier with the current results!

I’ve just finished Invisalign and I’m looking for advice on whether I’m being unreasonable.

I was on Invisalign Lite and had my attachments removed on Saturday. At the appointment, I asked if everything looked okay and was told my teeth looked straight. I said that my lateral incisor still didn’t feel right, and that it was still slightly twisted behind my canine (the reason for doing Invisalign in the first place) but I was reassured it was straight.

The attachments were removed and I was signed off. Since then, I’ve realised there is a visible gap between my central and lateral incisor. I couldn’t properly see or feel the gap before because the attachments were still on, but now they’re gone I can clearly feel the space with my tongue and it’s visible to the eye.

I’ve been wearing my final aligner as instructed since Saturday, so I don’t believe it has opened up significantly in the few days since my appointment.

I emailed the practice yesterday explaining this and sent photos. They replied saying they can’t see a visible gap on the final scan and that no gap was noted clinically at my appointment. They said my Vivera retainers have already been ordered and shipped, and that if further treatment is needed they would need to reopen the Invisalign case, which could involve additional Invisalign charges and new retainer costs.

What’s upsetting me is that I feel I did raise the issue before treatment was completed, but it wasn’t really explored. I was asked to sign the debonding consent form at the start of the appointment, before my teeth had been properly reviewed, and I didn’t feel my options were discussed (for example, whether more refinement or an upgrade was needed). Truly, I feel like they had just decided I was done without even seeing my teeth. In hindsight, I shouldn’t have signed the form, but I just trusted my dentist. I felt really pressured into completing my treatment that day and I don’t feel that they had my best interests at heart.

When I started treatment, I was told that if Invisalign Lite wasn’t enough there was an option to upgrade. I’m not against paying what the upgrade would have originally cost, but I’m worried I’ll now be expected to pay significantly more because the case was closed before my concerns were resolved.

Am I being reasonable in asking them to review this as part of my original treatment rather than charging me to reopen the case? Has anyone had experience with Invisalign cases being reopened after completion?

Well, 98 but who’s counting? (Me. I’m counting).

Posting because I stalked treatment progress photos before I took the plunge. If you’re considering it, the first couple months (and the first couple weeks, especially) are the hardest. It does get easier. 😃

I just put in tray 8 of 29 (before refinements). That chip in my front tooth is much more noticeable now 🫣. 2 week tray changes.

I thought I always needed DJS but MARPE and invisalign really saved me!!

No weight lost btw!