Teeth Moving!

Just a follow up - DO NOT DO INVISALIGN - it really doesn't work that well - especially if you have crowding. Trust me - $3000 later my teeth still aren't great (even wearing them every night) so please get another opinion or two before shelling out the money.

Umm - this has happened to me not once but twice - I had braces in high school and then did a full course of Invisalign in 2006 - and yep - my teeth have moved again - despite wearing the retainer.

Unless you want the big expensive of doing braces again I would ask to be fitted with a retainer to "hold" them in their current position. Or you can order a retainer mold on line (I got one through Amazon) do your own mold at home and have a retainer shipped to you for about $80.

Good luck.

My front teeth move as well and my dentist recommended Invisalign, which is really expensive but apparantley works great!

I ntoiced some gaps betweeen my front bottom teeth. I, too, had braces in middle school, but stopped wearing my retainer in college. I went to an orthodontist and was told that not only do I have gaps, but a cross bite as well. He recommended braces or Invisalign. I will definitely get a 2nd opinion from another ortho before making a decision, but will likely do Invisalign. My brother, who also had braces as a kid, did Invisalign as an adult several years ago and has had excellent results. I saw the other poster's warning about Invisalign...I wonder if that's the case with all types of braces???

This happened to me, both top and bottom. For the bottom they put in a permanent retainer. This is great, but a real pain when it comes to flossing. For the top I have an invasalign. This just takes discipline to put in every night, but when I am consistent with it I see the teeth straighten up.

i had this same thing happen! (wonder if it has anything to do with pregnancy hormones?!? they get blamed for everything else ~ i'm adding Shifting Teeth to the list!)
ANYWAY, my ortho said i did need braces. got them on the bottom first (as those had moved way more), then the top. will have had them on 1 year as of next month. coming off next month, too (FINGERS CROSSED!).
good luck to you!

oh, and braces weren't that expensive since we used our Flex $ (money for medical expenses taken out pre-taxes) AND we paid up front, so got more of a discount from my ortho. was only ~$3K
and i chose NOT to do Invisalign b/c it would take much longer.

I had a lot of gum/tooth sensitivity with pregnancy and nursing, and my gums began to receed. With menopause, the same thing began again and my teeth really started moving around. I now use a night guard while I sleep, which has helped stop the movement and the sensitivity. Now I need to decide if we can afford gum surgery (it sounds very painful) and possibly braces, if I want to straighten my teeth again. The night guard has the benefit over a retainer is, like me, you clench or grind your teeth when you sleep.

Our teeth move forward and crowd up more as we age - regardless of whether we had braces or not earlier in life. My dentist explained this to me when I complained about my teeth moving. Only an orthodontist can tell you if a retainer or braces will be helpful. You are lucky you can afford to have this treated, I wish I could. Good luck.