A lot of the adults who sit down for a consultation with us start with the same story. They had braces as a kid and loved their smile when the braces came off, and then somewhere along the way (college, a lost retainer, a move across the country) they noticed one tooth creeping forward, then another.
If that sounds like you, you didn’t do anything unusual. Plenty of adults come back to orthodontics for exactly this reason, and there are good options for getting your smile back where you want it!
Why Teeth Move after Braces
Teeth sit in bone and are held in place by tiny fibers, and those fibers remember where your teeth used to be. For a while after braces come off, they gently pull teeth back toward their old spots. On top of that, everyone’s teeth keep shifting little by little throughout life, whether they had braces or not. It is just a part of aging.Â
That’s why retainers for life matter so much. Retainers are custom made for you. When a retainer breaks, gets lost, stops fitting, or ends up in a drawer, teeth start to drift.
Back in the day, they didn’t really tell you to wear the retainers for life…Â When many of them finished treatment, the plan was often to wear a retainer for a year or two and then stop, and nobody explained that teeth keep moving for life. We see people with teeth “relapse” every day.Â
What the Shift Usually Looks Like
Relapse is the word orthodontists use for teeth moving back after treatment, and it looks different for everyone. For some people it’s a single front tooth that has turned or slid forward. For others it’s crowding along the bottom front teeth, gaps that have opened back up, or a bite that no longer feels like it fits together.
How much your teeth have moved matters, and so does whether the change is only cosmetic or also affects how your teeth meet. The only way to know which applies to you is a consultation, where one of our board-certified orthodontists takes a quick 3D scan of your teeth (no goopy putty molds) and walks you through what’s changed with your teeth.Â
So What are my Options?Â
Adult treatment today looks a lot different from the braces you may remember from middle school. Most adults we see end up choosing between three options.
Clear aligners. Invisalign and Spark aligners are clear, removable trays that move your teeth a little at a time. Adults like them because they’re hard to notice and they come out for meals. They only work when they’re worn 20 to 22 hours a day, and we’ll be upfront about that before you start.
Metal self-ligating braces. These are smaller than the braces most adults grew up with, and they use built-in clips to hold the wire in place of elastic bands.
Every case is different, and sometimes the right recommendation is that a small shift doesn’t need treatment at all. If that’s true for you, we’ll tell you.
Clear retainers to hold things where they are. If you’re mostly happy with your smile today and just want to keep your teeth from shifting any further, a new set of clear retainers can hold them in their current position. Retainers hold teeth in place and don’t move them, so they’re a simple option while you decide what’s next, and you can always start treatment later.
Keeping your Smile in Place this Time
The biggest worry adults bring to us is simple. They already did this once, and they don’t want to be back in the same spot in ten years.
Nobody can promise that teeth will never move, and we won’t either. What we can do is set you up with a plan to KEEP them where they belong.
The biggest worry adults bring to us is simple. They already did this once, and they don’t want to be back in the same spot in ten years.
Nobody can promise that teeth will never move, and we won’t either. What we can do is set you up with a plan to keep them where they belong, and that’s what our Retainer Warranty Program is for.
The warranty is $795, paid in full when your agreement starts. It includes your first set of clear retainers when treatment ends, plus one set of replacement retainers every year for five years from your agreement date at no additional cost. We 3D-print replacements right here in our office.
To keep your warranty active, you’ll need to stay current on payments with our office and bring your 3D models (the printed copies of your teeth we use to make retainers) whenever you need a new set. If you don’t have your models, reprinting them is $30 per model.Â
 Wearing your retainer as directed is a small habit, and it’s the one that protects all the work you put in.
A straightforward look at the investment
Paying for orthodontics a second time is frustrating, and we understand that. We quote one all-in price that includes your retainers, so nothing gets added on later. We also offer 0% interest in-house payment plans, pay-in-full discounts, and $0 down options through third-party financing, and we accept all private insurance plans. Orthodontic coverage for adults varies from plan to plan, so our team will check your benefits and walk you through what you’d owe before you decide anything.
If your smile has drifted since your braces came off, Dr. Cyrus and Dr. Nee are happy to take a look at a complimentary consultation, talk through what’s changed, and give you an honest answer about whether treatment makes sense right now. Questions are always welcome by call or text at 760.743.2295.
