As you are thinking about the possibilities of such treatment options, perhaps your biggest concern is whether you are going to wear your aligners correctly. You have put so much time and money into your new, beautiful smile, so it makes sense that you would want to ensure that everything you are doing is helping with this process. Fortunately for you, the answer is pretty simple – but ensuring consistency can sometimes be a challenge for us all!
At Dillon Family Dentistry in Bryn Mawr, PA, we help patients who are doing Invisalign in the Main Line several times each day. One of the first things we explain to all of our patients is that their aligners will only do their job while they are in their mouths! Therefore, it’s important for you to wear them on a consistent basis and not just when you remember.
Key Takeaways
• Invisalign aligners should be worn 20 to 22 hours every single day.
• You should only remove them for eating, drinking (anything other than plain water), brushing, and flossing.
• Skipping hours adds up quickly and can extend your treatment timeline or reduce results.
• After treatment ends, wearing your retainer is just as important to protect your results.
• Patients on the Main Line trust Dillon Family Dentistry for personalized Invisalign consultations in Bryn Mawr.
Table of Content
- The 20–22 Hour Rule: Why It Matters More Than You Think
- What Actually Happens When You Don’t Wear Them Enough?
- A Step-by-Step Guide to Managing Your Daily Wear
- What About After Treatment? Post-Invisalign Care and Retainers
- Why Patients Choose Dillon Family Dentistry for Invisalign on the Main Line
The 20–22 Hour Rule: Why It Matters More Than You Think
Your teeth will slowly move to the desired position with the help of continual and even pressure caused by the Invisalign aligner that you wear on them. However, once you remove the aligner from your mouth, it will stop applying force on your teeth.
Align Technology, which creates the Invisalign product, advises a minimum of 22 hours of usage each day. Although a lot of orthodontists and dentists who provide Invisalign treatment along Philadelphia’s Main Line endorse wearing your aligner for 22 hours, we here at Dillon Family Dentistry see this as the ideal amount of time to wear the aligner.
By only wearing your aligners 18 hours on some days over time, you will lose an entire day of treatment per week when calculated cumulatively over the duration of your treatment plan.
What Actually Happens When You Don’t Wear Them Enough?
Patients often find out the hard way that their teeth are living structures that are supported by both bone and tissues. When a patient receives a consistent amount of gentle pressure over their teeth, the bone will slowly change its configuration over time so that the teeth can move along with the bone. If there are frequent interruptions to the pressure applied to the teeth, the teeth can start to shift back a bit in between when the patient wears their dental retainer (appliance).
Common consequences of inconsistent wear include:
• Aligners that no longer fit properly (they may feel tighter or uncomfortable)
• Delayed progression to the next set of trays
• Extended overall treatment time
• In some cases, the need for additional aligner sets (which adds cost)
One of the primary factors for unsuccessful treatment results with Invisalign is lack of proper usage, according to a recent article in the Angle Orthodontist. The technology itself is sound, but the patient needs to develop the habit of using it as prescribed.
A Step-by-Step Guide to Managing Your Daily Wear
Building a simple routine around your aligners makes the 22-hour goal feel almost effortless. Here’s what a typical successful day looks like for our Invisalign patients:
Morning
Your aligners should be in your mouth already from sleeping. The first thing you should do is brush both your teeth and the aligners. Next, eat breakfast and brush your teeth again, then put your aligners back in. The time it will take to do this in the morning should not exceed 30 to 45 minutes.
Midday
Have your aligner case with you. Take your aligners out and store them when you go to lunch. Do not wrap your aligners in a napkin (this is the most common way to lose or accidentally throw away your aligners). Eat, rinse your mouth, if you can, brush your teeth, and put your aligners back.
Evening
When you finish eating your Dinner, you will be removing your aligners for the final time for that day. After you have eaten, you must thoroughly brush your teeth, clean out your aligners, and insert them into your mouth before going to bed. You need to wear your aligners while you sleep. The hours you sleep are some of the most valuable hours for completing your treatment.
Pro tip: If you tend to leave your aligners out for extended periods during the day, consider using an aligner timer app or setting up reminders for yourself on your phone. If you’d prefer, you can also keep track of how long you’ve been wearing them and hold yourself accountable by using a simple notes app.
Don’t Just Read About It—Discover a Healthier Smile Today!
Take control of your oral health at Dillon Family Dentistry. Book an appointment today!
What About After Treatment? Post-Invisalign Care and Retainers
Many patients are shocked when they find out that after completing the last tray, they are not done with their commitment to their orthodontic treatment. Preventing orthodontic relapse is something we are concerned about. If you do not wear a retainer, your teeth will naturally move back toward their original position. This is not a failure of the treatment; this is just how teeth move.
Most dentists/orthodontists will recommend wearing your retainer full-time (20 or more hours a day) for a minimum of three to six months after your Invisalign treatment is finished. After this time frame, many patients will only wear their retainers at night for the rest of their lives as they will continue to maintain the results of their work with Invisalign.
Post-Invisalign care is part of the regular conversations we have with our patients here at Bryn Mawr, and we want to ensure that your outcomes are achieved for decades and not just a few months.
Read More: Ways to Speed Up Your Invisalign Treatment
Why Patients Choose Dillon Family Dentistry for Invisalign on the Main Line
There are many different types of options when it comes to orthodontic treatment with Invisalign on the Main Line, but what makes Dillon Family Dentistry unique is that we establish and maintain a strong relationship with our patients during their entire course of treatment and beyond. We do not simply give you your aligners in a box and send you on your way.
Through each stage of your treatment, from the first consultation at our Bryn Mawr Invisalign office to your last retainer checkup, our team works to monitor your progress carefully. We catch any problems early, adjust your treatment schedule when necessary, and provide you with the honest and personal attention that leads to successful treatment.
Our patients travel from all across the Main Line (from Bryn Mawr and Haverford) because they want a dental provider who cares for them as an individual instead of merely a case number. If you would like to find out more information about Invisalign treatment at our Bryn Mawr office, please give us a call!
Frequently Asked Questions
Wearing your Invisalign aligners for 20-22 hours daily will yield optimal results. For best results at Dillon Family Dentistry in Bryn Mawr, we encourage you to strive to wear your aligners closer to 22 hours so that your treatment stays on track and produces the results you expect.
The minimum to wear your trays is usually 20 hours; however, we recommend wearing your trays for a minimum of 2 hours. Patients treated with Invisalign at Dillon Family Dentistry on the Main Line achieve quicker results through consistent use throughout each day (especially at night).
When you do not wear your aligners for the required amount of time, tooth movement is slower, and your trays could feel tighter. Please understand that we at Dillon Family Dentistry are here to inform you that the time that you do not wear your aligners might delay your treatment with Invisalign Main Line PA and can hinder your ability to achieve the final tooth alignment.
No. Invisalign is not designed to be worn only at night when undergoing active treatment. For patients of the Invisalign Orthodontics Main Line to have their treatment performed properly and have the best results, their aligners must remain in place continuously for the entire duration of each day (24 hours) except when eating, brushing, and flossing food from between their teeth.
Certainly! When you sleep while wearing aligners, this time contributes towards your total daily hours for wearing them. Wearing aligners overnight is critical because it creates the longest possible duration for your teeth to shift.
Removal of the trays should be less than two hours a day, when available. At Dillon Family Dentistry, our orthodontist will discuss the effects of wearing the trays for only 3-4 hours on your orthodontic treatment and the overall fit of the trays.
No, normally, 18 hours are not sufficient to achieve satisfactory results. Patients receiving treatment with Invisalign who go to Dillon Family Dentistry on the Main Line should limit wear to a range of twenty (20) to twenty-two (22) hours per day to ensure no delay in their treatment.
Consistency is crucial. Tooth movement relies on continual force; therefore, maintaining correct wear time is essential for minimizing chances for orthodontic relapse as well as keeping aligners fitting well.
It is unlikely that one day of missed treatment will ruin your overall treatment outcome; however, some slight shifting of your teeth can happen. Dillon Family Dentistry recommends wearing your trays consistently following the end of your Invisalign treatment and bringing any questions about the fit of the trays to your post-care visit.
Plan meals and snacks carefully to limit tray removal. At Dillon Family Dentistry, we suggest structured meal times and immediate reinsertion after brushing. This same discipline is also important for retainers after braces and long-term smile maintenance.
When wearing Invisalign aligners, it’s essential to wear them an average of 20 to 22 hours each day. This is more than just a suggestion; it is the bedrock of your treatment. If you consistently miss the daily wear time, then you are doing harm to your winning effort. The key to success is being disciplined, creating a daily routine, and then following the proper wear of your retainer after your treatment is completed so that you achieve the best result possible with your Invisalign treatment.
If you are ready to take that first step, we, as Dillon Family Dentistry, would love the opportunity to have an Invisalign consultation with you here in Bryn Mawr. We will carefully assess your smile and provide an overview of what your journey will entail. Should you have any questions, we will answer them, but there will be no pressure, just good information provided.
Contact Dillon Family Dentistry today, and let’s get your smile started.
Experience Exceptional Care at Dillon Family Dentistry!
Transform your dental care with personalized solutions for all dental needs—from cleanings to cosmetic treatments.
