This giveaway is closed. The winner is Melanie. Congrats, Melanie! I certainly hope you enjoy your gift bag.
As a teen, the only thing worse than the ugly metal braces I was forced to endure was the embarrassment of crooked teeth that caused me to hide my smile and become shy and withdrawn. Talk about a Fashion Don’t — metal braces certainly qualify, wouldn’t you say?
Fortunately nowadays there are better options available, like Invisalign.
I recently had the opportunity to attend a blogger outreach event hosted by Invisalign Teen. I shared on Musings of a Housewife my own story of braces (I wore the traditional metal braces in high school, and now I’m wearing Invisalign to correct the damage caused by not wearing my retainer as an adult) and how much of an improvement Invisalign is over the old fashioned kind. But even I didn’t realize how far Invisalign has come in the past few years.
Invisalign isn’t just for adults anymore. (And it isn’t just for mild cases, either, as I previously thought.) In fact, since I began wearing Invisalign in January of 2009, a new teen version has been created especially for the adolescent set. The new Invisalign Teen product combines the benefits of the proven Invisalign Full system with new features like compliance indicators that gradually fade as the aligner is worn and eruption tabs that allow for the growth of secondary molars.
See those little blue dots? They fade as the child wears them, so parents can keep tabs on their child’s compliance between office visits. Teens love Invisalign because they don’t inhibit them playing sports and musical instruments as metal braces can and because they are barely noticeable to others.
So how do they work?
InvisalignTeen uses a series of clear, removable aligners to gradually straighten teeth, without metal or wires. After detailed impressions are taken of the teeth, Align utilizes proprietary 3D computer imaging technology to map the patient’s complete treatment from start to finish. Teens wear each aligner for about two weeks. During this time, the aligners gradually move their teeth until they achieve the prescribed final position.
Patients typically visit their doctor once every six weeks or so to ensure that treatment is progressing as planned, and to receive their next few sets of aligners.
I can attest that they are MUCH less painful than regular braces, and best of all, they’re removable. Although you should wear them 20-22 hours a day for them to work best, you do have the option of taking them out when you want to attend a special event (and of course when you want to eat.)
The best part about them, though, is undoubtedly cosmetic. They just LOOK so much better than the metal braces we were all forced to endure when we were younger. I mean, look at the difference.
You’re probably thinking, yeah yeah but what about cost? Well, as it turns out, Invisalign is often no more expensive than traditional braces. This varies from doctor to doctor, though, so it’s best to ask around. There is an art to orthodontia, and it’s crucial to choose a doctor with lots of experience with the Invisalign brand. The website even has a list of Preferred Providers who have met certain criteria to be included. Doctors don’t request to be on the list, and there is no charge for being included. In other words, you can trust the recommendation. It is not an ad; it is a service Invisalign provides to assure the best results for their clients.
Dr. Jacqueline Fulop-Goodling (she goes by Dr. Jackie) is one of the top 10 Invisalign doctors worldwide and was present at the Invisalign event to answer any questions we had. Dr. Jackie has made a generous offer to Chic Critique readers. She is offering a $500 Invisalign Discount at any of her three New York Offices. Just mention that you read about it on Chic Critique, and she will honor the discount. Locations and additional information can be found on her website.
Now simmer down. If you’re not in NYC, I have something for you too. Okay, it’s no where near as awesome as $500 off Invisalign, but it’s still pretty cool. The Invisalign Teen team (try saying that three times fast) has offered a giveaway to one lucky reader. It’s the same swag bag we received at the event — a dental hygiene kit valued at $50 PLUS a $25 gift card to Sephora. (And we didn’t get the Sephora gift card. See how special you are?)
To be eligible to win, please pay a visit to the Invisalign Teen website and share in the comment section anything you found interesting. That’s it!
Finally, if you have any questions you’d like answered before you make your first trip to the orthodontist, leave them in the comments. I will take them to the Invisalign team and get the answers for you. I’ll post the answers in a follow-up post sometime in the next few weeks.
Whether you are a parent of a teen who needs braces or interested in them for yourself, Invisalign is a viable option that takes away the stigma of wearing metal braces. And that, my friends, is a serious Fashion Do.
About Jo-Lynne
I went to the orthodontist for a total of *thirteen* years of my life. Yep, that’s right — from the ages of 4 to 17. I wore two different types of retainers, two different expanders, plus traditional braces for three years. I also wore every single type of rubberband ever invented. (So basically, everything but the headgear…) My ortho told me I was one of the top ten WORST cases he’d ever seen. So I definitely found this interesting — especially that Invisalign can be used for more than just mild cases. I wish I had been able to use it when I went through the whole process of braces! Maybe it’s something I’ll look into a few years from now — because I, too, failed at wearing my retainer — and I’m sure my teeth will start shifting soon as well.
Wow, this would have made life so much easier for me as a teen. And I love the wear indicators – a little added accountability never hurt!
I was surprised to see that invisalign can treat overbites and underbites too.
I will be looking into this as my son gets older- he has definite issues from thumb sucking for so long. I am surprised they are in the same price range!
I like that it can be used with over crowded teeth. That was my problem. It would have saved me 2 years in metal braces, not to mention the pain of having 6 teeth pulled!
Wow! I also ran the gamut of “gear” for years for a serious overbite (really buck teeth!). Fortunately it stopped short of the headgear.
One of my 2 children are definitely going to need a lot of orthodontic work. The other may escape it. Invisalign is something we’ll be asking about.
The thing I found most interesting is the blue dot to be able to see how compliant the kids are with wearing them. For example them being removeable like retainers, I could see that being a problem. (I regret now not wearing my retainers as I should have).
Thanks for doing this give-away and sharing Invisalign with us. Good info to have!
I was really excited to learn that Invisalign can still be worn while playing sports. I have two children that have started “pre-orthodontic” treatment and they’ve always had to remove their retainers for fear of them getting knocked out or broken. Great to hear that Invisalign can be worn while playing since they’re huge softball/baseball players. I do wonder though, if a protective mouthpiece can still be worn over the Invisalign? Both kids are pitchers and unfortunately, there’s always the risk of having a ball come right back at them.
Thanks for the information on Invisalign! I would have thought it to be more expensive than traditional braces but I’m happy to learn they are not.
The man has recently been talking about using his flex for orthodontia, and I was thrilled to look at this and forward him the information! And – my little angel will be due for braces in a few years, and not having “tinsel teeth” her mother enjoyed will be WONDERFUL!
I like that they move the teeth slowly. I remember the pain i had after each visit when they tightened my braces. It also looks like it would be difficult to over correct an issue which can cause worse problems.
i don’t like teeth pulling to fix overcrowding–it can change the shape of your face. i would love these for my kids who are sure to have this problem based on their genes!
My husband is an Orthodontist and he does use Invisalign , but there are definitely cases in which he would not recommend it at all. (Be wary if they tell you it can fix everything.) So if your Orthodontist does not recommend it for you, just make sure you know there are plenty of other (nearly invisible) options that will work better for your individual case.
Dolly, yes, they made a point that they cannot, as yet, bring teeth down with Invisalign. So it definitely can’t correct everything. But they’re making improvements constantly, from what they told us.
Thanks for your input.
These are amazing! I’ve actually been considering the adult ones for myself. I really wish that they had these around when I was a teen. They seem like such a great product! I love the dots for parents to make sure that their teen is wearing them and that invisilign will replace them if lost – for free! How cool is that?!