If you’ve chosen to get Invisalign to straighten your teeth, you’re probably happy with its benefits. Unlike metal braces, aligning trays are discrete, removable, and take less time to achieve noticeable results! However, you should know that they can still cause pain like any other orthodontic work. After all, the trays put pressure on your teeth to move them into the correct place. Thankfully, though, there are methods to relieve Invisalign discomfort in Lakewood. Here are four ways to help your aching teeth adjust to aligners.
Use a Cold Compress
As it happens, the cold is a great way to soothe swollen and sore mouth tissues. You can take advantage of that fact by pressing an ice-filled compress or pack against your cheeks. In doing so, you’ll reduce inflammation and pain from new Invisalign aligners.
You might even try using this approach to numb your gums before putting the trays in your mouth.
Drink or Eat Cold Things
As an alternative to a compress, you could also put cold things directly against your gums. More specifically, you could eat tasty and cold things like popsicles, ice-cream, chilled soda, etc.
So, next time you take your aligners out for a meal, use the time as a chance to expose your gums to an icy treat.
Take OTC Pain Medication
You could also apply a more direct approach to your soreness with pain medication. Try an over-the-counter medicine you normally use for headaches — maybe a brand like Tylenol, Advil, or Aleve. You shouldn’t need much, so don’t go over the recommended dose. Furthermore, ask your doctor before using a medication you’ve never had before now.
To give the medicine time to take effect, you may want to have the painkiller an hour before switching trays. However, you shouldn’t use this approach whenever you change your aligners. It’s better for your long-term health to adjust to the pain on your own than develop a habit of painkiller use.
Switch to New Aligners Before Bed
You may feel the most discomfort within the first few hours of wearing a new aligner. That being the case, you could make the switch before heading to bed so that you’ll sleep through the sensitive hours. By morning, your teeth will have adjusted, and you won’t have felt a thing!
Thanks to the tips above, you’ll get through any sore spots caused by your Invisalign trays. That way, you can smoothly sail towards a straighter smile.
About the Author
Dr. Vincenzo Artino is a dentist in Lakewood, CO. In his years of work, he’s gained a broad knowledge of dentistry through hands-on experience and countless hours of continuing education courses. As such, he offers a wide range of preventive, cosmetic, and restorative dental treatments. He is also a licensed and qualified Invisalign provider. Dr. Artino currently practices at Lakewood Complete Dentistry and can be reached at his website or by phone at (303)-238-2800.