Weddings, galas, and weekend getaways are of course, a blast to attend.
During the spring and summer months, you might find yourself invited to a few nuptial ceremonies and receptions.
Having clear aligners doesn’t mean you can’t partake in all the fun. Yet, you will need to make a few adjustments to your merriment if you don’t want to go off the rails with your treatment plan.
Here’s some advice that I can offer:
- Do: Bring your aligners with you. I never leave the house without them.
- Do: Keep your aligners in during the wedding ceremony (Guests will be too focused on the bride and groom and won’t notice there’s something different about your smile. Let alone, they probably wouldn’t point them out on a normal day). Take them out right before cocktail hour, then brush or rinse, and put them back in as soon as the plates are cleared from dessert.
- Do: Drink light-colored alcoholic beverages with a straw to maximize your aligner wear time. Drink water in between sips and clean your trays thoroughly at the end of the night to prevent staining.
- Don’t: Remove your aligners in front of people and/or stuff your trays into a napkin. The likelihood of you accidentally throwing them away is high and they should always be stored in your aligner case.
- Don’t: Smile with your mouth closed in pictures, if you’re feeling extra self-conscious about your teeth. Moments like these are meant to be enjoyed in their entirety.
- Don’t: Try to eat hors d’oeuvres with your trays in. First of all – ew! Second of all, they could crack from the pressure of you biting down repeatedly.
Lastly, here's a relevant question that comes up often: "Do whiter teeth look straighter?" I will say that a cleaner mouth can absolutely give the illusion of a knockout smile.
Towards the middle of my treatment plan (roughly 3 months in) I was already starting to see drastic changes with my bite and the leveling of my teeth. When your gums and teeth look healthy... people will comment.
Not to mention, all of the brushing helped me remove old surface stains. This was a huge confidence boost which I hope you’ll experience as well.
Have an incredible time at your event!