I was 12 years old when I got braces. It was 1990. I was in 6th grade. Let me put it this way, I wasn’t happy about it. That being said, my teeth were horrible was a pre-teen. I actually had extra teeth in my mouth as a child and ended up needing (are you ready for this) 9 teeth pulled by the time I was 12 years old. My mouth was just full of teeth and it was tough (as a child) to deal with it. And then the worst part, none of them were growing in straight. It was tough. Very tough. I wore braces until I was 14 years old and then had to wear a retainer until I was 18 years old. To be honest with you, I probably should have continued to wear my retainer throughout college and beyond, but I was embarrassed to be wearing this big, bulky retainer in front of people I was just meeting.

Fast forward 24 years.

I’m a mom of 5. Believe it or not, my son Alexander (who is almost 9 years old) already has top braces. My Alexander has teeth just like I did as a child. He had extra teeth growing in his mouth from a very early age and last August, we actually had to have one surgically removed because he had a 3rd front tooth growing in completely sideways. That tooth was really affecting the top teeth he had already, so we had to undergo this difficult process of getting it removed. After that, he got braces on those top teeth.

By the looks of my William (he’s already had a palette expander for 8 months) and my Benjamin are going to be needing braces, too. And I’m sure my Henry and Victoria will need something. Straight teeth are something you want. Your teeth are your teeth. I remember before I had straight teeth as a child, I hardly smiled in photos, it was always a closed mouth smile because I was so embarrassed. I don’t want that for my children.

I have been completely intrigued by Invisalign over the last year as an alternative to braces for (myself and) my sons. To be honest with you, my son Alex HATES the wires and the brackets. What I love about Invisalign is that it’s clear aligners straighten teeth without traditional wires and brackets giving teens the confidence to live life to the fullest while improving their smile. The Invisalign Teen clear aligners are also removable and can straighten teeth without a mouth full of metal and all the disruption and sacrifice that comes with it. No impacting confidence or self-esteem, which is something that effected me as a pre-teen. And another thing I love, Invisalign Teen eliminates emergency ortho visits for broken wires and brackets and requires fewer appointments since several aligner sets are provided in advance. I can’t tell you how many times a wire has come free for my Alex and we have to hope we can get it to have it fixed.

The one thing I was worried about was the price of Invisalign because with 5 kids, it’s something that we need to budget for, but we know how important it is for our kids.

The myth is that: Invisalign is more expensive than metal braces.

Setting it Straight: The cost of Invisalign is usually comparable to the cost of traditional braces and many dental insurance plans cover Invisalign just as they would braces.

This was music to my ears to see! You can check out the Invisalign Cost Calculator that they have on their site to help see the costs. I love that they have this easy tool.

Also, another good thing to add is the Myth that: Invisalign takes longer to complete than braces.

Setting it Straight: The length of Invisalign treatment is comparable to braces. The average Invisalign journey averages about 12 months for adults. The length of treatment time for teens may vary depending on the severity of the case and can only be determined by a doctor.

Not all orthodontists specialize in Invisalign Teen. Visit www.invisalign.com and select “find a doctor” to locate experienced Invisalign and Invisalign Teen doctors in your area.

I’m very happy to be able to share this information with my readers. I think it’s wonderful for parents to be able to know that there are alternatives out there to research and check out.

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Disclaimer: This is a sponsored post. However, all thoughts and opinions are my own.