One of the most important tools that Dr. Gemmi and Dr. Middleberg use to make your teeth beautiful is your retainer. Are you taking good care of it? We understand that sometimes they are lost when you aren’t being careful enough. So, be careful! They are not cheap or easy to replace!
Besides not losing your retainer, you can do a number of things to make it last longer, and perform its job most effectively.
First, when you brush your teeth, gently brush your retainer too. However, you can’t just “go at it” with all your strength! It’s custom-designed for your mouth, and it’s important that you don’t bend the wires.
Second, don’t play with your retainer while it is in your mouth by flipping it around with your tongue, or popping it in and out. We understand that at first it is kinda fun to do that… But the problem is that it can become an unconscious habit and can lead to breaking your retainer.
Third, when you have to take out your retainer (and, as you know we have told you when you can do that) don’t wrap it up in your napkin! So many retainers are lost that way. It’s called “out of sight, out of mind”. If you don’t see it, you are really more likely to throw it in the trash with the napkin. Don’t put your retainer in your pocket either. Obviously, it has a good chance of breaking in there.
Here is a short video from our good friends at Howcast that will help you remember what to do:
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