One of our team members stumbled upon a website called North to South, because of its blog entry on traveling with Invisalign. The post totally nails it and is a fun read, so we encourage you to check it out. As Summer is a perfect time to travel, we’ll share some of the key points with you, along with a few extras.
North to South is the adventure lifestyle blog of nomadic entrepreneurs Diana Southern and Ian Norman. According to their website, In 2014 they called it quits on what they called their normal American lives, started online businesses, and set out to explore the world. Seems like they are succeeding and finding ways to encourage others to also become more mobile and global.
It just so happens that Diana, although travelling for extended periods of time to Europe, New Zealand, and other points of destination was also an Invisalign patient in the United States. She includes that she did have to go 10 weeks vs 6 without a check-in with her orthodontist, but she shared that with her doctor and did a great job with living and traveling with her Invisalign trays.
Diana carried a folding travel toothbrush and toothpaste in her purse for long travel days but says she used mostly rinsed and then brushed as soon as she got back to her hotel. She mentioned the minor embarrassment she felt with all of the public removal of her trays to eat street food while traveling in Europe, but said she quickly got over that.
The author stressed her care in not losing any of the 10 trays she carried, as she would have to stick with the last successful tray for the remainder of her trip. She mentioned putting her aligner in her case and zipping it away in her purse before eating or drinking. We like that planning.
Dr. Randy Feldman shares, “when traveling with Invisalign, the same rules apply as when home. Invisalign ONLY works while you are wearing the aligners. The exceptions are to eat, brush, and floss your teeth. 22 hours is the least amount of time to wear your aligners to be effective!”
Dr. Ernest McDowell adds, “So this means, that you have to plan your meals carefully, and that includes drinking coffee, wine, and non-water beverages. Those all take away from that two allotted hours. You have to be very careful to brush after any beverages that stain, and that isn’t always easy when away from home, but Diana Southern is a great example of someone who knows what she wants and takes the steps to achieve it.”
The Blue Wave Orthodontics Team inspires you to visit Florida, the United States, and beyond while in Invisalign treatment. Just be sure to keep your Blue Wave appointments and to make sure we answer any questions you may have before you hit the road.
