I didnt wear my retainers like i should've after braces and teeth are moving back to how they were...?

Question

My teeth have begun moving back to how they were before i got braces, and its my fault-i didnt wear my retainers as i was instructed to. Its been a year now since i had braces. I still have my retainers and i've been wearing my retainers for about 2 days 24/7 and i can actually feel my teeth moving, and its hurting like h**l...but i'm not sure if my teeth are moving in the right position (straight) or just moving randomly. Has anyone else done this...?

Answer 1

I have but NOT a whole year maybe a week or two but thats max, your teeth are going to conform back to what ever shape your retainers are, they dont have any choice to move any where else. Its going to be very painful but know you know why they say to wear them often I wear mines at night but please dont let a whole year go by b 4 putting them in:)!

Answer 2

your teeth will move back with the retainer in theory...however since retainers can only tip teeth they won't move like they were before, the retainer can't move teeth up or down or straight forward or backward just tip them a bit.  The reason it burts is because its putting too much force on your teeth, this leads to a variety of bad things not only is it unlikely your teeth will actually move when you put too much force on them, but its also possible that it will lead to your body eating away at the roots of the teeth which would make them shorter.  Both of these things are bad, if you want to move your teeth back you need braces again, if you want to just maintain them where they are now so they don't move anymore then get new retainers made and wear them this time around