When your child won’t wear their braces — what helps
The aligner is in its case instead of in the mouth, the removable brace “accidentally” disappears into the school bag in the evening: almost every family goes through this phase. What matters is that you don’t treat it as a parenting problem, but as something that can be solved together with us.
Why wearing discipline is so crucial
With invisible aligners, discipline is very important. The recommended wearing time is 20 to 22 hours a day to guarantee the best possible result. The aligners should only be taken out for eating and brushing — which means you mustn’t forget to put them back in straight after every meal.
Removable braces also have to be worn every day to achieve the desired result. Removable braces are only worn in the afternoon and at night — so your child’s everyday life is hardly affected.
The blue dot: keeping track without arguments
Many discussions at the dinner table can be avoided, because the aligners themselves reveal how long they have been worn. DDr. Köhne explains it to parents like this: “The aligners have a special blue dot. This dot changes from blue to transparent and helps you assess the wearing time.”
The blue colour indicator dot shows whether the aligners have been worn for the optimal time — so there’s no cheating. For you as a parent, this means you don’t have to check up on your child — you can simply look. And for your child, it means the responsibility visibly lies with them.
If it still doesn’t work: the Eltz guarantee
Sometimes motivation isn’t enough — and that’s no drama either. Dr. Busche: “We have the unique Eltz guarantee and continue treating your child with fixed braces.” Fixed braces only need to be chosen if your child wasn’t disciplined and motivated enough to wear the aligners consistently, or if the correction could not be achieved with the aligners because of their limited ability to apply force.
By the way, this also applies to our treatment result as a whole: if the result simulated in advance isn’t achieved, we continue treating your child with brackets free of charge — until you’re satisfied.
What lost aligners cost: nerves, but hardly any time
A common worry for parents is that a lost aligner will ruin the whole treatment. Prim. Dr. Hodecker gives the all-clear: “If you lose the aligners, we simply order new ones for you. It’s completely straightforward and you hardly lose any treatment time.” So if the aligners mysteriously disappear or get misplaced, we can order new ones at any time.
Five approaches that really help in everyday life
- Explain the why. It’s important to support your child during this phase. Explain why orthodontic treatment is necessary and how it can help them achieve a healthy, beautiful smile.
- Show the result. With invisible aligners, the result is simulated in 3D before treatment. So your child can see what their teeth will look like at the end before they even start — for many children, that’s exactly the motivation boost they need.
- Take discomfort seriously. Every kind of braces takes some getting used to. Encourage your child to be patient and to talk to us about any discomfort. It’s completely normal for the teeth to feel a little loose at the start of treatment — it’s a sign that they’re moving.
- Let them help design it. We offer traditional removable braces in various colours and designs, which your son or daughter can help design. That makes wearing them noticeably more fun.
- Involve us. Raise the issue openly at the next check-up. We check the progress of the tooth movement at regular intervals anyway and can step in early.
Talk to us before motivation tips over
It’s important that parents and children understand the process and work closely with our orthodontists to achieve the best results. With patience and care, this phase can lay the foundation for a lifetime of healthy smiles. Book an appointment — or simply give us a call if something isn’t going smoothly along the way.