- Flossing with a glued-in retainer really is a hassle. You’re not alone there.
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That’s super common. Most people find the threaders annoying after a few weeks.“I tried those threaders but got lazy after a while.”
- Water flossers are decent, but yeah, they don’t always get everything. I’ve seen patients who swear by them, but others just don’t feel as clean.
- Brushing regularly is still doing a lot for your teeth, so don’t knock yourself for not being perfect with the flossing. The main thing is you kept the retainer in place—losing or breaking it is way more of a headache.
- If you ever want to step it up again, there are these super slim floss picks now that can sometimes fit under the wire. Not as fiddly as threaders.
- Honestly, most folks with glued-in retainers end up doing “good enough” rather than textbook-perfect cleaning. It’s about balance—you’re definitely not failing at this.
- If you ever notice tartar building up behind the wire, just mention it at your next cleaning. Hygienists have special tricks for getting in there.
- You stuck with it for years, and that’s more than a lot of people manage. That counts for something.
I totally relate to the flossing struggle—threaders just aren’t sustainable for me either. I’ve been wondering, does anyone feel like their glued-in retainer actually helps with shifting, or is it mostly just a pain? I’m torn between convenience and long-term results...
I’ve had my bottom retainer glued in for, gosh, almost 15 years now. I’ll be honest, it’s a hassle with flossing—threaders never really worked for me either, so I just use those little brushes most days. But I do think it’s kept my teeth from shifting. My dentist says I’m one of the “lucky ones” since it hasn’t come loose yet. Still, if I had to do it over, I might go with the removable kind... just for the sake of cleaning. It’s a trade-off, really—less worry about shifting, more fuss with daily care.
Man, 15 years with a glued-in retainer? That’s some serious commitment. I had one of those for a while, too, and honestly, the flossing situation drove me nuts. Those threaders just felt like wrestling a tiny piece of fishing line between my teeth every night—half the time I’d end up giving up and just hoping for the best. Switched to those little brushes too, but sometimes I swear they just push food around instead of actually cleaning.
I did end up switching to a removable one eventually. Way easier to keep clean, but yeah, you gotta remember to actually wear it... and not lose it in a napkin at lunch (which I might’ve done once or twice). It’s always that trade-off—glued in means less shifting but more hassle, and removable means freedom but also a bit more responsibility. Honestly, I don’t miss the dental gymnastics, but sometimes I do worry my teeth are plotting a slow escape now that I’m not “locked down.”
I totally get the struggle with flossing around a glued-in retainer. I still remember the first time my hygienist handed me those floss threaders—it felt like learning a magic trick, except I never quite mastered it. I eventually started using a water flosser, which helped a bit, but there were days I just skipped it out of frustration.
Swapping to a removable retainer did make cleaning so much easier, but yeah, the self-discipline part is real. I’ve definitely left mine on my nightstand for “just one night” and then forgotten about it for days... It’s always that balancing act between convenience and making sure your teeth don’t start shifting back. Sometimes I wonder if there’s ever a perfect solution or if we’re all just picking our battles.