So, your brand new Invisalign attachment just fell off and you’re a bit worried? In this post, I’m telling you 7 things to expect at the start of your aligners journey: how my own Invisalign attachments fell off, pronunciation change, what pain to expect, and how fast you can see results.

Hi there!
I’m guessing you’re here because you are considering placing aligners and are curious about what to expect from an Invisalign treatment. Or maybe you just got them and want to see what comes next.
Either way, you’re in the right place. I’ve created this post to give you some quick insights on what to expect at the beginning of your Invisalign journey (from Invisalign attachments falling off to the pain levels and more).
If you’d like to find out more about the whole procedure (placement, costs, and results), I wrote extensively about my experience here:
INVISALIGN: Everything You NEED to Know and RESULTS
5 Funny Invisalign Tips that you’d want to know
First, here’s my story
(if you’ve already read my previous post, feel free to skip ahead)
I’ve always had pretty good teeth and have been taking good care of them ever since I was a kid. I was going for regular checkups and, in recent years, I’ve added professional cleaning every 6 months.
But my teeth aren’t perfect: for all my life, I’ve had a large gap between the two front ones (see exhibit A below).

I am very grateful that my parents realized this was pretty serious. They thought it could affect my confidence growing up, so they decided to get me braces early on. Back in the 90s, they were told that if we didn’t act then, it wouldn’t be possible to straighten my teeth later on.
So, I wore braces for a couple of years, from the age of 8, but the gap was still there. All they could do was get my teeth straight and slightly closer together. I stopped wearing them in my teenage years and decided to “embrace the gap” as part of my personality, my signature look, that something that made me different.
Why I decided to fix my teeth
I was always smiling confidently and was never ashamed of it but, deep down, I was always a little bit jealous of those people with straight teeth and a perfect smile and wished I had the same.
And you know those ads, where they show you a guy with a 3rd arm but you don’t notice because you can’t take your eyes off his missing tooth/ gap between his teeth? Those didn’t help either… 😉
Fast forward a couple of years to my 30s; I noticed that my teeth were slowly moving away from each other. Again. The gap was getting even bigger now.
It was when I realized that I was no longer smiling as confidently in pictures and was even becoming slightly embarrassed of my smile that I decided it was time to do something about it – I talked to an orthodontist and got Invisalign.
Having straight teeth was such a long-time dream, and I didn’t even think it was possible anymore. But here I am, 4 months into my Invisalign journey, SO excited for the outcome and here to tell you EVERYTHING you need to know at the beginning of your Invisalign treatment.
Invisalign Attachment Fell Off. What Happens Now?
First things first. This seems to be a very common topic that most of us experience: the Invisalign attachment fell off. So I want to address it right away:
1. If your Invisalign attachments fell off, don’t worry, it’s normal
According to my orthodontist, it is quite normal that some attachments – those little white applications on your teeth- might fall off within the first 2-3 months. So don’t worry if this happens to you.
I had to go back several times, as one attachment fell off during the first day and others even a week later. They reapplied them pretty quickly, 5-10 minutes. It’s also free of charge.
It is recommended to eat softer food right after the application, but it still happened to me even with a pasta and mozzarella dinner. I went back 3 times in total.
READ NEXT: Amazing Invisalign Before and After Gap Results – 9 Months Update

2. Speaking will be… a little different 😉
Ok, this is nothing major. You will sound almost like your usual self. Aligners don’t majorly affect your pronunciation, but I’ve been having slight trouble with the letter “s”. Words like “festivals” definitely sound funnier now. So yes, expect a small lisp or slight change.
That said, I am perfectly able to have 2 hours of presentations and conference calls at work. People who don’t work closely with me wouldn’t even know the difference.
From my YouTube research, everyone said it goes away in 2-3 days. That’s not really my case..the “s” issue is always there, but you (and everyone around) will get used to it pretty soon.
READ NEXT: What Happens After Your Last Invisalign Tray? 5 Things You Need To Know

3. Little “injuries” on the inside of your lips
This might happen if the Invisalign attachments are a little abrasive or if, like me, you have elastic bands as part of your treatment.
The upper trays have small hooks to hold the elastics, which might poke into your upper lip and cause small injuries. For me, this was definitely the case and turned out quite painful in the first 2 days.
A great fix for this is using a little bit of ortho wax to coat those points that cause the injury. Believe me; these guys will be your best friends.
4. Aligners are not painful but expect to feel some pressure

It’s true that aligners are not painful, but do expect to feel intense pressure every 2 weeks when changing to a new set.
Your teeth are constrained into these trays, and they move slightly closer together each day. By the end of the 2 weeks, your teeth are perfectly comfortable in their mold.
When the new, tighter aligners come, you will feel (in my case, quite intense) pressure on specific points. Don’t worry; this only happens in the first 2-3 days of each new set, and you won’t feel it for a long time after application. The pain is usually over in about 5-10 min.
5. Aligners might turn a bit yellowish in time
No matter how often I wash mine (twice a day with kid’s toothpaste and toothbrush, as advised by my orthodontist) and not drink anything other than cold water, some trays still get slightly yellowish on the sides by the end of the 2 weeks.
This could be since those are the points I usually grab when removing them or where the elastics are making contact. It’s not a big deal, and it’s hardly visible. I haven’t noticed any coloration of the Invisalign attachments.
6. Your teeth will be whiter than ever
This is an awesome bonus of placing aligners or any braces, actually.
Because you need to have top oral hygiene, brushing, and flossing after EVERY.SINGLE.MEAL, your teeth will be whiter than ever, so yeah, bring on that pearly white smile every chance you get.
And yes, expect to hear compliments all of a sudden on how white your teeth are.

7. Expect to see results, quickly 😀
Wondering how long aligners take to work? I’ve got some good news for you!
Only 2 months into my treatment I’ve already seen visible progress: my front tooth is now perfectly straight, and the gap is visibly smaller already. This is amazing and so motivating!
I hope you found this useful. If you’d like to read more on this topic (from the placement of Invisalign attachments and trays to costs and step-by-step results), I bet you’d love these ones:
INVISALIGN: Everything You NEED to Know and RESULTS
5 Funny Invisalign Tips that you’d want to know
Final Thoughts – Invisalign Attachment Fell Off
I hope this post was useful and a little bit reassuring that in case your attachment does fall off, it’s not a big deal. It’s actually pretty common. So don’t stress about it! 😉
This post was all about what to expect at the start of your aligners journey: Invisalign attachment fell off, pronunciation with Invisalign, what pain to expect, and how fast you can see results.
If you liked this post feel free to PIN it for others to enjoy too!
Just wanted to thank you so much for this post. I just started my invisilign treatment and have a lot of attachements and I think so bit have come off an attahcment and was panicking. So glad I found this helpful and reassuring information!
Hi Patricia,
So so happy to hear that! 😃 I totally understand that panic when the attachments fall haha and I’m glad this post helped!
Good luck with your Invisalign journey!
Hello, my Invisalign attachment came off my tooth, I’ve been wearing them for 8 months now. It’s a new tray and it’s causing more pain. I go on holiday on Monday and my dentist isn’t open on the weekends, do you think it will be okay for a week with a missing attachment ?🙈😅
Hi Stephanie,
It’s quite hard for me to say as I’m not a dental professional.. from my own experience, the reapplication of the attachment was never treated as an emergency (more like “good that you came by”), so probably one week without it won’t be a major issue. Don’t think you need to worry too much and enjoy your holiday! 🙂