In short, yes. Once your teeth have shifted into the desired alignment, new bone is deposited around the teeth to keep them in place, a process that takes up to 12 months. To ensure that teeth do not fall out of alignment again, we recommend that patients wear a retainer between 12 and 22 hours a day for 3-6 months, depending on the extent of your initial problem. For the next 6 months, retainers should be worn nightly. To avoid compromising the beautiful smile that you have worked so hard to achieve, retainers should then be worn 3-5 times a week for life.