just wondering.....

If you have fake retainers or braces, what is the longest continuous time you have worn them for, apart from perhaps taking them out for cleaning ?

Basically, as long as the retainers fit well and without tension, they can be worn for ages.
But you have to be careful, for example, if you have had new fillings: Straight splints then may no longer fit properly and have to be aligned or even replaced.

A monthly selfie of your teeth protects you from unpleasant surprises.

Greets, Stefan

I wore my fakes full-time for eight months (an average of 21-22 hours a day), from the end of June last year until February. I only stopped wearing them because I started actual orthodontic treatment at the end of February. Initially, a friend challenged me to wear them all the time for one week. She expected me to give up, but I didn't, and we continued the experiment. Many people enjoy the loss of control that comes with wearing fixed braces. I enjoyed the discipline that came with wearing removable appliances. It made it more realistic to have to follow some rules.

My braces were prominent, but disappointingly, only a few people brought them up in conversation. I suppose adults with braces aren't big news anymore. They were based on Hawley retainers with upper and lower (passive) expanders, a passive Herbst appliance, and a tongue crib. I was surprised by how quickly I adapted. I never quite got over the tongue crib lisp, but it wasn't a big issue, and I had no problems at work. Interestingly, neither my dentist nor hygenist noticed anything, even though I only removed the braces immediately before my appointments.

Overall, it was a very positive experience, and once my real treatment ends, I will repeat it in some form.

But continuously wearing without taking them out is maximum 12 hours...

My maximum time without taking them out would have been similar to yours. For practical reasons, I usually removed them to eat when I was at home. Apart from that, the idea was to behave as if I couldn't remove my braces.

Looking back, it was much more fun than my current real treatment. Unfortunately, I am stuck with Invisalign because I couldn't persuade any of the orthodontists I tried to give me fixed braces. The aligners feel nice and are doing a good job, but they aren't as tactile, and it is easy to forget they are there.

What about overall time though, ie letting people think it was real treatment......days, months, (years !) ?

Obviously, if its fake retainers, the wearing infront of others can be flexible but what about if you have fake braces (brackets, wires etc) ?
 If you have worn them infront of others you would have to keep up the braced image.

That's a good point. I'd also like to know if anyone has consistently worn fake brackets daily for a long time and, if so, how they dealt with the inevitable challenges. In fact, I'd be happy to see more discussion here about recreational brace-wearing in general.

When planning my fake orthodontic 'treatment', I opted for Hawley-based braces with standard labial bows precisely because I thought there might be times when I'd feel nervous or embarrassed and want to remove them. Although it mattered to nobody except me and my partner it made me feel really proud that I didn't.

When I switched to my aligner treatment, a few people asked me what had happened (but only a few). I told them that I had moved on to the next phase, and then added with a mildly disappointed expression that there might be more to follow and that my overall treatment could take quite a long time...

Some of us don't want to reveal how deep our fascination with fake braces goes.

Hello,
I've been wearing my fake retainers for nearly 4 months, and I plan to keep them at least one year. It helps to complete my so-called "treatment"!
I just remove them at home to eat, and sometimes outside (at work or at the restaurant) when I feel confident with people. If I don't remove them when I eat, I have to clean them afterwards.
The next step would be to get fake brackets, but I reckon it will be difficult to eat with. I obviously can't pretend to remove them for meals !!!