Are retainers after braces really necessary?

The picture is really too blurry to give you advice from that. But if you have, as you say, "a tooth behind a tooth" and lower teeth that are "really crowded", you would need braces. Retainers are used to hold teeth in position, not move teeth to new positions.

I suggest you make an appointment with an orthodontist. Many offer the exam at no charge. You would be able to a professional actually look at your teeth and tell you what you need.

A retainer only helps keep teeth in place - so yeah, you'll need braces. But before you do, because you said your teeth are crowded, you may need an expander appliance. I have that now (I'm getting braces soon) and it helps expan your teeth space to give urself room for braces.

At first it feels weird and you talk funny but you get used to it within a couple weeks. Hope this helped x.

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