Retainer Usage

I'm not particularly good about remembering to wear my retainer at night. Typically, I'll wear it for a week or two, then stop for a month or two before starting again. I know I need to be more regular about it, and I'm going to try to be from now on. But having started up again, my teeth hurt when I wake up in the morning, and for maybe 10 to 20 minutes after I take the retainer off. I can deal with the pain, and it goes away after a few nights of wearing it again, but I'm wondering: is this bad for my teeth? Does this mean that they're moving too much?

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

Most likely, yes.  Your teeth are probably shifting while you aren't wearing your retainer and when you do put it on, its pushing it back to where it is suppose to be when you finished your braces.  I would wear it more regularly and the pain in the morning should go away.  Its not necessarily bad for your teeth depending on how far they move.  I wouldn't recommend doing it on a regular basis as it does stress the teeth/jaw out if its moving alot.  I can't tell you how much its moving though but since you can wear it again,  I would imagine its not moving too much.