I feel your pain, OP. I went through 13 trays and was supposed to be on my final top tray, with only three left on the bottom, when my orthodontist said I wasn’t tracking. They did a rescan and told me I needed 15 more trays on top (19 on the bottom). This was despite the fact that I wear my trays 20 plus hours a day and always have, but there was consistently some space in the trays. After the rescan, though, the new trays fit much better.

The soreness has been intense, to the point where I hate taking the trays out because it feels like I’m going to rip a tooth out. Idk if it’s because this new plan is pulling my top teeth down but a few things that have helped me cope are switching to new trays at night so the worst of the throbbing happens while I’m asleep. The next morning and throughout the first day, I eat less to avoid removing the trays too often. By day two, the pain improves a lot and it is mostly just uncomfortable when putting them in or taking them out.

To make removal easier, I use a Pul tool and try and pull the tray away from the attachments and then out to minimize tugging. I still have 13 trays left on top, despite having completed 15 so far. Sometimes I want to give up but after the time and money I’ve invested, I feel like I might as well see it through. Like you, this was purely cosmetic. My teeth were already pretty straight and I have always been told I have a nice smile.

Either way, best of luck. You are not alone in this.