Do you feel like you are being ignored?

How many times have you been in a place where you've got a problem and you've gone for some advice?

Lets imagine the scenario. You've plucked up the courage to do something about an issue, perhaps an embarrassing one, and booked an appointment.

You arrive on the day at your destination, you exchange pleasantries with the person greeting you, and wait.

And then you wait some more...

And some more as well.

You check your watch, and accept that things must be busy, but are painfully aware that its getting toward the end of the working day and that maybe you're going to be shall we say - rushed along?

And then it happens - you're called into the office (or surgery, or room, or whatever) - and The Expert is sat there writing notes about the last person on the computer with their back to you, but its OK they can write and talk at the same time whilst facing the wall  - "Now what seems to be the problem Mr Smith..."

Not a good start - your name is Mrs Jones.

You find talking to the floor easier because there's no eye contact, no attempt at friendliness, and you feel faintly ridiculous and a bit stupid because your problem now seems to have been a bit of an ego trip, and hey, The Expert has obviously got a lot of other bigger things to worry about.

You're just floundering through your explanation with a mouth as parched as Death Valley when you find yourself cut off and handed a ...prescription  / excuse / another appointment / fobbed off.....

I dont think I need to go on do I.....

Its Friday afternoon, and we've had a lovely week and the privilege of meeting some genuine, often scared and occasionally traumatised people for the first time...because they've come to see us for some help.

And why do we keep hearing stories like the one above, over and over again. 

Dentistry is a people profession. Most of us have two eyes, two ears and one mouth - and they should be used in exactly that order.

Has this ever happened to you? Why don't you get in touch and let us know about it....

Teeth and Tarmac - again

Heres an unfortunate picture of a delightful young lady. Lets call her Lucy. She's eight years old and I bet she likes pink things.

Lucy was at her dad's on Saturday. She tripped over and landed right on her teeth - just like the young lad I mentioned in a previous blog.

She scabbled her top lip and dented her pride. Dad quickly took her to the emergency dentist who patched Lucy up and sent her on to us for treatment.

Lucy's mum and gran came in with her - looking worried. Would Lucy lose her teeth? What will happen in the future? Does she have to have lots of nasty treatment and will it frighten her?

All legitimate questions. I'd do the same.

You know, its such a good feeling when you can look the parent, the grandparent and the child in the eye and say - "Its going to be alright, its going to be fine".

What did we do?

We took digital X rays to check the roots were intact - they were.

We told Lucy that we were going to put some numbing cream on her gums to make them go all cold.

We then explained that she would feel two tiny pinpricks, no more than a pinch.

And then her lip and nose would go tingly and numb - which they did.

Which would mean that I could make her teeth better again.

And today Lucy had her teeth back - it took just 30 minutes, no pain, and a bit of George of the Jungle on the ceiling to take her mind off what was going on.

In fact Lucy was so good I took the chance to have a bit of a play with the appearance of the teeth.

Heres a picture of a numb Lucy Smiling.

Thanks Lucy for being such a delight to care for!

One of those lightbulb moments: whitening teeth

You know when something happens and you've just got to shout about it? I think its just happened to me...

Most people know that you can have your teeth whitened - its been around in various forms for about 20 years or so and like most things in life, its become more refined and there are now different techniques which suit different needs. There are also cheap imitations - beware and stay clear - at best they don't work and at worst they dissolve your teeth. Really.

You can have your teeth whitened in as little as one hour - so it can be quick and convenient, suiting our sadly too busy lifestyles.

Truth is, most people could also get the same result with the less sexy but still effective home whitening - applying the right gel to the teeth in dentist made bespoke trays, usually for two to four weeks. Its a bit of a faff, it takes time, and it really does matter that your trays are made the right way and that you are using the right gel, so results can be very variable.

We also see a fair number of patients who have brown or grey or spotted or flecked or chalky (or all of the above) teeth - usually because of being given inappropriate antibiotics as a kid. Its a real downer and these people are rightly keen to get it sorted. Until today, but they would need to wear home trays for up to three or even six months. Thats an hour a day for 180 days. No quick fix, just gooey trays for ever.

Back to the lightbulb moment.

I have trained with a guy called Wyman Chan at Smile Studio in London on a couple of occasions, most recently in May of this year. He knows pretty much everything about tooth whitening there is to know, and he's stumbled across a superb idea. Using the same safe gel that we use in the home trays, and applying it in a different way and using a simple heat source to warm it, patients can home whiten in about one fifth of the time - ie this is five times quicker.

What nailed it for me was that a patient came in yesterday having been told that three months was the order of the day, and ten days later she's nearly done. When we have a few more cases completed we'll post photos of them here.

The system is called Get 2 Smile, we're doing it, and I think that the days of tray whitening are numbered.

If you've got heavily stained teeth, or if you've tried whitening before but didn't get the result you wanted, why don't you get in touch?