Miguel A. Fleshman

Get into a good Dental Schedule

We are all working from home more this year than ever before. Rather that is for work or your kids having to stay home from school due to covid tracing. It has been a wild 2021 and it will only get crazier. It is not the most fun thing, but some people are really enjoying it. But what no one really saw coming is that we would be communicating with visual cameras most of the time this year. Phones are a thing of the past and people are now doing more Google and Zoom calls than ever. I am seeing tons of people also noticed that their teeth are being the focus of attention because of the calls. It is simply the fact that people are seeing their mouth and nothing else during this time of year. What so many people are seeing is that lots of people have very yellow or even brown-looking teeth and many of the people that are the focus of attention simply have great white pearly-looking teeth. Teeth are now prized possessions for meetings and business.

Most people know your teeth are important, but no one ever thought it would be like this. Not a lot of people thought that having a bright smile could help them get hired, or promoted but if you are going to be on a zoom call with major clients and many people are turned off by your teeth then this really is a big deal. So make sure you are visiting your dentist to get a really good game plan for the best dental plan of 2021. Many people can give tips and tricks, but your own dentist can give you a medical recommendation on how to best work with your own dental health. So schedule up a good time to get this part of your life correct. Routines are key to being healthy and this is no exception. It is time to get into a good dental schedule.

Habits are not easy to form, but they are able to be done and done well. So for the sake of your health and pocketbook, get into one! This means that I am taking the American Dental Association recommendations into account and attempting to smash them in order to have the best-looking teeth that I can without going for super expensive help. It is not in my budget to have my teeth professionally cleaned and whitening at the dentist’s office, but I am sure able to do some work at my own home and that is my plan for the year. I am working on brushing my teeth three times a day. I am also adding in whitening toothpaste at night. This extra third brushing is the plan for me to sleep at night and whitening my teeth as I sleep. Being healthy, and looking good are a big carrer win.

What if you are failing right now? That is ok. Today is indeed a new day to start on your best routine again! I suggest brushing your teeth three times a day but the American Dental Association suggests at least twice. So doing two times a day and brushing for a full two minutes can help put you on the right track. Stay strong and keep working and remember it’s ok to fail, just try again.

Keeping Smiles Bright

When you are walking down a store aisle of yesteryear or walking outside and see a friend from a distance, one of the things that we are most excited to see are smiles. It is naturally the first thing that is done in our culture and along with that comes the look of the teeth beneath the smile. We are conscious of the looks of others and subconsciously we actually can see the friendliness of that smile go away with a not to a bright smile. That is based on a lot of different things, but the truth is that a yellow-toothed smile can actually end up making you look and seem more unfriendly. It can also have many other stereotypes give along with it, but the fact is that people judge you. So I want to make sure that we are doing what we can to seem how we actually feel when we great others. This is why I want to go over a few things that can be done to keep our smiles bright and teeth white.

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The looks of our teeth actually end up being a variety of different things. But many people like to start with what can be done in their daily dental routine first to brighten their smile. The ADA suggests that we actually brush our teeth twice a day with a high in fluoride toothpaste. This actually has something to do with things that can help cause your yellow smile, but generally does not help brighten your smile at all. Now brushing and protecting your teeth with a high in fluoride toothpaste is a great thing and helps to keep food and drinks from breaking down your enamel and causing yellowing. So it is really important to make sure you are brushing twice a day for that protection from further yellowing.

One thing you can add to your dental routine is that you should substitute one brushing or add in another brushing with a whitening toothpaste. I added an extra brushing in my daily schedule as to not harm my teeth in any way but to make sure they were fully protected. So for my night brushing, I put a whitening toothpaste in my schedule. What I decided to do was to go with a natural toothpaste. It is a charcoal paste that is proven to whiten your teeth over time. The benefit of this to me was that it was not a paste that would cause sensitive teeth. I have had sensitivity issues with whitening devices in the past and really didn’t want to experience that pain in my life again simply for brighter teeth. The charcoal toothpaste has helped brighten my smile and not cause me pain.

There are also tooth whitening strips that most people can buy quickly and get a super bright smile within a few weeks for less than 100 dollars. It is a really good process for bright smiles and in a fast amount of time. What I found for myself was that my teeth do not like them. My teeth get really sensitive and lots of pain ended up happening. So this is not my favorite way to a bright smile, but It did work very well.

I hope these tips help you with a brighter smile!

Foods and Drinks for your teeth during the Holidays

This is the time of year for all of those fantastic snacks. The wonderful cakes, pies, and incredible deserts of the holidays are what I live for. There is nothing better than having a family dinner and having my Mom bring out her deserts. It is something I look forward to every single year and it is also something I am certain by body dreads each year. Yes, I probably pick up about 5 to 10 lbs through the holiday months, but there is one area of health that probably suffers more, and it’s an area that most people neglect during this time of year. I am talking about my dental health. I know that this is a part of my body that really suffers and it is something that I should work on. So I want to hit up some tips for you and for me this year to help keep our health up and our mouths happy later in life.

The first thing I want to go over and to work on is staying hydrated. I know that water is the answer to a whole lot of dental issues and body issues. When it comes to eating and drinking sweets and yummy holiday things the excess sugar and acid can really be a big problem. By drinking more water I know I will be able to help rinse my mouth and keep my teeth safer. The rinsing of that sugar and acid off my teeth helps to keep the bacteria from growing that causes dental erosion. It also keeps the acid off your teeth which slowly eats away at your teeth too.

Water is a key ingredient to a healthy holiday. The benefits of staying hydrated are also that your mouth simply has more salvia to clean your mouth with as well. The cleaning effects from your natural saliva are incredible and will help to keep your body safe. So by not getting dehydrated and drying out your mouth, you are doing a big favor to you and your dentist. I am planning on keeping my stainless steel water bottle with me this year and rather I pretend I am drinking coffee or not I know that the water in it will help me not have an emergency visit to the dentist this year.

Now another thing I learned is how to help alleviate the effects of highly acidic drinks as well. When you are having an adult beverage it is most likely really highly acidic. Most drinks like that are and even coffee is too. But for those parties that you find yourself drinking at try to indulge in some cheese in-between. The cheese actually has the ability to neutralize acid because of its a base. This allows your teeth to not get the enamel eating substance constantly attacking your teeth.

I know this one is going to sound weird, but I started to create a mouth kit for parties. I am always hitting up the restroom once or twice during a party and having a disposable toothbrush and floss stick can help save your mouth. Once or twice at a party, after I do my thing in the bathroom I do a super quick brush and floss and trash the evidence. It is an amazing way to keep a good breath and stay safe. I hope these tips keep your holiday a little fresher for you too.

Treating TMD And Myofascial Pain With Trigger-Point Injections

According to a report by the Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation Clinics of North America, 21 to 30 percent of Americans suffer from myofascial pain. Myofascial pain refers to a sensation of discomfort in the muscle tissues in the upper and lower back and neck area. You can manage this pain by contacting your dentist and other health professionals. There are many treatment options available. One of them is the administration of trigger-point injections.

Things that result in trigger points

A trigger point refers to the tension or muscle spasm in the shoulder or back region. It can sometimes happen due to a nodule, which is a muscle knot. A nodule radiates pain when you touch it. A trigger point can also occur due to temporomandibular disorders (TMD), myofascial pain, or headache.

The pain can occur in the temporomandibular joint or its surrounding structure that includes muscles in the neck or facial area. A trigger point can accompany clicking or popping of jaw joint and facial pain during routine activities such as chewing, talking, and moving your lower jaw.

Pain relief with trigger point injections

You may get pain relief by having injections in the tender muscle areas. Your doctor can use medications, such as an anesthetic or corticosteroid, or just dry needles without any medication to treat the trigger points. The insertion of needles aims at relieving the tension between muscles, thus treating the trigger point. One injection session may be enough to treat trigger points. Patients with chronic disorders may, however, need to have regular sessions to treat the problem.

There are generally no side effects of having these injections as a means to treat trigger points. Some patients, however, experience mild pain at the site of injection. This pain subsides on its own within a few days, but you can consider applying ice or using over-the-counter pain relievers to have quick relief.

Who can administer these injections?

Due to the complexity involved in facial pain and TMD, there is no single dental specialty that can be designated as the sole resolver of these issues. Generally, you will want to contact a dentist who has had training in pain management. Alternatively, you can consider going to a medical expert who specializes in pain management. Trigger point injections are not painful when administered by a medical expert who has vast experience in managing pains.

Other ways to manage TMD pain

In most cases, medical experts do not suggest anything other than conservative methods to manage TMD pains. Eating a soft diet and exercising are the safest and, sometimes, most effective methods to treat TMD and facial pains. Your dentist or health physician may also recommend physical therapy or the use of an appliance to reposition your jaw.

Your doctor might also recommend botulinum toxin (botox) injections to treat such pains. Botox injections are generally known for their application during cosmetic facial procedures, but a study suggests that they might also be effective when it comes to treating TMD and facial pains.

You may want to discuss all of these options with your dentist or health physician before deciding what you need to choose.

Life as a dentist

Being in the dental profession can be rewarding but also challenging. Every day I face is different from the last and I like that about my job. Being in this profession I go home after work knowing I helped a lot of people. It’s a good feeling and it is what gets me out of bed every morning for work. There was one day I had that seemed like the world was ending around me, it was awful. There are many procedures but my favorite one to do is general cleaning. It is the most simple however in my opinion the most tedious.

I still remember the disaster day I had at work to this day. I woke up and went through my morning routine as usual. On my way into work, I grabbed the office and myself some coffee as it was a Monday and we all could use the pick me up. When I got into work the first red flag arose. There was water everywhere. Over Sunday night a pipe had burst and was pouring water out everywhere. We shut the water off and began moping, squeegeeing, and scooping up all the water we could. After about two hours we finally got all the water cleaned more or less. Another red flag was that due to this fiasco we could only use two of the five operating rooms. We had to send some of the techs homes as it was too crowded and not everyone had work to do. The final red flag was when we did finally accept our first patient and none of the electrical tools worked. For most offices, this is not a problem but for our office most if not all of our tools are electrical. This final hiccup caused us to close for the day and two more days following. To most people, this would be great, no work, but to me, this was a dire situation because my office was closed and we lost a lot of customers.

I love helping people it makes me feel good. Being in this profession allows for just that. We have people come in all the time with tooth aces or mouth problems. Getting the chance to help these people get relieved from their pain has got to be the best part of my job. It is very rewarding and I love seeing the people who were once in pain leave the office with a smile on their face.

There are many different kinds of procedures in the dental profession. I personally like general cleaning the most. This cleaning is the easiest but it is very tedious. I say this because as I am cleaning I take great care to not hurt the patient. As I scrape the plaque from their teeth I take my time so I do not slip or nick their gums or cause any pain. I know how painful it can be to have your teeth scraped as I personally do not enjoy it. Seems weird that someone who does not like to have their teeth cleaned by others is cleaning others’ teeth.

Being a dentist can have its ups and downs but it is important to remember why you are doing it. I do it to help people and see the smiles I bring to their faces. I enjoy helping to end people’s pain the best I can. With every day bringing a new challenge being a dentist keeps me on my toes. One day could consist of cleaning all day while the next could be putting braces on someone. Being able to help people makes me feel good knowing I was able to do something to better that person.

Brighten Your Smile with these ideas

This year has shows us that living in a new world of covid has some challenges. Even more, than ever we are now doing tons of online calls and video conferencing for work and even family get-togethers. What people start to notice is your mouth and how well your teeth are being kept up. Even with the masks being a big trend and requirement in some locations, when the mask comes off you cannot scare the person looking at you. This can be something that changes your career or even relationships in a bad way. What my fmily has done is focus on our dental health to make sure we are looking good and keeping our lives safe and healthy.

Each and every day we have a chance to help out health. What we do on a daily basis sets the standard for how our mouths will look and be. There is nothing worse than doing everything right on your dental routine and have your eating and drinking habits destroy all your hard work. Keeping a nice and clean diet can truly help overcome the yellowing and staining that happens on your teeth.

We all know that there are simply some things we should eat and drink less of. I hate to say it but coffee is a staple morning drink for the vast majority of Americans including myself.. It is sitting in every waiting room, and constantly being brewed at every office. Caffeine is a great motivating winner and helps keep Americans productive. The one major downfall is the effects that it has on your body. I hate that my morning routine makes my teeth yellow and even browns them due to all that acid.

Brushing your teeth before you drink coffee does not really help at all. The sad thing is that it is most likely making it worse. You are now opening your teeth up to the acid and brown stain instantly. It actually is a detrimental problem, because you could be thinking your whitening toothpaste is working when in fact it is simply making your teeth more yellow and brown. This means the only answer is so cut back and to drink less of it.

Now we all don’t have to cut it out cold turkey. There are lots of replacements for caffeine. Habits take about 30 days to form, so getting rid of one and starting another is difficult. I find that either substituting coffee to say tea is a great way to accomplish this goal. Tea is a perfect fix for coffee drinkers. We are also able to easily substitute the caffeine issues with caffeine pills as well. If you know how much coffee you drink you can change out the habit by eliminating the caffeine and replacing that with either some pills or even tea.

We all know there are lots of things that harm your teeth and not everyone drinks coffee. Truly, the main issue in the United States is literally the lack of brushing. The vast majority only brush their teeth once a day. Now the ADA recommends brushing two to three times a day and really means it. This along with not drinking coffee or other highly acidic and staining drinks. Just keep up those great habits of brushing your teeth and you will be on your way to a healthy lifestyle.