Dentist Phobia: don’t come near me with that drill

Wednesday, June 16th, 2010

When we were talking about Social Six braces the other day it brought up the horrendous fear some of us have of the dentist.

This fear is so common that it is one of the causes of rotten teeth, pain and ongoing dental misery. People would prefer to put up with pain and bad teeth rather than visit the dentist and get it sorted out.

And to be honest it’s not that surprising. Dental surgeries have evolved into happy shiny places, full of kindness and gentle injection techniques – but they weren’t always like that. As a child I have a vivid memory of the dentist wrenching a tooth out of my mouth with a pliers (he almost had to put a knee in my chest to gain leverage), horrendous injections that really hurt, years of braces filled pain, and a filling happy dentist who filled everything whether it needed it or not.

So eh it’s no wonder that we’ve grown up as adults who feel less than happy about visiting the dentist.

Dental anxiety, dental phobia, odontophobia, call it what you will, it’s very common.

What do you think? Do you suffer from this – a bit or a lot?

Tags: braces, dental phobia, dentist
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth | 37 Comments »

Social Six braces: the quickest fix

Monday, June 14th, 2010

teeth

Sounding a little like a manufactured pop band from the nineties, Social Six refers to the six teeth at the front of your mouth that are seen the most when you’re talking or smiling.

And so to quickly improve the look of someone’s smile fixing these six teeth may be all that is necessary. Social Six braces are not for anyone with much wrong with their teeth to be honest – they’re for those of us who have a little wonkieness or slight misalignment. Maybe your teeth were perfect until recently and have begun to crush and move over a little? Social Six braces might suit you then.

They’re fast, a real quick fix. The time they take to work is counted in weeks (24), not years or even months.

Six month braces have become incredibly popular – just take a look at this post (and its thirteen hundred+ comments !) and cosmetic dentistry is becoming more and more popular (read my veneer experience here)

So I wonder will the same interest be shown in Social Six braces? I think we can put our money on it.

Tags: braces, dentistry, teeth
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth | 27 Comments »

First Impressions: Rapid White Blue Light Tooth Whitening System

Thursday, April 1st, 2010

A few days ago, I ran a leetle bit amok in Boots in Liffey Valley. Among the things I loaded into my basket, between the 3 for 2 vitamins and Compeed plasters, was a tooth whitening kit, €44.80. Now, I don’t usually go in for these things, but this particular one came with a funky gizmo that caught my eye.

It’s a mini blue light unit that’s kind of gumshield stylee which you wear for 4 minutes twice daily, in conjunction with tooth whitening accelerator and gel that contain no peroxide. The promise is teeth up to 5 shades lighter with 14 days of use, and actually after just a few days use I can already see a marked improvement.

I’ll keep you posted on how pearly my whites are looking in a fortnight’s time!

Tags: boots, teeth, teeth whitening
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Dentistry & Teeth | 10 Comments »

Veneers with Darren Cromey @ Walkinstown Dental

Friday, November 6th, 2009

Woman teeth

Now you’ve all been with me as I blogged my way through my teeth makeover. Just to recap (no pun intended. Oh okay, maybe a small one): me and the notorious Walkinstown Roundabout have come to know one another pretty well as I navigated it several times in my quest for a better smile. And that was actually the most difficult part of the whole process believe it or not.

To say that I’m happy with the finished result is an understatement. The veneers are perfect, they look like normal teeth – only better – whiter, brighter, straighter. I’ve gone from hating my smile to wanting to flash it at every opportunity.

If you’re unhappy with your teeth and thinking of taking the plunge into cosmetic dentistry I would definitely recommend it – give Walkinstown Dental a ring (they’re cheaper than the big clinics too) and Darren did a fantastic job on my teeth. You’ll probably need less done than you think so do go for a inital consult – I was amazed at the difference four veneers made. He also does six month braces, invisalign braces and teeth whitening.

I’ll put up pictures as soon as I get a chance – I just haven’t been ready for my close up yet darlings.

Happy days! And thank you Darren – you’ve no idea how happy you’ve made me!

Dr Darren Cromey, Walkinstown Dental Clinic, 01 450 6373

Tags: dentistry, teeth, veneers
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth | 9 Comments »

And… the temporary veneers are on: dental makeover #3

Wednesday, October 7th, 2009

Mouth checkup

Dun dun dun. This was the day. This was the hour. The temporary veneers were going on.

First my gums were numbed. I remember having this done and it did hurt in times of yore. But surprisingly all I felt this time was a little pinprick for about two seconds – and then nothing. And both times when the needle went in dental nurse Trisha put a reassuring hand on my arm – I can’t tell you how much comfort you get from this. I had stiches when I was a little kid and the only thing I remember about them now was that Beaut.ie Mammy held my hand the whole way through. And that’s how I knew everything was fine.

Well I’m so Two Thousand and Late thinking it would hurt. “We use a very fine needle and a very small amount of anasthetic for the first shot. Then you don’t feel it when we up the dose a bit” said Darren reassuringly.

He was as good as his word. Past those two initial pinpricks I felt absolutely nothing. The composite fillings on my front teeth were removed. I felt nothing. The surface of the teeth were prepared for the temporaries. Again nothing. All the drilling and filing and putting on of new teeth type surfaces and all the rest involved no pain whatsoever.

However it did mean for over an hour I was unable to talk and I didn’t like that one bit. While lying with my mouth open I was dying to join in the conversation about giving up bread that was going on. It’s too difficult I wanted to utter but had to remain silent. I was gratified when Darren remarked “It’s virtually impossible”. My words exactly I thought triumphantly. To myself.

After it was all done I had a good look in the mirror. Gone were the beige pair of teeth that I hated so much and in their place are white even gnashers. The front four teeth now look normal, so normal that no one has noticed them believe it or not. When I point it out they say “Oh yeah – knew there was something different but couldn’t put my finger on it.”

Of course they do feel weird and I can’t stop running my tongue over them – but that’s because I only got them in yesterday and am not used to them yet.

The temporaries are rock solid and if truth were told I’ d be happy to keep them forever. But apparently it will all get even better with the real thing.

Totally thrilled. Roll on the veneers.

My dentist is Dr Darren Cromey at the Walkinstown Dental Clinic

Tags: dentist, veneers
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth | 15 Comments »

Cosmetic dentistry and me: teeth whitening stage complete captain

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

happy blond with toothbrush

So I’ve been telling you about how I’m going to get my smile brightened up with veneers (read about it here if you missed my first installment).

The first step was to whiten my teeth up to the best natural shade possible – because that’s the shade the veneers will be.

Every night for about 3 weeks I’ve been busy whitening. It’s been easy because I did it while I was asleep - before bed I dripped a teeny tiny droplet of gel into each little tooth cavity in my teeth mold yoke and off I went to sleep. It fitted snugly and didn’t bother me at all. Well, except for the first night when for about half an hour I was sure I was going to choke and felt like I was going to start drooling over the sheets.

Attractive I know.

But I hadn’t it in properly. The trick is to push the plastic mold up and back onto your teeth. This gives a good fit and means you don’t really notice the mold at all.

My teeth aren’t sensitive (I’ve had Zoom whitening before with no problems) and sure enough there was no bother with this kit. Darren recommended Sensodyne and I used it faithfully just in case.

In three weeks my teeth actually whitened more than they ever have with any other treatment. But alas those two front feckers did not budge from beige (as we knew would happen). An hour in the dentist chair getting the super strength dentist grade whitening gel has meant that I’m ready to go to the next stage - the temporary veneers.

This is when the fun will commence I’ll warrant. The drilling and sawing (slight exaggeration) and suchlike. I’ll tell you all about it next week. Wish me luck!

My dentist is Dr Darren Cromey, 01 4506373, Walkinstown Dental Clinic

Tags: dentist, looking beautiful in bed, teeth whitening, veneers
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth | 11 Comments »

Teeth makeover diary: the initial consultation.

Wednesday, August 19th, 2009

perfect-smile

I mentioned on the Blather last week that I was going to the dentist. And I’ve mentioned a time or twenty in other places that I hate my front teeth. I hate the colour of the two front ones and despite whitening they’ve refused to budge from beige. Plus there’s been some movement in the side ones – I had braces as a teenager but things have moved in the teeth department since then. So now when I get photos taken it looks as though one of them is brown too because it’s moved so far back.

In short I hate them. Oh did I say that already?

So when Darren Cromey was recommended to me as the dentist who could give me a teeth makeover and has done so successfully with many others, I hurried off to see him. Perusing the before and after pictures in his waiting room I was astounded by the drastic improvements in the look of teeth after treatment. After taking (horrendous) photos of my gnashers and studying them he made his expert pronouncement.

“Four veneers and retainer behind the top teeth, plus whitening to bring the rest of the teeth up to match.”

(more…)

Tags: braces, teeth, teeth whitening, veneers
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth | 41 Comments »

Brush-on Veneers: Pearl Drops Instant White

Wednesday, May 6th, 2009

pearl-drops-instant-white

Wandering around Boots the other day looking for essential supplies like mouthwash and, er, false eyelashes, I came upon a shiny new product from the Pearl Drops peeps. Called Instant White, it’s about €11 and is a brush-on yokembob that promises to instantly – albeit temporarily - whiten your teeth to give a veneer-like effect, which sounded to me like a great quick fix for a fabiliss smile.

Myself and Himself cracked a tube open on Saturday morning (sure what else would you be doing?) with varying degrees of success. It definitely made my teeth look whiter, but they’re in pretty good nick anyway and there was no discernible improvement in the state of Himself’s gnashers which are a couple of shades down from mine. While results were very natural, it did leave an iridescent finish which Himself was not a fan of. Not to be deterred, I lashed on two coats, making sure the sparkles were evenly distributed, and spent the day grinning like a gobshite, admiring my shiny white gnashers in every reflective surface that I happened upon.

I don’t think Instant White’s going to sort out teeth that are particularly stained or discoloured, despite what the blurb says about it being “like a concealer for your teeth”. It may need to be reapplied after eating, but at least the applicator’s pretty discreet and could nearly pass for a shimmering lipgloss.

Although I still wouldn’t be whipping it out for a public touch-up…

Tags: dentistry, Pearl Drops, teeth, veneers
Posted in Brands, treatment & product reviews, Dentistry & Teeth | 15 Comments »

Clothes Sales Down, Surgery Sales Up?

Thursday, March 26th, 2009

boobs

Harvey Nichols announced last week that that they’d seen a sharp decline in sales in recent months, and are expecting to see a 40% drop-off in bottom-line profit to £10mSTG. I mean, ten million is still ten million, but the point is, we’re not splurging on luxury goods the way we were. And if high-end retailers like Harvey Nicks are hurting, no doubt our own Brown Thomas group is too.

But what we are still very interested in are cosmetic procedures. P-Ken waxed lyrical about the G-Shot on the Late Late the other week, and a recent survey indicated that half a million Dubliners would consider plastic surgery.

Perhaps addressing our own leathery hides is a more appealing prospect these days than handing over the guts of a month’s salary for a leathery bag? We’re way less likely to throw our hard-earned cash away at just any clinic though, says Aoife Murray of RevaHealth.com, a healthcare search engine that helps users find and compare tens of thousands of health clinics worldwide. “We are experiencing a rise in Irish visitors”, she says, adding that “people are interested in saving money while shopping around for treatment.”

RevaHealth’s figures indicate that the number of Irish people using the site to contact cosmetic surgery clinics doubled from January to February, so what were they searching for? 22% were interested in rhinoplasty, the ever-popular breast implants accounted for 16% of searches and 11% of users were comparing their options with regard to Botox.

And the other thing we’re hugely interested in? Dentistry. We are mad for the teeth, people, mad. The number of people in the Republic of Ireland searching for value-for-money on basic dental treatments up north increased by nearly 75% in February, according to Aoife. But that’s only half the picture – the company have also noted that interest in cosmetic dentistry has decreased by 25%.

So it seems that when times are tough, we still want to take care of our teeth – but the veneers can shag off.

Tags: Clinic, cosmetic surgery, northern ireland, plastic, plastic surgery
Posted in Beauty News & Links, Dentistry & Teeth | 8 Comments »

Toothpaste Aids Insomnia? Yeh Wha?

Friday, January 30th, 2009

PearlyDreams toothpaste

Tossing and turning all night, poking your snoring bedmate to get them to turn over so you can get some kip, deep, dark under-eye circles – not being able to sleep isn’t funny.

Which is why US firm Dr. Z Technologies, Inc. (no, I’m not joking) have invented PearlyDreams. Sure isn’t that awful nice of them. What is it so? Some sort of supplement or device? Eh, yesssss. Something like that.

Pearly Dreams, ladies, is a TOOTHPASTE. One you use just before bed. No, I’m still not joking.

“The first and only toothpaste with Melatonin plus Organic Herbs”, trumpets the website blurb, adding, “helps you get to sleep and gives you a more restful sleep – just by brushing your teeth!”

Sounds ludicrous, doesn’t it? I had a bit of a Google. Apparently melatonin is effective as a sleep aid in small doses, according to an MIT study, and the toothpaste also contains valerian, a herb that’s often used as a natural sleep-aid. Doesn’t work a jot on me, but I know people who swear by it.

You don’t swallow the product, merely allow the “the thousands of tiny blood vessels in your mouth absorb the melatonin and organic extracts into your body.” It also promises to clean and polish teeth too – well, you’d kinda hope it would, eh?

Sounds waaayyyyy too good to be true to me, and at $19.95 a tube, I don’t think I’ll be rushing to try it either.

Tags: crazy beauty, insomnia, pearlydreams, sleep, teeth, toothpaste
Posted in Dentistry & Teeth, Lotions, Potions & Scent | 5 Comments »