DENTIST

I still remember going to the dentist as a kid and being told I had a few cavities. I didn’t really know what that meant—I just knew it probably wasn’t going to be fun. I remember the shot, the sound of the drill, and that feeling of having to just tough it out. Looking back, it wasn’t nearly as bad as I had built it up to be… but there was definitely fear there. I get that. I’ve felt it too.

Fast forward a few years to dental school. I had always wanted straighter teeth, but growing up, braces just weren’t in the cards. My parents couldn’t afford them, and honestly, they didn’t think I really needed them. But once I started learning dentistry, I realized something important—straight teeth don’t just look better, they function better. So at 25 years old, I got braces. Invisalign didn’t exist back then, so yes… full metal braces in my mid-20s.

After dental school, I moved to the DFW area and began focusing on restorative and cosmetic dentistry. That’s when I noticed something else about my own smile. Even with straight teeth, they looked short. I had a gummy smile—too much gum tissue covering the enamel. To fix that, I had gum surgery. With laughing gas and local anesthetic, my gums were recontoured to the right level. It wasn’t scary, and the improvement was immediate.

Then came the shape of my teeth. They weren’t what I wanted them to be, so I decided to do something about it. I had ten veneers placed to create the smile I felt matched who I was professionally and personally.

Years later, I ran into a completely different issue—snoring. I was fitted for a snore guard, and the change was almost instant. Better sleep. More energy. Huge improvement in how I felt day to day.

And now, more than 25 years after braces—and let’s be honest, not wearing my retainer like I should—my teeth shifted. So today, I’m wearing Invisalign to fine-tune them back into place.

I share all of this for one reason: I’m not just a dentist—I’m a dental patient. I’ve been in the chair. I’ve felt the nerves. I’ve weighed the decisions. I’ve gone through the procedures.

My goal has always been simple: healthy, well-functioning teeth that look great and help me live better. That’s the same goal I have for every patient who walks through the doors at Cross Timbers Dental.