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The Happy Tooth
When Dr. Phil Calls
Melinda’s One-Day Transformation
“Being trusted by producers of ‘Dr. Phil’ to do something like this was huge.”
It started out like any normal day at the office. Patients were coming in for their appointments, hygienists were cleaning teeth, and I was reviewing charts when the phone rang. I didn’t pay too much attention at first because our phone rings all the time. But then someone came to tell me we had a phone call from the producers of “Dr. Phil.” If you don’t know, “Dr. Phil” is a talk show hosted by Dr. Phil McGraw, a psychologist who gives advice to guests who have found themselves in tough situations. The producers contacted us because they had a guest who needed dental work. The guest, Melinda, would be filming an episode that weekend. Her smile needed to be fixed up for the show in just one day. After doing some research, the producers were impressed by our online reviews and reached out because they believed we could get the job done. This wasn’t a call I ever expected to get, but we were more than happy to accept the opportunity to help someone. We told them to have Melinda contact us directly, and we arranged for her to come in for an appointment. The call took place on a Wednesday afternoon, and Melinda came in the very next day. When we met, it was clear that Melinda was a sweet person who was extremely self-conscious about her smile. She was very shy and always put her hand over her mouth when she talked to cover her teeth. That habit posed a problem when trying to film a show. The producers wanted to make sure she was comfortable and could speak clearly while filming her episode of “Dr. Phil”. We took a look at her teeth and determined that, in order to get the job done in the time limit we had, she needed complete veneers on her six front teeth. Normally, something like this would take two weeks to complete, so we had to work extra hard to get the job done right for our patient in the time the show was paying for. While I still saw patients and kept the schedule going that day, Dr. Janice helped Melinda. She was in our office for nearly four hours, but her mouth was numb, so she was comfortable the whole time. Dr. Janice was working with her until 7 p.m. that night. The results were incredible.
Before
After
The first time Melinda saw her new smile in the mirror, she started crying. She thanked us again and again, still covering her mouth when she spoke out of habit. We told her she didn’t have to do that anymore. Melinda could put her hand down and show the world her beautiful new smile.
Though we don’t usually have such a short deadline, we’ve done veneers for many patients over the years, and it touches my heart every time. It’s very fulfilling and satisfying to see a patient’s face light up when they see their new smile. Being a dentist and working with veneers, implants, Invisalign, or even just whitening means I’m able to help transform a patient’s life for the better. It’s a wonderful feeling.
Being trusted by producers of “Dr. Phil” to do something like this was huge. But the best part is knowing that we were able to help Melinda, not just for the filming of the show, but for the rest of her life.
–Dr. Justene Doan
October 2019 Edition
A+ Family Dentistry | 619-265-2467 | P1
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