The transformative potential of modern cosmetic dentistry in enhancing smiles and addressing functional concerns like TMJ issues, clenching, and grinding. Advanced techniques such as minimally invasive veneers and bite realignment not only improve aesthetics but also support better health outcomes by opening airways and improving sleep quality. These procedures provide patients with a comprehensive solution that combines beauty, function, and improved confidence.
The practice also incorporates facial aesthetics, offering treatments like Botox, lip fillers, and microneedling to enhance overall facial harmony. With a dedicated team and a personalized approach, patients receive tailored care that aligns with their health and aesthetic goals. These services aim to restore smiles and improve quality of life, making cosmetic dentistry a life-changing experience for many.
Highlights of the Podcast
00:01 – Introduction and Practice Overview
01:11 – Cosmetic Dentistry vs. General Dentistry
02:25 – Modern Veneer Techniques
04:17 – TMJ and Jaw Realignment
06:02 – Impact on Sleep and Airway Health
09:36 – Cosmetic Enhancements and Self-Confidence
13:17 – Integrated Facial Aesthetics
15:28 – Importance of a Cohesive Team
20:06 – Dental Care During Pregnancy
22:37 – Target Audience for Cosmetic Dentistry
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:00:01] All right. So, Dr. Shaggy, I've known each other for a long time. You've been my dentist for quite a while. But go ahead and kind of introduce yourself to everybody, kind of who you are and what makes you guys a little bit different.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:00:11] Also, thank you so much for having me, first off. But yes, I'm Dr. Shaggy. My real name is Shahriela, but came up with Dr. Shaggy because my brother kind pronounce my name when we were kids. But then Shaggy just stuck and I guess it was like a good marketing ploy to because people don't forget Shaggy, which is nice.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:00:32] No, nobody.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:00:33] Does. Yeah, right. So I actually started my dental career as a dental hygienist, so I was actually a dental hygienist for five years, decided to go back to school to become a cosmetic dentist. And we opened up our practice modern by dentistry here at the Star May 2020. So the beginning of Covid like crazy, crazy times. So I was like, Man, if I could get through this, I can get through anything.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:00:59] Absolutely. So so tell us kind of like what you know, what people don't know what cosmetic dentistry is. So kind of walk us through like what makes cosmetic industry normal different than normal dentistry.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:01:11] Actually is a very good question. So with general dentistry, you're taking care of your x rays, exams, cleanings, you're doing fillings. When I talk about cosmetic dentistry, I we take that extra step. So it's not just a simple filling. I am making sure that that filling has all the grooves and it blends in with the tooth perfectly. And of course, even more advanced version of that is where Smile Makeover Specialist. So we do beautiful porcelain veneers for our patients and enhance their overall appearance just through their smile.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:01:49] So one of the things it's kind of funny because like there's a there's a meme running around the Internet where the guy has a missing front tooth and a missing eyebrow and he's smiling and you're like, Did you even notice he was missing an eyebrow? And you're like, no, I didn't like that's how important your smile is. Seems like that's that makes a lot of sense. But kind of walk us through one of the things that, you know, I think veneers are beautiful. I think it's like the it's the plastic surgery for your mouth type of thing. But like a lot of the times movies we've heard about before, it's you got to grind them down and it's really painful and it's obtrusive kind of. I know that the technology has changed a little bit. How do you guys do with your video? How do you guys put your veneers on now?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:02:25] So that is a total thing. Ticktalk went frigging crazy with this whole like, shark teeth is that I call that where the teeth are over prepped, meaning they're cut down way too much. So what we do here at Minor by Dentistry and Veneer Lounge is where the most conservative as far as veneers go. So we if I have to even touch you, we're lightly polishing the tooth structure, just creating enough space for that thin contact lens porcelain to go right on top of that tooth. So we even do what's called parentless veneers, meaning if you have a beautiful arch form, like your teeth are already pretty straight, you just have a couple of spaces or something, then I don't even have to know you. I don't have to touch your tooth. Not no drilling on the actual to structure. I just place the beautiful porcelain. Right. Right on top of your tooth to give you that beautiful enhancement that you've always been wanting.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:03:20] So the question I've had is, let's say somebody breaks a tooth off, can you put veneers on to kind of like replace the other rest of the tooth or do we have to do something like an implant or anything like that?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:03:30] It just depends. If you completely break the tooth off, then yes, you are right, you will need an implant. But if, say, you have a cavity that's taking up maybe 20% of the tooth, we can still put a veneer on that. If the tooth disable, we can place a beautiful veneer on top of that.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:03:50] Okay, Very cool. Now, one of the things that you guys do that I'm a huge fan of is you basically re level the bite surface so that the jaw sits perfect properly because, you know, with what I do, there's a whole lot of, you know, making sure things are angled right. Many things are set right for functional form. And if your bite is off, your whole jaw gets messed up. I see people for TMJ and headaches and stuff like that. So walk us through kind of what you guys do to help kind of level that jaw so it's a little bit more functional.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:04:17] Yes. Thank you so much for bringing this up, because this is something that isn't brought up in the mainstream dentistry or even in the medical world as well. So I love that you're so interested about this. So let's nerd out together. So what happens is as we age, we we go through the normal wear and tear of our teeth, right? So what happens is you start to lose the chewing surfaces of the teeth. So your TMJ, which is like a ball and socket joint, right? Gets pushback. Right. And so what we're able to do with cosmetics is add porcelain to the chewing surfaces of the teeth. So you go from. To this, right? We're realigning that TMJ two into a more relaxed state. And so that's a step that gets me really excited is the functional and formation and keeping the functional form steady for our patients. But what patients also love about it is that they also get like a mini lower third mini facelift as well. So your side profile goes from. You know, to like it just more enhance it. Right. So people now are asking more for just like vanity. And for me, I'm like, no, this is her function. Like you actually need this to realign the joint and the jaw, because what people don't think about is you're constantly putting pressure back there and that can, like you already know, can misaligned the jaw, which also I mean, it's a domino effect. So people that are super tense like this. But by repositioning the jaw back to where it should be now, all of a sudden you're more relaxed. It's like so.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:06:02] It so out like sliding the jaw forward. So there's a lot of work with like dental apparatuses for, for like sleep apnea to pull that jaw forward. Does this kind of help kind of naturally push that door forward to open up the airway as well?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:06:17] You're exactly right with that. So by adding to the chewing surface of the teeth, we're opening up that bite which allows your tongue to have more space. What we don't think about is back in the day, they used to extract teeth, to create space for other teeth to grow in. But what they weren't thinking about is now you're closing up that space for your tongue, which then is obstructing your airway. Right. So by opening that space up with your teeth and slightly moving that jaw forward back into place, you're allowing your tongue to have more space and opening up that airway.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:06:54] Do you ever see that? Do you ever see that, like people coming in, like, Hey, I don't snore as bad anymore or anything like that. Okay.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:07:02] I've had solstice DM me. Thank you so much. You know. John Jones isn't snoring anymore. I love it. And then they end up coming in. They're like, okay, well now I want some.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:07:16] As they should. Well, it's such a big deal. And this is one of those things that people don't really put a lot of thought into about sleep apnea or lack of oxygen. Lack of breathing at night is really, really it's ages you it tears apart your hormone system. It tears apart your brain. Like one of the first things I do when I work on dementia is I try to restore oxygen flow. So we'll do sleep apnea tests and the vast majority of these guys have it. The other thing about sleep apnea is that it tears up your cardiovascular system. That's one of the reasons we get arterial blacking. So this is one of those things that, yeah, you'll look better and you'll chew better and everything will feel better, but it'll also save your heart and your brain. So, you know, this is a really. Yeah, yeah, this is one of those it's really, really kind of an important thing to kind of add to your list of things to get checked in. So how many did this check for this?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:08:01] So not, not very many. So we are actually I'm certified as a full rehab specialist. So taking an extensive continuing education on this subject to correctly put the job back into where it needs to be for our patients. And so that's something special that patients actually fly to Frisco to help for me to take a look and help them out with that.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:08:27] Okay. So this is this is kind of a this is one of those things that not a lot of people do.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:08:31] So this is definitely something that we add to the table that people like and obviously appreciate willing to fly in to for.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:08:39] Well, because that was one of those things where I was like, I'll just go ask my dentist for it. It's like, Yeah, your dentist might not even know how to do this, let alone have the tools to do it. So in the training. So because you said there a lot of training, because I have to imagine, because you're putting this stuff on when you showed it to me, you're putting it on. It's like basically a gel. So there's I'm sure there's a genuine amount of art as well as, you know, science as a how to put it together, back together. Is that kind of there?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:09:02] Absolutely is. So what we typically do is do like a little test here in the office to see, okay, are you more relaxed? Does this actually help you relax versus tense? And then from there, that's when we take that the all the other steps to properly measure out that bite to make sure we set you where you need to be, where it's very comfortable and it lasts you forever.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:09:28] Very, very nice. So is this one of those things that you can have for people who, like, grind their teeth down to nubs? Is this one of those things that kind of helps build all that back up?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:09:36] Yes. Yes, yes, yes. So those are my favorite patients because like, I will forever be in their life journey. Right? And so, you know, this is truly life changing things because it's not just esthetics for them, but now they're not clenching, they're not grinding, and they just feel confident walking out of the door because we've all seen those people that completely ground on their teeth to nubs, you know? And all I'm doing is just simply adding back what they naturally had 15, 20 years ago. And it's amazing to watch them come in even just weeks later after their veneers. And, you know, I have so many stories to share, So many, you know, we have new job opportunities. We have new relationships. One of our. Patients came in the other day and told us he's now engaged. Like, it's just it's so amazing to be part of people's journeys like this.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:10:33] You know, it's funny because like we've done mentioned that with the two thing, you know, there's so many times where someone will open their mouth and their teeth are, you know, not perfect. And it's kind of one of those things where like, like you should keep your mouth shut because it's but it's such a focal point. Like when you speak, this is what like we learn this. We all should have known this. A lot of us did. But during Covid, we never really had masks on. And it was so hard to relate to people and the kids couldn't like learn to speak because they couldn't see the mouth. This is one of the things that maybe people don't understand. We stare at at your mouth a lot. And so if there's something that you're like, I need to, you know, I have self-confidence issues. Changing this could be a real game changer for you. So, you know, that's one of the things I've seen I've talked to you about lots of times, about when they got the veneers, how they felt, just like a different person.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:11:22] Absolutely. And because of Covid, there was more Zoom calls. And I felt like people are they're doing is staring at themselves. And people assume, my God, they're noticing this blemish or something. But really, it's just for a patient's own self confidence, right? You want to be able to present yourself. I think the biggest thing one patient told me, you know, health is wealth and I want, you know, healthy teeth. So I'm being perceived as wealthy as well. Right. And and I was like, yeah, that really resonated with me because I was like, you're totally right. You know, health is wealth. You know, someone who is more physically fit, even like, okay, they have dedication, determination to keep themselves, you know, in alignment with their beliefs. You know, surely their work also resonates with that. And, you know, the smile does go hand in hand with that. That is your business card, right, is your smile and then your personality is your brand, right? Yeah. And I think that's very important with anyone. And I love that people choose us when they decide to do something with their smile. They decide to come to us because we truly do customize each smile for each patient.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:12:43] And that's that's that's important because you don't see me coming out with that. You've seen the you've seen that like just the looks like, you know, made in a factory type of teeth and they're just like that. That does not look natural. It does not look right. And you know that that's that's not that that's low end. You know, you don't you don't want those. So Yes.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:12:59] You guys definitely seen those look for for sure. Yeah.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:13:03] All right. So you guys also do like we're talking about, you know, the whole neck up making everything look exposed. So you guys do other things for facial stuff and relaxation and stuff like that. What else are you guys doing for. For the whole face beauty thing?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:13:17] Yeah. So, you know, I always tell people I went to school for this area, right? So we went we started adding Botox for clenching and grinding and for patients that have migraines. And then, of course, with a smile. What's around your smile? Our lips. So we started including lip filler into the practices. Well, just kind of facial balancing for sweet patients that way, you know, it's not just one thing, but we are looking at the overall esthetics, too, because someone who's investing thousands of dollars in their smile, they're looking at other things, too, as far as improvements go as well. And so we decided to start offering that here. So facials as well and microneedling, you know, making sure your skin looks good in tight and keeping that youthful appearance that your new smile has as well.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:14:09] And that's that's that's a really big thing. I'm a I'm a big fan of. I've sent people out to get Botox for their migraines. You know, migraines are a really big problem. And a lot of times tension headaches do come from the way you're clenching your biting. So relaxing the musculature all the way up and down the head is a really, really good thing. Not only obviously, it makes you look a little bit better, but because relaxes apparently cool, relaxes where we want to be. But it's a it's also a big thing for your actual health because the other thing we get into is that if these muscles are too tight, the lymph can't drain. And when the lymph can't drain, we have issues of the sinuses and the ears and things like that. So there's a lot of functional benefit with that as well. So I'm glad that you guys are kind of taking care of this whole thing that's that's beneficial. So one of the things that's an.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:14:54] Area, right?
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:14:54] Yeah. Yeah. This is, you know, yeah, people are looking at this a lot. You know, it has has lot of needle, bead function and stuff. So now what are the things that that is in this might not be everybody might not be as impressed with this as I am as a business owner and that type of thing. But your staff, you're obviously a phenomenal leader because when you look at the staff, you kind of get an impression of how the leader is, but your staff is fantastic. And so like, I want to give you a second to kind of, you know, harp on some of those guys because I know how much you appreciate the work your staff does.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:15:28] I gosh, yes. My team means everything to me. Like I feel like we wouldn't have the success that we have today if it wasn't for the team. You know, every team member has a specific role and they take full authority and responsibility for those roles. And I love the feedback that we get from patients that they just feel the genuineness when people walk in through that door with our team. And I think what really has benefited us is the fact that, yes, I do have a clear vision and mission as far as what I want this to become and continue to grow with. And choosing the right team members that believe in that same thing is key. I mean, you know, I'm I'm in the Austin location Thursdays and Fridays. I have no problem leaving Frisco because I know that the team is going to handle it because we're all aligned as far as our beliefs and our vision go. And patient experience is number one. Our patients are always number one and patients feel that. Well, I mean, you could probably attest to that. Yeah.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:16:42] Every time we walk in, everybody's, you know, it it's like they know what they're doing and they know they're running their show. Like it's they kind of like their place, like they have ownership at it. And it's, it's phenomenal to see that level of, you know, I got everything. And like, anything you need, I can help you get. And then like the handoffs are great and, you know, all the hydrants. I think I've had 2 or 3 different hydrants that I've worked on, but they've all been phenomenal and super nice and very good at what they do. And so it's been, you know, nothing ever hurts. So you guys have, I guess that you've trained them while they're they're a fantastic staff. You guys have a very well well functioning machine. So from a from a from my I love the text message. I guess I would I would forget to come in at 7:00 in the morning, but I text messages. So I appreciate that your system is fantastic. But you know every once a while I find docs like I say ever once about lots of times I'll find docs who are amazing what they do and their staff is just not getting it done. And so it's one of the. Things from not only a business owner but a from a patient standpoint, I. You guys, I really appreciate the way you guys have put that together. It's been it's been really, really great.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:17:49] So I appreciate that. But, you know, I recently I had another friend of mine who's a business owner and say, how do you maintain that culture? How do you, like, keep people excited? And so then I just straight up asked him, I go, what is your purpose? What gets you excited to go to work every day? You know, Does a team feel that, you know, our purpose is to help our patients and we're transforming lives every day? You know, we're very lucky. We don't just do the regular drill and fill every day, but we are transforming lives every day. And everyone feels that sense of responsibility and ownership and excitement. Right. You know, we're all there for for the tears and, you know, the excitement and, you know, happy tears. Happy tears. Okay.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:18:36] Yes, yes, yes.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:18:38] But, you know, we always even are super anxious, nervous patients. Like it's like a goal of ours to make sure that this patient is, like super excited to come back and, like, tell everyone about us, you know? And and I love that the team all is excited about that. They don't get turned off about it. They're they accept the challenge and they're like, let's go. They're going to love us, you know? Yeah.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:19:01] Well, I think a lot of that comes from and it's always fun to talk to you because like, we can talk about, you know, anything and we start talking about teeth and you get like, all excited. Like, is it cause it's, it's so obvious your thing, right? So we're just like, yeah. And then like, we've narrowed it out about like 4 or 5 different things and got pretty deep in some of them. But it's, it's really, really kind of fun because the reason that I think everyone in your office has this, they all see the goal. They'll see the plans because like I said, you've led them down this path of just like, no, this is awesome. We're going to do all these great things. And so like that's been really, really fun when you when you're around people who get to live out their purpose like this is the thing they care the most about. This is if you didn't pay them, they'd still do it type of thing. Like, those are the people that you really want to work with and you're definitely one of those people as far as much as you love what you do. So that's, I think, one of the one of the best things about it.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:19:49] That means a lot. Thank you. Thank you.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:19:50] Absolutely. Now, I do have a question for you, because we do we work with a lot of pregnant women and women who are looking to get pregnant. Is there anything with the veneers or with any of the stuff that you guys are doing that you wouldn't you say, hey, if you're pregnant, why don't you wait till you've had your baby? Or is there anything that is problematic there?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:20:06] Really, It's extractions. Like anything that is used, a lot of blood or, you know, like surgeries, implants or so you want to wait till either second trimester or after the baby. But the biggest thing is while you're pregnant is especially if you're getting gingivitis, like there is lots of hormones happening. So if you need to get more cleanings during your pregnancy, definitely get those cleanings. It can It's only going to help you to keep this area nice and clean, because if you think about it, your mouth is filled with bacteria. And if you're bleeding, well, that blood is also going into your body and obviously to the baby. So if you need to cleanings during your pregnancy just come in during that pregnancy to make sure that everything is maintained clean and kept up with.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:20:57] Very, very good. Now, I will say that if you have not if you've been grinding your teeth, if you're a woman and you're 28 to 30 and you've been grinding your teeth for a long time, like my 12 year old grinds his teeth to the point where I have like, leave the room because it's crazy. He's getting better. But if you've been doing that for ten years, you might want to get that the porcelain check to make sure you're not haven't rounded down too much. Because again, and this is just because I'm an oxygen freak. But you know, if you're not because as everything starts to change in your body and you get bigger and all that type of stuff, and if you're having issues with obstructive apnea, if you're not getting full breaths in, this is going to be way bad for both you and for baby. So if you feel like that's something that's been going on, I would highly recommend that you go in and at least get it checked out. If, you know, if you walk in, you're like, you're good. You don't need it yet. Like, fantastic. But it's one of those things where if we're looking at the very best possible function for your pregnancy, oxygen can be a big, big deal. So we want to make sure we get all that in. And so I would highly recommend on that case that, you know, you get in and you get checked, especially if you're a little bit later in life like so my wife was in her 30s when we had our first one, so getting that checked would be something I would highly recommend that you guys do because I'm a sleep study person as well. But getting those things checked is really, really important. So that's one of the things I want to throw out so well. I know that you're in the middle of speaking here. You're in the middle of actually working on people today. And so I want to get a real quick, you know, just kind of, you know, tale about this and, you know, so who who are your like if you're I know you work with all the the NFL guys and stars and stuff who who are some of the people that you're like really I got like an audience that's really needing to hear this really needs to get in Is it teenagers? Is it 50 year olds? Like who are who you really looking to?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:22:37] It really is around, I want to say between 45 and 60. Because that's the weather that we see, right? Is okay. Later in life, we we see the where and let's rehab you back to where you were in a healthier state. Of course, we're blessed to take care of our athletes as well. But those athletes, I mean, you know, the way that clench and grind while they work out like it's so scary, but, you know, we're able to help them. But just for the common person that's out there that, you know, they are clenching their grinding, they're snoring, they have sleeping issues. Their spouses are hitting them. You know, just give us a call, come in for a consultation. Let's evaluate and talk about the possible next steps.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:23:25] Awesome. Well, thank you so much. I'll let you get back to your patients. So what we can we can get out. But thank you so much for having me on and hopefully anybody has any questions. How do they reach you?
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:23:34] Through our social media. Well, my personal one is Doctor Shaggy, the Doctor Shaggy on Instagram. But you can call the office (214) 214-7790. Or through our website, you can even text us too. So pretty easy to get. Get in contact with us.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:23:51] Fabulous. Awesome. Well, thank you so much for sitting on time with us and we'll hopefully we'll be able to get some people breathing in and get their bites fixed.
Dr. Shahriela Ganjoor [00:23:58] I love that. Thank you, Dr. Chalmers. Have a great day. Thanks.
Dr. Matt Chalmers [00:24:01] Talk to you soon, bye
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