“I had trauma on my front teeth as a teenager and they were repaired with crowns. I never wanted to smile because you could actually see the dark metal under the crown. As soon as my lips would go up to form a smile, you could see the metal at the top of the crown. So I learned how to smile and keep the top of my teeth covered by my lip. I also had a great deal of pain in my jaw. It would come and go but sometimes the pain would be constant. There was also a popping sound when I would talk or eat but this wasn’t really a bother; I just knew it wasn’t supposed to be happening. I was also experiencing pain in my neck and shoulders.
I lived with this pain for a long time and finally in 2006 I saw Dr. Bryce’s DentaLife and learned how a person’s bite could cause a number of seemingly unrelated problems. I chose to have full mouth rejuvenation. But before any of the cosmetic dentistry could start, Dr. Bryce had to get my bite back into its proper position. I wore an orthotic to help reposition my bite; for me this was great, because it was the first time in years that the physical pain was gone. Most of the pain in my neck also went away and we are now working on my posture.
By nature I am a very happy person and the way I had taught myself to smile—to cover the dark metal at the top of the crowns—caused a great deal of tension in my smile. I was always conscious about how my smile looked and when my bite was finally repositioned I was ready for my new smile. What I started to notice very quickly was that when I was done with my smile makeover, everyone was responding to me differently. Because now I started smile more and my smile was so beautiful. I find people staring at me, in the strangest of places, and then they would comment about how beautiful my smile is.
Something else I noticed was that I felt more confident about myself. I was not quite as timid as I was before. I found this to be true when my husband was undergoing cancer treatment at Georgetown. I was so much stronger dealing with doctors and nurses than I would have been because now I was so much more confident about the appearance of my teeth. I had been freed from that lack of self-confidence. This has made a dramatic impact on my life. I had no idea how much freer I feel. I feel so grateful in how it has enhanced my life.”
“I have always been unhappy about my teeth. Because of medications I took as a child, there was permanent staining on my teeth. Also, my father was in the military and so as I was growing up, I was always seeing a different dentist. When they fixed a cavity they used silver amalgams and this caused even more concern when I would laugh or smile. I came to Dr. Bryce to recement my crown. As soon as he recemented the crown, I knew he had done a superior job and I knew I found my dentist.
When Dr. Bryce became my dentist in 1996, we then started replacing the silver with composite fillings. Of course you just feel better about your smile when all of the metal is gone. And that brightens your smile just a little bit. The next step was to address my bite. We talked about my jaw pain. He was able to diagnose that I was suffering from TMJ. I always suspected this was the case but I just didn’t want to address it. He did a number of tests to develop a baseline. The goal was to get my jaw in the correct position. I started with the series of TENS treatments and was also fitted with both a removable, and a semi-permanent orthotic. He told me everything to expect along the way.
My smile was rebuilt with a combination of all-porcelain veneers and crowns. This has made a huge difference in just the way I feel. I’ve noticed a big change in my health. Prior to the full-mouth rejuvenation, I was experiencing lower back pain, neck pain, and jaw pain. Just the simple act of adjusting my bite and addressing my TMJ has made an impact down my entire spine. I no longer have chronic back pain or shoulder pain.
It was difficult to care for my gums when my teeth were so unhealthy, and this led to gum disease. Now the periodontal disease has been treated and is gone, my teeth are now just so much easier to care for. They feel and look great and you want to take care of them. There are things you want to keep in life, and having a healthy mouth and attractive smile are very important to me.
Everything about my smile is different now, and in a very good way: how my tongue lies in my mouth; how my lips drape over my teeth; you walk around with better posture; you’re no longer afraid to laugh or smile. Everything changes. I have always had a lot of self-confidence to begin with but when you add a new smile on top of it, the outcome is profound. It really has been fabulous!”
I received Dr. Bryce’s DentaLife in The Washington Post and there was an article that addressed how the positioning of the bite could affect other parts of the body. I had also been reading about TMJ in other literature and decided to schedule an appointment. I instantly connected with him because he’s a very caring person. He gains your trust and beliefs in what he’s going to do for you. When I met with Dr. Bryce for the first time, he didn’t just focus on my teeth. He asked if there were other things that were bothering me, like my neck or shoulders—which it did. I had gone to a chiropractor and massage therapist, but that wasn’t helping.
I’m in IT (information technology), so when he began to utilize a computer to evaluate my bite, it really fascinated me. Using this type of advanced technology in dentistry played a major role in my decision to go ahead and begin the neuromuscular treatment. I wore an orthotic to bring my bite back to the proper position and had TENS treatments every month to help relax the muscles in my jaw.
The fact that my bite was out of alignment was the major reason for the tension in my neck and shoulder. I was clenching my jaw during the day and all of this was contributing to the problem. When you think about the body in its entirety, it makes total sense that one area of the body that is not in a healthy state can compromise other parts. Dr. Bryce’s viewpoint is better because he treats you as a whole person rather than one tooth at a time. Over this year-long process of treatment, the neck and shoulder pain began to dissipate.
Now that my bite was realigned, it was time to address my teeth. I wanted a smile that would be age-appropriate, and I was able to choose both the color and shape of my teeth. I am happy to say that I have total confidence about my smile, and in what Dr. Bryce did for me.”
back to top
“My teeth were stained from the inside out with tetracycline. This was something I had to deal with since early childhood. I was conscious of this every moment of my life and would try not to smile. In any photographs of me all you would see would be a smirk. I trained myself not to show my teeth. People would ask why I looked so grumpy and never smiled. I always told them I was very happy and when I smiled it just didn’t show any teeth.
A younger niece asked me why my teeth were grey and blue and different colors. That was very painful. And because of comments about how my teeth looked I avoided showing them to anyone. Over the years, I had become a critic on cosmetic dentistry and had not found anyone that I wanted to do the work—to improve the appearance of my smile. When I saw an article about Dr. Bryce, the before and after pictures looked very impressive. Later, I went to Dr. Bryce’s website and decided to schedule an appointment.
I never liked going to the dentist but I was able to put my entire trust into what Dr. Bryce told me and showed me. He went to great lengths explaining what my options were; showed me how he could bring my mouth into a state of optimum health; and restore my smile with a combination of porcelain veneers, on-lays and porcelain crowns. Even after full-mouth rejuvenation, my brain had been trained—over the years—not to show my teeth. It was a real effort to smile and let other people see my teeth.
Now it is very natural to smile, and I’ve gotten over trying to hide my teeth. Now people come up to me and tell me how beautiful my smile is. They have no idea what I had done and just think I had them whitened. I always thought it was just a gimmick about how improving your smile could change your life. But have to admit, it does. People are friendlier because they no longer perceive you as being in a bad mood. So it has positively affected every aspect of my life.”
“Since my dental restoration, I can honestly say the change to my smile is amazing. I also find that I smile easier, with a confidence I once lacked. Individuals who see me casually have commented on the whiteness of my smile. However the aesthetic improvement does not outshine the health issues that this type of dentistry addressed; I no longer grind my teeth; my teeth fit properly, and there is no longer joint pain in my jaw area.”
“I had headaches, earaches, pains in my neck and shoulders; worst of all was the constant pain in my jaw. I didn’t hesitate for a moment when I told Dr. Bryce I’d like to have just one day without pain. I am very happy to say that he has given me days, weeks, and months without pain. Thanks to Dr. Bryce, I am looking forward to years without pain.”
“I was born in the country and raised on well water. We were poor and didn’t have the money to go to a dentist. When my family finally moved to Leesburg my teeth were in very bad condition. They were severely decayed and over time all of my back teeth were extracted, and my remaining front teeth were all that was left. I was embarrassed to smile because of all the silver fillings.
“I saw Dr. Bryce’s DentaLife, read the testimonials, and saw the positive changes in the people’s appearances. I decided to make an appointment and see what he could do for me. First, I had to have a sinus lift because I had gone for so many years without my back teeth and there had been no structural support, then I had 11 dental implants to replace the back teeth I had lost so many years before. My remaining teeth that I had were saved, but everything you see is brand new, with either porcelain veneers or porcelain crowns. Before I had my full-mouth rejuvenation, I had to watch what I ate.
Because I didn’t have any back teeth, I very seldom ate any kind of meat. The only way I could chew was with my front teeth, so I mainly ate vegetables and fruit. You learn to compromise, and not having my back teeth had surely impacted my health. I actually retired in 2003, and it wasn’t until 2006 that I made the decision to do something for me. I really didn’t care if anyone noticed I had a new smile and all of my teeth were finally perfect. I knew it and that is all that truly mattered. I was sort of expensive, but it was worth every penny I put into it. I’m very happy and I’d do it again.”