Our Philosophy

To understand my approach and philosophy as a dentist, let me tell you a little bit about myself as a kid. (If you’re not interest in story time just skip to the last paragraph.)  When I was in middle school my mom would give me $2.25 for lunch money.  Did I buy the nutritional school lunch that was offered?  Of course not! Every day for lunch I would buy a can of soda from the vending machines and those super soft chocolate/chocolate chip Grandma’s cookies.  You know, the ones that come in the package of 2 oversized cookies.  I would then spent $0.25 on a roll of life savers because, seriously, you can’t have bad breath as a middle school boy!  So that means I had sugar, more sugar, and even more sugar for lunch just about every day.  It’s no wonder that A) I was a skinny kid and B) every time I went to the dentist I had 2, 3, or 4 cavities.  Oh yeah, did I mention flossing? Never.  Brushing before going to school? Only because my mom made me.

Why do I tell you this? I often see patient who are genuinely embarrassed by their teeth.  Rarely is it because of the esthetics or appearance of their teeth, but more often embarrassment stems from knowledge that their problems stem from their own neglect.  My response to this and every patient is the same:  Don’t worry about it!  Your first visit with us is the perfect time to hit the reset button and start completely new.

Starting over is exactly what I did.  Do you know when I actually started flossing?  When I was in college and started exploring dentistry as a profession.  I figured, “Well, if I’m going to do this I probably ought to floss.”  I didn’t actually believe in it or want to do it.  I did it just for principle’s sake.  Clearly, that has all changed now and I’m a nerd that keeps floss in his glove box and if my teeth aren’t squeaky clean when going to bed the anxiety will keep me awake! The vast majority of what I do every day is help people fix problems that stem from poor habits developed years prior.  Take a look at these x-rays.  Those are my teeth.  Old amalgam fillings, crowns, recession, sensitive teeth.  It’s probably not what you’d expect from your dentist. But I haven’t always been a dentist!  I’m just the same as many of our patients—dealing with problems from past. 

So our philosophy is simple.  We don’t judge or lecture our patients, but we do teach and educate. To patients with great teeth—let’s help you keep it that way.  Prevention is always easier than treatment.  To patients with discomfort, worries, concerns, and old dental work that has simply worn out—let’s hit the reset button.  We’ll help you fix the problems that have developed over years and educate you and help you establish the habits and care to prevent future problems.  

Rockside Dental
8380 N. Silverbell Rd
Tucson, AZ 85743
(520) 505-4428

Make an appointment today