tl;dr: Kathy Barth is hands down the best dentist I've had my entire life…read more
Let me start by saying that I don't live in the Chicago area anymore, but I came back for a big dental issue because Kathy Barth is THAT GOOD.
My two front teeth had slowly darkened after my last pregnancy, which is one of those fun things that can just happen. My dentist at home told me I'd need to have 2 root canals, bleach the teeth from the inside, then crown them. Not only did that sound fairly traumatic for teeth that weren't doing anything other than being dark, but it was going to be insanely expensive. But, according to that dentist, that was my only option.
Well, then I talked with Dr Barth. She looked over my xrays and photos, and said there was a better option. It wouldn't be ::perfect:: because the dark color in my teeth is hard to hide, but it would be darn good. It also didn't involve root canals or crowns. Hey, that's pretty great! She rearranged her whole schedule to fit me in, which was incredible.
While there (over the 3 visits it took to consult, take impressions, do the work, then fit the teeth), I interacted with all of her staff. First off how lovely are they all? So sweet, thoughtful, and supportive. I have tori (basically bone bumps inside the bottom of my gums) that always hit the trays/xray stuff, and it can be really painful. Not a single dentist has ever mentioned them or accommodated them, but before I could even speak up, Dr Barth reminded her staff to build up wax on the outside of the trays to avoid hitting them! I was blown away - it's such a minor thing for a dentist to do, but it was so nice to be put first in the process (over the procedure).
Also, after each appointment, Tiera texted to check in with me and remind me of my aftercare requirements. My regular doctor doesn't do that, much less my dentist! It seriously feels like they are actively caring for you all the time.
After Dr Barth looked at me in person, we talked about options. Ultimately, the best option was to preserve my roots and as much of my teeth as possible, so we went with veneers. One of the reasons I wanted to see Dr Barth was because my old dentist retired, and I didn't want to shop around for a new dentist with such a big and visible project being the first interaction. I trusted Dr Barth to do it right, so my teeth didn't look "done", they just looked right. And even better, her son is now a dentist, they work together, and they're both fabulous.
So my first appointment was a consult and impressions. The next appointment was actually shaving down the front of my teeth - which was very precise, detailed work. They kept me relaxed and comfortable, and even offered a protein bar after the process. Then they took impressions again, to send to the lab for making my new teeth. (That part took the longest - apparently everyone needs new teeth after covid!)
My last appointment was taking the temps off and putting the real deal on. This took longer than I anticipated, but it was (again) because they only took a small amount of tooth off, and the dark color was still visible. So they needed to get the cement color juuuust right to cover the color and make my veneers match the neighboring teeth. I was totally fine with them taking all the time they needed, and Beata (the hygienist) was instrumental in fine-tuning the color.
It takes a day or two for your gums to settle down and look normal again, but it is like NIGHT and DAY (pun intended: dark to light teeth!) for me. I'd been living with these teeth for 3 years now (because the procedure was supposed to be so expensive, and then covid), and I hadn't realized just how much my life was affected by my dark teeth.
The obvious changes were that I didn't love my smile, having my picture taken, or meeting new people (because it was always weird to try to decide to bring it up or not), but EVERY time I'd pick my kid up from preschool, another kid would come over and ask 'Why do your teeth look like that?' It just starts to wear on you! But I didn't realize how much my behavior had been altered by my embarrassment over my teeth.
I stopped really looking at myself in the mirror. I covered my mouth when I smiled. I wore my mask in places I didn't need to, because it was easier. I cropped myself out of photos. Now, when I accidentally catch a glimpse of myself, I smile. It's so much easier to just be me again. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
And the best thing is: no one knows they were done! They look completely real, for less trauma and more tooth saved. Miracle workers.
