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On Wednesday, January 4th 2012, I received a call from my sister telling me that my father had passed away. He lived 91 years. Six weeks ago he was living alone, driving, etc.. but his battle with bladder cancer finally took its toll.
He tought me to never give up, and never accept mediocrity. If I got a 95 on a test, he would want to know what I got wrong. That’s the kind of person he was. There are several things that I will never forget that I would like to share:
In August 1986, I drove to Georgetown Dental School with him to my townhouse I was renting. My room was 6 1/2′ x 9′. I am NOT exaggerating. The room had been used by another student, a girl that was 5’1″ tall. I say this because the ENTIRE room was a loft. This gave you twice the space, but I was too tall to walk under it. My Dad, being a retired carpenter, said to go about my business and he’ll fix it. He only had a screwdriver, a hammer, screws and a hand saw. NO POWER TOOLS. I came back later (6 hours) and he was done reconfiguring it. He was soaking wet and completely exhausted. The loft was now 6 1/2 ‘ x 5′ with a ladder. He had to cut 8 (eight) 6″ x 6″ OAK posts down with a hand saw!!! (Not balsa, OAK). He said it was the hardest job he ever had to do in his 53 years as a carpenter. He had to stick the wood out of the window cause he said the room was too F*^%n small to work in! I swear, McGeiver could not have done better. We laughed about that for 20+ years after that. I’m smiling now!
Another thing I remember is that as a child I was a terrible eater. Ask my friends I grew up with. Well, I can honestly say my Mom was the absolute worst cook in the world- hands down. One day at dinner, I was maybe 15 and my Dad was starving after a long day at work and I looked at him and said, ” How’s the food”? he nodded and said, “It’s hot”. Again, I’m smiling as I think about that.
Finally, he had a sense of humor that not many had. He finally treated himself to a cruise when he was 84 years old or so. I asked him how the room was, and he said. “it was so small that if I wanted to change my mind I had to step out”!!!! I share that with patients even now when they tell me about a cruise they’ve been on.
We can’t replace our parents. We can only cherrish the memories. He forget more in his lifetime than I’ll get to experience. He had no phone, refrigerator, car, or bathroom in his tenement during the depression. He was in a war, and raised 2 great kids (I think).
I’m certain when he got to heaven to be reunited with my mother who passed away 14 years ago, she probably said “what the hell took you so long”.

In 1998, Food and Wine Magazine published the most amazing recipe for turkey dinner that my wife has followed every year since. It is unbelieveable!
Makes 12 servings- adjust as necessary:

Brine the turkey overnight (soaking turkey in salt water produces a well-flavored bird)
Brine;
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons Kosher salt
1 gallon cold water
Turkey
6 tablspns softened unsalted butter
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
2 tablspns fresh lemon juice
1 tblspn dried thyme
1 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tspn fresh pepper
1 lrge onion quartered
2 celery ribs, cut into 2 inch lengths
1 bunch thyme sprigs
4 sage sprigs
4 garlic cloves, unpeeled
3 bay leaves
6 thick cut bacon slices
1 qt chicken stock or canned low-sodium broth

1)after brinning the turkey overnight, remove and dry with paper towels
2) preheat to 325. in a small bowl blend butter with orange and lemon juice, thyme salt and pepper. rub the turkey inside and out with butter. fill the cavity with the onion celery thyme, sage sprigs, garlic, and bay leaves. truss the bird and transfer it to a rack set in a roasting pan. Arrange the bacon slices over the bird and pour 2 cups of chicken stock into the roasting pan.
roast for 45 min then baste with 1 cup of stock. roast the turkey for 1 1/2 hrs basting EVERY 20 min. add the remaining 1 cup of stock to the pan and roast for about 1 hr and 50 min longer basting EVERY 15 min with pan juices. Turkey is done when it hits 170 degrees. let sit 20 min before carving.

World’s Best mashed Potatoes ( Dr Myles’ recipe):
1 baking potatoe per person (about 6 large ones or so)
1 stick butter
1 large onion
salt pepper
sour cream
chives

Peel and boil potatoes until soft. hand mash (electric mixer makes it too creamy) add 1 stick of butter and stir weel (soften the butter first!) mixed in minced onions salt pepper and chives. Stir until smooth. Add 16 ounces sour cream (more if you want it thinner/creamier) put it all into a casserole dish sprinkle top with parsely and chives and shave some butter on top. Put in oven at 350 and heat until thoroughly warm. These potatoes will be the best you have ever had-no leftovers guaranteed.

FILET MINION ( beef tenderloin )roast- THIS will blow away your company
get a 4-5 lb tenderloin from costco.
in a bowl mix , 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp pepper, 5 cloves garlic minced, 3-5 tblspns fresh chopped parsely.
coat roast with olive oil. press herb mix on roast and cover roast with saran wrap over night. take roast out 1/2 hr before cooking. preheat at 425 degrees. unwrap roast and put in oven for 52 minutes exactly. The small parts of the roast will be more cooked, larger parts less cooked, this is fail safe and truly spectacular.

ENJOY!

I grew up in New York City. I can remember walking to school in 5th grade in a snowstorm of 17″ and they sent us home. That was the only time EVER do I remember not having school due to weather. In Northern Virginia, schools close at the “threat” of snow. Well, this past week certainly warrented school closings.

I remember the month after my daughter was born in January 1996. We had a storm of 26 inches and I was living in Centreville at the time. Everything, including my office, was closed for a week. This past Friday and Saturday we passed that with 32.5″ at Dulles airport. As Randy Jackson says, “What”? I am still in awe at what it looked like outside. It was absolutely sureal. No roads, no cars, no grass, trees buried, just breath-taking. I plowed and shoveled multiple times to prevent it from being overwhelming. Not sure if it helped! I ventured out to go food shopping and the mall. The roads were so bad. Main roads (28, 50, West Ox) were one lane at best of packed-down snow. There were numerous areas that had 2 lanes that due to snow plows, turned abruptly into one and a half lanes WITHOUT notice. I can’t imagine how many accidents this will cause over the next 2 weeks.

On the heals of this storm came another one. O.k., I’m done. There is no where to throw the snow. My dog is confused. I spend much of the day rescheduling patients. I’m constantly hungry. I exercise to kill time. I nap. THERE IS NOTHING LEFT TO DO!!!!! I just informed my kids they will have to be in school until the week before Labor Day, so they may get 6 Summer days off.

Now for the good news: I just put in a call to some important people that have agreed to shut the snow making machine off for a while. You are all welcome in advance. NO MORE!

Ok, so it is season 9 (yes, NINE) of American Idol. I admit I watch very little T.V., but this happens to be one show I generally do watch. My family enjoys it, and we watch it together. Any patient that comes in the day after a show is likely to get involved in one of our discussions.

Well, this year I swore it would be different. I adamantly promised I would not watch it until they get to Hollywood. I was tired of seeing the same old lousy circus acts for 3 + hours per week. You know what? I can’t help it! It was on in my family room, and just like passing a train wreck, I get sucked into the Idol vortex. It is mesmerizing, so as it turned out, I watched it.

They have their usual freaks, bad singers, and their share of truly talented people. The stories are often heart-warming, and sometimes it puts our own life situations in perspective. They have a guy that had cancer, another that cares for her ailing grandmother, and one last night really touched me. It was a girl from Volmer( I think). She is so poor, seemingly uneducated, and feels this is her only opportunity to change her life. For many, this is their way out. I felt so bad for her. She shopped for her dress for the audition at a dollar store. Does that not put into perspective the generally wonderful lives and opportunities we have here in Northern Virginia?

The show, as it progresses, does have performers that are talented. Look at the history of the winners and contestants that have gone on to the final five. They are successful, and for many, their lives have changed forever. Isn’t that how it’s supposed to be? Shouldn’t lives improve for the better?

So if you happen to be around a tv and hear that sucking sound, it is the vortex trying to suck you in to the American Idol mania.

I have exercised my entire adult life.  I have tried practically every routine, machine, technique…you name it. I consider myself a relatively fit person. Then one evening I see the number one infomercial over the past 15 months. I am absolutely mesmerized. I watch it every time it is on. It is called P90X. Let me explain:

It is a series of 12 DVD’s taught by a man that is ridiculously fit named Tony Horton. He has so little bodyfat that he looks like he has onion skin covering his muscles. The principle is fairly simple: There are 3 phases, each one lasting 30 days. In each phase there are 3 hard weeks then a recovery week. In each week there is weight (or resistance) training combined with cardio, and the 4th week, the recovery week, you do only cardio, yoga, kenpo, and stretch. Now onto phase 2. Same thing but DIFFERENT excerises. The premise is just when your body gets used to it you change it up. By confusing it you are forcing your body to change and adapt. The 3rd phase is similar in principle.

Now for the workout: It is crazy hard. Although you work at your own pace, you really, really push yourself to your absolute limit. In addition, there is ab work 3 times per week. It takes 16 minutes. It’s 11 exercises for 350 reps. You hit it from every angle with no rest between the exercises. It took me 4 or 5 workouts to be able to complete it. Tony Horton makes it a point to say that most people stop their exercise set way to soon. You must push to your limit. THAT is what changes your body. I have been exercising at a gym and notice the same people for years and they always look the same. That is the reason why; they stop too soon.. In addition, he says if you do not eat clean, you may be fit but you will not look fit. I totally agree.

In September my cholesterol reading was high for the first time in my life, and I immediately changed my diet. I eat NO junk food, sodas (never did) chips, cake, cookie or candy. Not even a bite. ZIPPO. I reduced my breads and carbs. I eat nuts, fruit, and lots of protein. I am now on day 31 and my bodyfat is 8.8%. AND I have maintained my body weight. My abs are really showing. I cannot wait to see what they will be like in 60 more days. When you come in for your appointment, I will show you if you ask nicely:)

So what’s the bottom line? It is not just hype. This is an awesome training program that will change your life. What are you waiting for? Get off the couch and go to it!

Summer is well underway, and there’s no better time to sit back with a good book.  Here is a list of some of my favorites I have come across over the years. We will start with Non- Fiction.

If you enjoy medical reading, Atul Gawande has two excellent books; “Better- A Surgeon”s Notes on Performance” and “Complications- A Surgeon’s Notes on An Imperfect Science”: They are fascinating tales of the realities in medicine. Anyone with any medical background will especially loves these easy reading books. Dr. Groopman  also has a great read called ” How Doctors Think” . You will never look at medicine and doctors the same way after reading this.

If business readings interest you, I suggest Malcolm Gladwell’s 3 books:  The Tipping Point”, Blink, and Outliers” He supports all of his claims with extensive research, and is very insightful. These are classic business books in the business/ self -help arena.

Want to lighten it up? try “Bringing Down The House”,by Ben Mezrich.  The movie for this was “21″. It is great for anyone that enjoys gambling, particularly blackjack. Very easy reading.

One of the most touching books I have read in a long time is by Randy Pausch. He wrote “The Last lecture”.He is a professor loved by all his students giving his last lecture, as he is terminally ill with pancretic cancer. This really puts life in perspective.

Want something a little more refreshing? Try Rich Carlson’s “Don’t Sweat The Small Stuff With Your Family”. Nice to know simple things can keep us grounded.

A quick educational read, and really one of my favorites is “The 100- A Ranking of The Most Influential Persons In History”,by our own, local Mike Hart. His bio/resume makes me feel like an idiot! He ranks, strickly by his opinion, the 100 people in order  who he perceives to be the most influential, then goes on to substantiate those claims.  It is 3-4 page excerpts of  famous people, from Jesus to Einstein,  Hitler, Merconi, etc…

On to fiction;

Mitch Album, the sports writer for The Detroit Free Press” has written “5 People You Meet In Heaven”,  “One More Day” and “Tuesday’s With Maury”. I will warn you, they are tear- jerkers. I could not finish “Tuesday’s…” as it was too sad for me. The other two are great 2 hour reads.

Robin Cook- has written so many great books over the years. They are medical mystery thrillers. They include “Coma”, Blindsight , Harmful Intent, Acceptable Risk, etc… too many to name. They pull you in and you wont stop until you are finished.

Last is my absoulte favorite author, Greg Iles. He is truly genious. He is the only author I have ever written that you simply cannot figure out who did it until it is disclosed at the final 10 pages of the book. His writting is gripping. The order to read his books, since ther are some character repeats, is as follows;

Mortal Fear,  The Quiet Game, Dead Sleep, Sleep No More, Blood Memory, Turning Angel, True Evil, Footprints of God, and 3rd Degree. I am now reading his most recent release ” The Devil’s Punchbowl”. I promise you, you will get hooked and will just keep reading his work.

I look forward to seeing you in my office, and feel free to share your experience with these recommendations, or any you may have.

Happy Summer!

I admit…. I am NOT a tech geek, I do not buy the first generation anything. I do not have a DVR. At the same time I do not resist technology. I am just slow to learn it. I have never had a myspace page . I do, however, believe there is something behind social media. Linkedin is one, and the most popular is Facebook.

I signed up in January to help create links to my website and grow my practice. Well, the next thing I know a girl from my kindergarten class “friended” me.  And so the craziness begins.  In a mattert of weeks, I found myself looking up people I have not seen in 10-20- 30+ years. The web continues, and when you send a “friend” request, you see their friends and realize there is someone you knew as well. The truly amazing thing about all this is how unbelievably, and embarrassingly addictive this is.

You start to spend hours, and I mean hours searching people, joining groups, taking surveys, etc… and the part that I find so amzing is you literally feel like you are in a time capsule. You look at some of these people and are just amazed at where the time has gone.  I’ve always said, “time stands still for no one”. There were a few people that I would not have recognized if I was standing next to them in a phone booth (remember those?).

It gives you a chance to reaquaint with friends and family members, former co-workers and alumni. You have an info page and photo page to help catch you up to old times. I even was in contact with summer friends from the 70′s and 80′s, and glad I did.

So while you are on your computer, give it a try. you’ll be glad you did.

For many years, advertising in the dental profession was considered unprofessional and was  actually frowned upon. Times have changed, and nowadays if you don’t advertise it can be difficult to build a successful dental practice. The problem for the public is that it is a very daunting, and overwhelming task. I will attempt to simplify the process for you.

I believe you have the right to interview the staff and the doctor. But  how do you chose what office to even make the appointment for? Start on the internet. Yes, even before you call the office. The website should be very complete and modern. Should have lots of info about the office, the team, the doctor for sure, and should make you feel like you will connect with them. All photos should be real live patient photos, not stock photos. It is a representation of the doctors work, and pride he has in it. It also shows the faith the patients have in the doctor to allow him/her to share their story with you.

The initial call should be pleasant, personal, and make you feel special, not like an insurance number. After you hang up from the call, you should be looking forward to meeting everyone and how good the experinece will be. There should be virtually no waiting and total attentiveness to you when you are there, You should feel listened to and cared for. The look of the office should be clean, modern, and a place you think is where the best care will be given.

It is unfortunate that everyone advertises that they are the “top” this, or voted “best ” that. First of all, do those lists hold any credense, and secondly, who advertises themslves as an “OK” dentist? Choose wisely, and carefully, and most of all, listen to your instinct. We set the bar very high in my office so i feel confident in saying, we will surpass your every expectation.

The newest buzzword in dentistry is  “sleep dentistry”. We are bombarded with numerous ads about it, but I have to believe many are confused about what it is really all about. I will attempt to explain this in a way that WON”T put you to sleep!

There are nearly 90 million Americans that have some level of anxiety or fear of going to the dentist. Many of them just bite the bullet and white-knuckle it out. Of that number, 30 million are so fearful that they completely avoid going to the dentist,sometimes for years until a disaster occurs, like an infection, or severe toothache. After speaking to many of these people at my consultations, I’ll be honest with you: If I had the same experience they had that brought this whole fear/anixiety on, I would feel the same way. That’s right, I would avoid the dentist as well. The problem with this, and I have seen 3 of these types of patients in the last week, is when they do finally come in, the condition of their mouth is very bad. The treatment plans become more comprehensive, and more emergency treatment takes place. This can ALL be avoided.

Sleep dentistry, AKA “sedation dentistry” ,has made  an amazing difference for all these people. It is now  possible to have no fear or anxiety throughout the entire appointment. Anxiolysis is the first level of sedation. For most people, this is all that is necessary. After a thorough health history screening, a pill is taken the night before the appointment to begin the relaxation process. The following morning, the patient arrives with additional medicine that has been prescribed, and is dispensed in the office. You relax in the office for approximately one hour as you begin to feel more calm and comfortable, and even somewhat sleepy. All of your vital signs are monitored for this very safe method. Then, the treatment begins. The patient can talk or answer questions if asked, but is really in a relaxed state as if you drank a few glasses of wine. The goal of this level of sedation is NOT to put you to sleep. It makes the time pass very quickly, and has excellent amnesic effects, so you do not remember much of the appointment at all. The patient is taken home by a spouse or friend, as driving is not allowed. Most people just nap the remainder of the afternoon. By evening, all is well, and your treatment is done!

If the patient has certain medical conditions , or perhaps  you simply want a deeper level of sedation, a board certified anesthesiologist is used to administer IV sedation where you are completely sleeping. You are breathing on your own, so this is considered “twilight” sedation, and have 100% amnesia,  and no time awareness. If extenuating circumstances arise in which the patient wants general anesthesia, that can be done as well. For this, like in ANY general surgical procedure in a hospital, you are not breathing on your own, but are intibated with a breathing tube. 

This is really one of the most exciting advances in dentistry. There is no longer ANY reason to avoid or put off your necessary treatment. Don’t let your past affect your future. I can help you . Your mouth will be healthy, and appear beautiful, the way it was intended to be.  So tell your family, friends, and co-workers to call us for a complimentary consultation to see if you or they are a candidate for any of these sedation options, and finally get back to great oral health.