The theunhingedhygienists’s Podcast

DDS: Doctor of Dental Stand-Up | Dr. Brady Smith 😂🦷🎤
What happens when two unhinged hygienists sit down with a dentist who is also a stand-up comedian, cleans his own patients’ teeth, interviews people on nitrous, and has absolutely NO problem saying whatever pops into his head?
You get Dr. Brady Smith.
And yes… this is actually our SECOND time recording this episode. The first one was apparently too unhinged for technology to handle. 😂
Dr. Brady Smith is a dentist, comedian, speaker, practice owner, and creator of Laughing My Gas Off, the show where he combines dentistry, comedy, celebrity guests, teeth cleaning, and sometimes a little nitrous. Because apparently practicing dentistry normally wasn’t entertaining enough.
In this episode, we get into everything from comedy and bombing on stage to dentistry, dental hygiene, prevention, production, access to care, Medicaid, and why Brady STILL does his own hygiene.
We talk about:
🦷 Why a dentist actually chooses to clean teeth😂 How Brady went from class clown to stand-up comedian🎤 What happens when a joke absolutely bombs💨 The story behind Laughing My Gas Off🪥 What dentists actually learn about periodontal care in dental school💰 Hygiene production, compensation and why Brady hasn’t hired a hygienist🏥 Access to dental care and treating underserved populations🔥 Why dentistry takes itself way too seriously sometimes🧠 Challenging the traditional dentist/hygienist model❤️ Why enjoying your patients and your work still matters
And somewhere in there we discuss farting in relationships, Canadian tooth numbering, 69 merch that doesn't work in Canada, Hot Ones, Fortnite, and whether Lauren should eat chicken wings while Brady cleans someone’s teeth.
You know. Healthcare. 😂
Underneath all the chaos is a conversation we LOVE having on this podcast:
Why do we do things the way we’ve always done them?
A cleaning is a procedure.Prevention is a philosophy.
Whether you’re a dentist, hygienist, assistant, or another healthcare provider, there’s room to question the model, challenge each other, laugh at ourselves, and maybe build something better.
🎙️ FIND DR. BRADY SMITH
Website: DrBradySmith.comInstagram + TikTok: Dr. Brady SmithYouTube: Laughing My Gas Off
🎧 THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Follow us: @theunhingedhygienists
Hosted by:🩷 Anastasia “Tasia” Dallas, RDH🩵 Lauren Kennedy, RDH | The Myo Coach
🎙️ Helping hygienists think differently so patients can live differently.
We’re here to ask better questions, challenge the status quo, connect the dots across healthcare, elevate the role of the dental hygienist, and have a hell of a lot of fun while doing it.
🔥 YOUR TURN
If you laughed, learned something, disagreed with us, agreed WAY too hard, or yelled at your phone during this episode, WE WANT TO HEAR IT.
👉 Follow The Unhinged Hygienists👉 Subscribe on YouTube + your favorite podcast platform👉 Share this episode with a dentist or hygienist who needs to hear it👉 Leave us a comment or review👉 DM us and tell us what you REALLY thought.
What did you love? What made you think? What do you disagree with? What should we talk about next? Who should we bring on?
We read your messages, and this podcast is growing because of YOU.
Stay curious. Question everything. And for the love of God… let’s have some fun. 🎙️🦷🔥

Where Did All the Hygienists Go? The Retention Crisis Dentistry Can’t Ignore
Everyone keeps saying there’s a dental hygiene shortage.
But what if that’s only part of the story?
What if the bigger question isn’t “Where did all the hygienists go?”
What if it’s:
“What happened that made so many hygienists stop wanting to work HERE?”
🔥 In this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Tasia and Lauren are bringing the receipts. We dig into current workforce data, burnout, compensation, benefits, workplace culture, physical demands, professional autonomy, and the very real reasons dental practices are struggling to recruit AND retain hygienists.
And no, this isn’t a dentist-bashing episode.
There are incredible dentists, practice owners, DSOs, and hygienists out there. There are also problems on both sides of the operatory that we need to be willing to talk about.
🦷 WE GET INTO:
• Is there actually a dental hygiene shortage, or do we have a retention problem?
• Why recruiting more hygienists won’t fix a workplace they don’t want to stay in
• The staggering number of hygienists reporting burnout
• Workload, unrealistic schedules, and toxic office culture
• The physical toll of clinical hygiene, including neck, back, shoulder, hand, and wrist pain
• Why “but hygienists make great money” completely misses part of the compensation conversation
• Raises, bonuses, PTO, health insurance, retirement, sick time, CE, and benefits
• Why an impressive hourly wage doesn’t necessarily equal an impressive compensation package
• The problem with “that’s just dentistry”
• Why yoga, lavender, gratitude journals, and box breathing cannot fix a structurally unreasonable schedule 😬
• Professional autonomy and being treated like a healthcare provider instead of a production machine
• Why hygienists ALSO have responsibility for their professionalism, education, documentation, ergonomics, communication, and clinical standards
• What dentists and practice owners should be asking when they repeatedly lose great hygienists
• What hygienists should consider before deciding they have to tolerate a workplace that is destroying them
Here’s the bigger conversation:
Most hygienists didn’t spend years getting educated, licensed, and trained because they hate dental hygiene.
Many of us love this profession.
We love our patients.We believe in prevention.We believe oral health IS health.We want to practice at a high clinical standard.
But loving dental hygiene shouldn’t require sacrificing our bodies, families, mental health, or clinical judgment.
And maybe the next generation isn’t ruining dental hygiene.
Maybe they’re refusing to normalize the things previous generations were taught to tolerate.
That isn’t necessarily entitlement.
Maybe it’s evolution.
Because the solution to the hygiene shortage cannot simply be producing more hygienists and pouring them into the same broken bucket.
We also need to create workplaces where great clinicians actually want to stay.
🎤 NOW WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU:
Hygienists: If you could choose ONE thing that would make you stay at an office for 10 years, what would it be?
Money? Benefits? Longer appointments? Autonomy? Culture? Flexibility? A doctor who actually listens?
Dentists & practice owners: What makes recruiting and retaining a great hygienist difficult from YOUR side of the equation?
This conversation needs both sides at the table.
👇 Drop your answer in the comments or DM us. We read them, and we genuinely want to hear what you have to say.
💗 CONNECT WITH THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
📲 Instagram: @theunhingedhygienists🎥 YouTube: The Unhinged Hygienists🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & your favorite podcast platforms🌐 theunhingedhygienists.com
🔥 HELP US GROW THIS CONVERSATION
If this episode made you think, laugh, get a little pissed off, or yell “FINALLY SOMEONE SAID IT”...
Subscribe. Follow. Comment. Share this episode with a hygienist, dentist, or practice owner who needs to hear it.
Because we’re not here just to talk about dental hygiene.
We’re here to challenge the status quo, ask better questions, connect the dots, and bring oral health back to the healthcare table.
Stay curious. Stay loud. Stay Unhinged. 🦷🔥

🔥 What If Hygiene Ran the Practice? with Dr. Brian Edwards
What if dental practices stopped treating hygiene like a loss leader and started treating it like the HEART of the practice?
Yeah. We went there.
In this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Anastasia Dallas, RDH and Lauren Kennedy, RDH sit down with Dr. Brian Edwards, DDS, founder of 323 Dentistry, to talk about a radically different way of practicing dentistry: one built around prevention, transparency, exceptional patient care, a thriving hygiene department, and a team that actually enjoys coming to work.
And Brian didn’t arrive at this philosophy through some perfectly polished dental career.
His early years in dentistry included everything from discovering unethical behavior inside practices to being embezzled from, battling insurance reimbursement, running himself into the ground with volume, and realizing that being BUSIER wasn’t necessarily making his practice healthier, happier, or even more profitable.
Eventually, something had to change.
So he changed the damn system. 🔥
🦷 IN THIS EPISODE
We get into:
🔥 Why Brian built 323 Dentistry around hygiene and prevention
🔥 Why he decided to drop insurance contracts and move toward fee-for-service dentistry
🔥 Why more patients doesn’t automatically equal more profit
🔥 How Guided Biofilm Therapy (GBT) helped transform his hygiene model
🔥 Why his hygienists see approximately seven patients a day instead of being slammed with volume
🔥 Why his hygiene team has a dedicated assistant
🔥 How longer appointments create room for periodontal charting, blood pressure screening, patient education, saliva testing, airway conversations and actual PREVENTION
🔥 Why standardized systems and language across the entire dental team matter
🔥 Why hygienists need the time, technology and support to actually use the education they’re investing in
🔥 Why dentists and hygienists should be working TOGETHER instead of operating like two completely separate departments
🔥 Why three-, four- and six-month recare should be based on the PATIENT, not an arbitrary calendar
🔥 How prevention can actually create a stronger, more sustainable dental practice
🔥 Why hygienists are not loss leaders
And maybe the biggest conversation of all:
What happens when we stop building dentistry around insurance and start building it around HEALTH?
Brian’s philosophy is refreshingly simple.
Create an environment where the team can thrive.Give clinicians enough time to actually care for people.Make fees transparent.Treat disease instead of repeating the same schedule because “that’s how we’ve always done it.”And build a practice patients WANT to come back to.
Because a healthy practice shouldn’t require burned-out providers and rushed patients.
💥 FOR THE HYGIENISTS WHO FEEL STUCK
Brian also has a message for the hygienists taking CE, learning new technology, studying airway, lasers, GBT, nutrition, saliva testing and oral-systemic health... only to return to an office that won’t let them implement any of it:
Keep learning anyway.
Your current office does not have to define the clinician you become.
Find the part of dentistry that lights you up, surround yourself with people practicing that way, advocate for yourself and find an environment aligned with the care you want to provide.
👏 YES. 👏 PLEASE.
🎙️ CONNECT WITH DR. BRIAN EDWARDS
Dr. Brian Edwards, DDS | ThreeTwoThreeDentistry
📱 Instagram: @threetwothreedentistry
Brian invites dental professionals interested in this model to DM him on Instagram. Mention The Unhinged Hygienists Podcast and ask about his playbook for practices looking to begin making these changes.
🎙️ MEET YOUR UNHINGED HOSTS
Anastasia Dallas, RDH📱 Instagram: @anastasiadallas_rdh
Lauren Kennedy, RDH, BS, OMT | The Myo Coach®📱 Instagram: @laurenthemyocoach🌐 The Myo Coach: themyocoach.com
🦷 THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Helping hygienists think differently so patients live differently.
📱 Instagram: @theunhingedhygienists🌐 Website: theunhingedhygienists.com
🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Amazon Music📺 Watch the full episode on YouTube
If this episode made you think, “WHY DOESN’T MY OFFICE WORK LIKE THIS?”... send it to your dentist. 😂🔥
Like. Subscribe. Share. Start the conversation.
Because hygiene isn’t an afterthought.
It might just be the future of dentistry.
#TheUnhingedHygienists #323Dentistry #DentalHygienist #DentalHygiene #RDH #PreventiveDentistry #GuidedBiofilmTherapy #GBT #OralSystemicHealth #HealthcareHygienist #FeeForServiceDentistry #DentalPodcast #DentalPractice #PeriodontalHealth #Dentistry

Your Mouth Is Talking: Hormones, Bone Loss & the Clues We’re Missing with Kristin Evans, RDH
What if the bone loss you’re seeing in your patient’s mouth isn’t just a periodontal problem?
In this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Tasia and Lauren sit down with Kristin Evans, RDH, “The pH RDH,” a clinical dental hygienist with 34 years of experience, national speaker, and passionate voice in hormones, systemic bone health, and the oral-systemic connection.
And yes, we’re talking hormones. But this conversation goes WAY beyond estrogen and progesterone.
Kristin shares her personal journey of being diagnosed with severe osteoporosis at just 54, after years of chronic back pain and unexplained alveolar bone loss. Her diagnosis completely changed the trajectory of her career and sparked a mission to help dental professionals recognize systemic warning signs that may otherwise be missed.
We dive into the connection between systemic bone health and alveolar bone, and why unexplained bone loss, especially when the inflammation and clinical presentation don’t seem to match what we’re seeing radiographically, should make us stop and ask: What else is going on here?
Because maybe it isn’t just perio.
We talk about hormones, menopause, osteoporosis, nutrition, vitamin D, sleep, airway, inflammation, genetics, muscle health, medications, and why all of these things can matter when we’re looking at the person attached to the mouth.
We also discuss why conversations about bone health need to start much earlier than most people realize. Kristin explains that peak bone mass occurs around age 30, making adolescence and young adulthood an incredibly important window for education, prevention, nutrition, lifestyle, and understanding risk factors.
In this episode, we get into:
🦴 Why the bone in the mouth is NOT separate from the rest of the skeleton🦷 What unexplained alveolar bone loss may be trying to tell us🔥 Hormones, inflammation, periodontal disease, and systemic bone health😴 Why sleep and airway health belong in this conversation💪 The relationship between muscle mass and healthy aging🥗 Nutrition, vitamin D, calcium, magnesium, and supporting bone health💉 GLP-1 medications, nutrition, muscle loss, and looking at the whole patient🩻 DEXA scans, bone-health screening, and recognizing risk factors earlier🧬 Genetics and other factors that may influence osteoporosis risk🔎 How hygienists can SCREEN without stepping outside our scope to diagnose🗣️ Helping patients advocate for themselves when something doesn’t feel right👩‍⚕️ Why hygienists are uniquely positioned to become healthcare detectives and oral-health coaches
One of the biggest takeaways from this conversation?
Stop putting every patient into the same box.
A six-month recall isn’t right for everyone. The same home-care recommendations aren’t right for everyone. And healthcare shouldn’t be a conveyor belt of standardized protocols.
Individualize the care.
Look differently at the health history. Ask better questions. Recognize patterns. Understand risk factors. Collaborate with other healthcare providers. And when something doesn’t add up, don’t be afraid to dig deeper.
Dental hygienists see patients regularly. We educate. We screen. We monitor changes over time. We see radiographs, periodontal measurements, tissues, saliva, airway clues, medications, health histories, and lifestyle factors.
Sometimes we may be the healthcare provider who sees the clue everyone else missed.
The future of dental hygiene is bigger than the operatory.
It’s prevention.It’s screening.It’s collaboration.It’s patient advocacy.It’s individualized care.
And it’s understanding one very important thing:
Nothing in the human body exists in isolation.
CONNECT WITH KRISTIN EVANS, RDH | THE pH RDH
Kristin Evans, BS, RDH is a national speaker, educator, writer, and clinical dental hygienist whose work focuses on hormones, systemic bone health, functional nutrition, pH, and the oral-systemic connection.
📲 Instagram: @ThepHRDH💼 LinkedIn: Kristin Evans, BS, RDH | The pH RDH📧 Email / Speaking Inquiries: kristinevansrdh@gmail.com🦴 Bone & Balance for Life: Kristin’s bone-health education and advocacy program🌐 Website & Resources: Available through the link in Kristin’s Instagram and LinkedIn profiles
Follow Kristin for more education on hormones, bone health, pH, prevention, and why dentistry needs to start looking beyond the mouth.
🎙️ THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Helping hygienists think differently so patients can feel and live differently.
If this episode made you look at bone loss, hormones, or your role as a hygienist differently, send it to another hygienist or healthcare provider who needs to hear this conversation.
Follow @theunhingedhygienists for more conversations that challenge the traditional dental box, connect the mouth to the rest of the body, and occasionally get a little… unhinged.
DISCLAIMER:This podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, prevent, or replace individualized medical advice. Dental professionals should always work within their individual scope of practice, and listeners should consult with their appropriate licensed healthcare providers regarding their personal health.

🎙️ THE MOUTH IS A DASHBOARD: Rethinking Dentistry with Dr. Michelle Jorgensen
What if dentistry stopped treating the mouth like it was somehow detached from the rest of the human body?
Yeah. We went there.
In this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Tasia and Lauren sit down with Dr. Michelle Jorgensen, a conventionally trained dentist whose own health crisis completely changed the way she practiced dentistry.
After years of unexplained gut issues, neurological symptoms, memory problems, numbness, and eventually struggling to physically practice dentistry, Dr. Michelle began searching for answers. That journey led her into biological and health-based dentistry and forced her to question some of the very things she had been taught were simply “standard.”
And once she started asking questions? There was no going back.
🔥 WE TALK ABOUT:
• Dr. Michelle’s personal health journey and what changed the trajectory of her career• Mercury amalgam exposure and occupational considerations for dental professionals• Safe mercury amalgam removal protocols• Why staying current with research matters more than “this is how we’ve always done it”• Root canals and why they remain such a controversial conversation• CBCT imaging and what conventional 2D imaging may miss• Ozone therapy and how Dr. Michelle incorporates it into her practice• Dental waterlines, biofilm, and infection control• Oral microbiome testing and using the microscope chairside• Dental material sensitivities and the Clifford Materials Reactivity Test• Chronic inflammation around restorations• Cavitations and chronic inflammatory burden• The relationship between oral health and whole-body health• Why dental professionals may have a much bigger role in healthcare than we realize• How hygienists can begin thinking beyond “cleaning teeth”• What it actually means to practice health-based dentistry
One of our favorite ideas from this conversation:
The mouth is a dashboard for the rest of the body.
Dental professionals often see patients more regularly than many other healthcare providers. That gives us an incredible opportunity to notice patterns, ask better questions, educate our patients, and collaborate with other healthcare professionals.
This episode isn't about blindly accepting a different philosophy of dentistry.
It's about being willing to ASK QUESTIONS.
What does the current research say?What has changed since we graduated?What are we still doing simply because “that’s how we’ve always done it”?And most importantly, what could we be missing when we only look at teeth?
Because healthcare evolves.
And when we know more, we have an opportunity to do better.
🦷 ABOUT DR. MICHELLE JORGENSEN
Dr. Michelle Jorgensen is a dentist and educator focused on health-based dentistry and the connection between oral health and whole-body wellness. Her practice, Total Care Dental, attracts patients seeking a more comprehensive approach to dental care.
She is also the founder of Living Well with Dr. Michelle, where she shares education, resources, and products centered around healthier living, and Living Well Professionals, an educational platform for healthcare and dental professionals interested in incorporating health-based principles into practice.
Dr. Michelle also shares educational videos on YouTube, including deeper dives into many of the topics discussed in this episode.
📲 CONNECT WITH DR. MICHELLE
Instagram: @livingwellwithdrmichelleYouTube: Living Well with Dr. MichellePractice: Total Care DentalEducation for providers: Living Well ProfessionalsProducts & resources: Living Well with Dr. Michelle
🎧 FOLLOW THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Instagram: @theunhingedhygienists
Listen, subscribe, share the episode, and leave us a review.
We’re here to help hygienists think differently so patients can live differently, and to remind dental professionals that we absolutely belong at the healthcare table.
⚠️ DISCLAIMER: This podcast is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent disease. The views and clinical approaches discussed by guests are their own and should not replace individualized medical or dental advice. Always evaluate current evidence, professional guidelines, scope of practice, and individual patient needs.
Unhinged? Maybe. Asking better questions? Absolutely.

🦷 WE GOT A BOX… AND OBVIOUSLY WE HAD OPINIONS
Dr. Michelle Jorgensen of Living Well with Dr. Michelle sent us a box full of oral and whole-body health goodies, so naturally we had to open it on camera, nerd out over the ingredients, and ask way too many questions.
Because around here, oral care isn't just about making your mouth taste minty.
In this mini episode, Tasia and Lauren dig into products designed around a bigger approach to prevention: the oral microbiome, remineralization, nutrition, bone health and biofilm management.
📦 WHAT WE UNBOXED
Gum Health MouthwashWe're moving beyond the old-school idea that mouthwash needs to annihilate every bacterium in your mouth. Healthy doesn't mean sterile. We talk about supporting gum health, remineralization and a balanced oral environment.
Tooth & Bone FormulaPlot twist: teeth need nutrition too. We talk calcium, magnesium, trace minerals and why teeth and bone don't exist independently from the rest of the body. Remineralization isn't only about what you're putting on your teeth. Nutrition matters too.
Gum Health Tooth PowderLauren gets permission to go full hydroxyapatite nerd, and there is absolutely no turning back. 😂
We break down hydroxyapatite, enamel remineralization and sensitivity, plus ingredients including calcium carbonate, xylitol, bentonite clay and arginine.
Mint ToothpasteFor those who aren't ready to join the tooth-powder club, we look at a more familiar option and ask a question we think more people should be asking:
What are the ingredients in your toothpaste actually doing?
Liquid Vitamin D3 + KAnd this is where Tasia happily leaves the mouth.
We discuss vitamin D, calcium absorption, bone metabolism and why oral and periodontal health aren't floating in some magical bubble separate from the rest of your physiology.
ReMintsTasia has already claimed these. Sorry, Lauren.
We talk xylitol, hydroxyapatite and why these can be another tool after coffee, meals or snacks when brushing isn't an option.
They're an additional prevention tool, not a replacement for brushing and interdental cleaning.
Hydroxyapatite FlossBecause apparently regular floss wasn't nerdy enough for us.
We talk interdental cleaning, demonstrate proper flossing technique and make one thing very clear:
The superstar of flossing is still mechanical biofilm disruption.
No ingredient replaces actually disrupting the biofilm.
🧠 THE BIGGER CONVERSATION
What we loved most about this box wasn't one magical product.
It was the philosophy behind it.
Biofilm management. Remineralization. Nutrition. Bone health. The oral microbiome. Prevention from multiple directions.
That's the conversation we're trying to make louder.
Your mouth isn't separate from your body. Oral health IS health.
🎙️ COMING SOON
We're also sitting down with Dr. Michelle Jorgensen of Living Well with Dr. Michelle for a deeper conversation, including hydroxyapatite and some of the questions being raised around it.
💬 YOUR TURN
Have you tried any of these products? Which one do you want us to test or demonstrate next?
Comment or DM us. We actually want to hear from you.
If this episode made you laugh, taught you something, or made you question something you've been doing for years, follow, subscribe and share it with someone who needs to hear the conversation.
Stay curious. Stay loud. Stay Unhinged. 🦷🔥
Disclaimer: This episode is for educational purposes only and is not individualized medical or dental advice. Supplements and oral-care products may not be appropriate for everyone. Talk with your qualified healthcare or dental provider about what's appropriate for you.

🎙️ STOP STAYING IN THE BOX: FINDING YOUR PURPOSE IN DENTAL HYGIENE | LISA TRUBEY RDH
What happens when you stop asking, “Is this all there is?” and start asking, “What else is possible?”
In this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Tasia Dallas RDH and Lauren Kennedy RDH sit down with Lisa Trubey RDH, clinician, mentor, advocate, researcher, speaker, and the powerhouse behind Rooted Purpose RDH.
Lisa’s journey into dental hygiene was anything but traditional. After years in dentistry as a dental assistant, navigating divorce, single motherhood, anxiety, major life changes, and EIGHT years of working toward becoming a hygienist, she finally graduated in 2024.
And she didn’t quietly take her place behind the chair.
She got LOUD. 🔥
Lisa shares how getting involved in organized dental hygiene, networking, continuing education, research, mentorship, and advocacy completely changed the trajectory of her career.
We get into:
🦷 Why dental hygienists are so much more than “people who clean teeth”
🔥 Finding purpose outside the operatory
📚 Why your education and growth shouldn’t stop when hygiene school ends
💪 Failing your boards and refusing to let failure define you
🤝 Why networking can completely change your career
🗣️ Advocacy and why hygienists need to use their voices
🦷 The OPA conversation and protecting the education, training, and scope of dental hygienists
❤️ Supporting other hygienists instead of tearing each other down
🧠 Mental health, burnout, confidence, and imposter syndrome
🩺 Practicing as a healthcare provider and understanding the oral-systemic connection
🚭 Lisa’s research and advocacy surrounding nicotine cessation
🌎 Taking dental hygiene research and advocacy to an international stage
🌱 Finding YOUR niche, even when you have approximately 47 things you're passionate about
And maybe most importantly, we talk about what happens when you stop waiting for permission to build the career you actually want.
Lisa reminds us that growth doesn’t require having your entire life perfectly figured out. Sometimes your ducks are absolutely NOT in a row... and you keep moving anyway. 😂
Her philosophy behind Rooted Purpose says it beautifully: get rooted in what you believe, continue finding your purpose, keep learning, keep exploring, and keep growing outward.
Lisa also shares The Rooted Purpose Collective, her eight-week mentorship program designed to help dental professionals discover their purpose and recognize that impacting patients doesn’t have to happen exclusively inside the clinic.
Because sometimes the career you thought you were supposed to have is only the doorway.
You still have to walk through it. 🌱
🔥 FOLLOW OUR GUEST
Lisa Trubey RDHRooted Purpose RDHInstagram: @rootedpurposerdh
Check out The Rooted Purpose Collective for mentorship, professional growth, advocacy, and finding purpose beyond the chair.
🎙️ FOLLOW THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Hosted by:Tasia Dallas RDHLauren Kennedy RDH | The Myo Coach
📲 Instagram: @theunhingedhygienists
🌐 Website: theunhingedhygienists.com
Our website is your home base for podcast information, guest submissions, intake forms, scheduling, and everything Unhinged.
🎥 Watch the full episodes on YouTube🎧 Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & Amazon Music
💌 Want to be a guest, collaborate, sponsor an episode, or have a topic you think we NEED to talk about? Visit our website or send us a DM.
And if this episode lit a little fire under you, LIKE, COMMENT, SUBSCRIBE & SHARE IT with another hygienist who needs the reminder that there is SO much more available to us.
We’re here to ask questions, challenge outdated thinking, connect the oral-systemic dots, and remind hygienists that we deserve a seat at the healthcare table.
Helping hygienists think differently so patients live differently. 🦷🔥
#TheUnhingedHygienists #DentalHygienist #RDH #DentalHygiene #DentalPodcast #DentalHygienePodcast #HealthcareHygienist #OralSystemicHealth #DentalHygieneAdvocacy #RDHLife #DentalProfessionals #DentalEducation #DentalHygieneCareer #WomenInDentistry #RootedPurposeRDH

I Smell Sex and Perio 👀 | What Your Mouth Is REALLY Telling Us
Your dental team knows more about you than you think. And sometimes… WAY more than we wanted to know. 😂
On this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Tasia Dallas RDH and Lauren Kennedy RDH are joined by their friend Nella, an internationally trained dentist, surgical dental professional, phlebotomist, former dental assistant instructor, and whole-body health enthusiast who brings a completely different perspective to the dental chair.
And yes… somehow we ended up talking about sex, perio, oral bacteria, airway, STIs, pubic hairs in mouths, patient confessions, and why dental assistants deserve WAY more respect.
Basically, a normal day at The Unhinged Hygienists. 💀
Nella shares her journey from dental school in Ecuador to working in dentistry in the U.S., and why her role goes far beyond “suctioning spit.” We get into what highly trained dental assistants actually do behind the scenes, from surgical procedures and phlebotomy to managing patients, doctors, schedules, labs, emergencies, and the organized chaos of a busy dental practice.
But then things get UNHINGED.
We talk about the questions patients actually ask us, including whether certain activities after dental treatment are… advisable. 👀
And that leads us into a conversation people rarely have:
Wherever your mouth goes, your oral bacteria goes too.
We discuss the connection between periodontal health, oral bacteria, intimacy, sexual health, and why what is happening inside the mouth may have implications far beyond teeth and gums.
Nella also shares an unforgettable clinical case involving a teenage patient with severe gingival inflammation and bleeding that ultimately required looking beyond “brush and floss.” The bigger message? When something clinically doesn’t make sense, KEEP LOOKING. Oral manifestations can sometimes be clues that something bigger is happening systemically.
Because dentistry should never be:
“Your gums are bleeding. Floss more. See you in six months.”
We also dive into:
🦷 Why dental assistants are healthcare professionals too🦷 Whole-body dentistry and the oral-systemic connection🦷 Periodontal disease and inflammation🦷 Oral bacteria and intimate relationships🦷 The absolutely WILD things patients tell us🦷 When bleeding gums deserve a deeper investigation🦷 Knowing when and where to refer🦷 Why credentials alone don’t automatically equal great care🦷 Airway, clenching, grinding and scalloped tongues🦷 Sleep-disordered breathing and dental screening🦷 Why comprehensive medical histories matter🦷 Collaboration between hygienists, assistants, dentists, ENTs, periodontists and other providers🦷 Why every member of the dental team sees the patient through a different lens
One of our biggest takeaways from this episode:
Dentistry is a TEAM SPORT.
The dentist sees something.The hygienist sees something.The assistant sees something.The airway provider sees something else.
No single provider catches everything, and the best patient care happens when we respect each other's knowledge, communicate, collaborate, and stop acting like healthcare exists in separate little boxes.
And yes, we also discuss how airway problems might be interfering with your sex life.
You're welcome. 😂
This episode is educational, inappropriate, hilarious, clinically interesting, and exactly why we started The Unhinged Hygienists: to talk about the things people are thinking but nobody wants to say out loud.
🎙️ THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Hosted by:Tasia Dallas RDHLauren Kennedy RDH | The Myo Coach
Follow The Unhinged Hygienists on Instagram:@theunhingedhygienists
Watch us on YouTube and listen wherever you get your podcasts.
💬 QUESTION FOR YOU:
What is the MOST unhinged thing a patient has ever said to you in the dental chair?
Drop it in the comments. We already know this comment section is going to be feral. 😂
And if you’re a dental assistant, hygienist, dentist, or other healthcare professional who believes dentistry is about a hell of a lot more than polishing teeth… you belong here.
LIKE 👍SUBSCRIBE 🔔SHARE with your dental bestieand send us the topics nobody else wants to talk about.
Because around here, nothing is off the table.
#TheUnhingedHygienists #DentalHygienist #DentalAssistant #PeriodontalDisease #OralSystemicHealth #OralHealth #WholeBodyHealth #AirwayDentistry #DentalPodcast #DentalProfessionals #PeriodontalHealth #DentalHumor

🎙️ ORAL PATHOLOGY DOESN’T HAVE TO BE SCARY | Andreina Sucre @ThePathoRDH
What happens when a dentist, oral pathology specialist, immigrant, dental hygienist, speaker, author and professional party enthusiast walks into The Unhinged Hygienists podcast? 😂
You get an episode that goes WAY beyond memorizing weird lesions in a textbook.
This week, we sit down with Andreina Sucre, @ThePathoRDH, to talk about oral pathology, critical thinking, immigration, identity, dental hygiene, patient advocacy and finding your voice.
Because here’s the thing:
You don’t have to know everything.But you DO have to pay attention.
👄 IN THIS EPISODE
Andreina shares her journey from becoming a dentist in Venezuela, completing training in oral surgery and oral pathology, immigrating to the United States and eventually becoming a dental hygienist in Florida.
We talk about:
🦷 Why oral pathology shouldn’t just be memorizing images and diagnoses
🔎 How dental professionals can approach oral lesions like detectives
🧠 Why critical thinking is one of our most important clinical skills
🌎 What it feels like to immigrate and lose part of your professional identity
🪥 What Andreina learned about dental hygiene after becoming a hygienist herself
🔥 Why dental hygienists deserve respect, support and autonomy
🗣️ Language barriers and caring for Spanish-speaking patients
📚 Her bilingual oral pathology resource created with Amber Auger, RDH
🎤 Imposter syndrome, speaking, accents and finding your voice
❤️ Why patients need to feel heard, safe and understood
And yes...we also discuss the Vengaboys, Six Flags, songs that describe our personalities and whether “Girl on Fire” was chosen because Anastasia once had chronic hives. 😂
Welcome to The Unhinged Hygienists.
We eventually get to dentistry.
Usually.
📚 ANDREINA’S BOOK
Andreina co-authored the Dental Spanish Wordbook: Pathology Edition, a bilingual clinical resource designed to make oral pathology easier to understand while helping dental professionals communicate with Spanish-speaking patients.
Instead of memorizing endless lesions, the book helps clinicians describe what they’re seeing, categorize lesions by clinical appearance and ask better questions.
It includes English, Spanish and phonetic pronunciation to help bridge communication between provider and patient.
📖 Search Dental Spanish Wordbook: Pathology Edition on Amazon.
🔥 THE BIGGEST TAKEAWAY
We don’t need to know everything.
We need to PAY ATTENTION.
Dental hygienists aren’t “just cleaning teeth.”
We’re looking for clues.We’re asking questions.We’re noticing changes.We’re connecting dots.
Because the mouth is talking.
Are we listening?
👩‍⚕️ CONNECT WITH ANDREINA
Andreina Sucre | The Patho RDH
📱 Instagram: @ThePathoRDH
📚 Author: Dental Spanish Wordbook: Pathology Edition
🎤 Oral pathology educator + speaker
🎙️ MEET YOUR UNHINGED HOSTS
Anastasia Dallas, RDH
📱 Instagram: @anastasiadallas_rdh
Lauren Kennedy, RDH | The Myo Coach
📱 Instagram: @laurenthemyocoach
🦷 THE UNHINGED HYGIENISTS
Helping hygienists think differently so patients live differently.
📱 Instagram: @theunhingedhygienists
🌐 Website: TheUnhingedHygienists.com
🎧 Listen on:Spotify • Apple Podcasts • Amazon Music
📺 Watch full episodes here on YouTube
💥 HELP US GROW
👍 Like this episode🔔 Subscribe💬 Comment with your biggest takeaway📤 Share it with another dental professional
And tell us:
What should we get unhinged about next?
Drop it in the comments or DM us on Instagram.
Because we’re not here to tell you what to think.
We’re here to get you thinking.
#TheUnhingedHygienists #DentalHygienist #DentalHygiene #RDH #OralPathology #ThePathoRDH #OralHealth #OralSystemicHealth #HealthcareHygienist #DentalPodcast #Dentistry #DentalEducation #DentalSpanish #PreventiveDentistry

💧 WATER YOU TALKING ABOUT?
Hydration, Hype & What’s Actually in Your Water
Apparently, drinking water isn’t complicated enough anymore.
Now we have tap water, spring water, distilled water, reverse osmosis, alkaline water, hydrogen water, structured water, ozonated water, sparkling water, mineral water… and probably some $6,000 quantum-unicorn-vortex water machine that folds your laundry and pays your mortgage. 😂
So naturally, we had questions.
In this episode of The Unhinged Hygienists, Tasia Dallas, RDH and Lauren Kennedy, RDH dive headfirst into the surprisingly wild world of WATER. Because patients are asking about it, wellness influencers are making some pretty massive claims about it, and hydration has a much bigger connection to oral and systemic health than most people realize.
💦 WHY HYDRATION MATTERS TO YOUR MOUTH
Your dental hygienist can probably tell when you’re dehydrated before you ever mention it.
Dry tissues. Sticky cheeks. Thick or foamy saliva. Cracked lips. Bad breath. Increased plaque accumulation.
And saliva? She deserves way more respect.
Saliva helps lubricate tissues, neutralize acids, control bacteria, support chewing and swallowing, and contains enzymes involved in the beginning stages of digestion. Hydration plays a major role in keeping that entire system working the way it should.
Translation: water is part of oral health.
🚰 WHAT THE HELL IS ACTUALLY IN OUR WATER?
Not all tap water is created equal.
Where you live, the source of your water, municipal treatment, local contaminants and even the plumbing in your home can affect what eventually comes out of your faucet.
We get into:
Tap vs. bottled vs. spring water
PFAS, aka “forever chemicals”
Lead, chlorine, microplastics and other contaminants
Why knowing your LOCAL water quality matters
Water testing and municipal Consumer Confidence Reports
Why owning a filter means absolutely nothing if you never change the damn filter 😂
Rather than panicking about every possible exposure, the takeaway is to know your water before spending your money. Learn what’s actually in your local supply, test when appropriate, and choose filtration based on what you’re trying to remove.
🧪 REVERSE OSMOSIS, DISTILLED & WHOLE-HOUSE FILTRATION
Reverse osmosis gets some serious airtime.
RO systems use a semipermeable membrane to reduce many dissolved contaminants, and some systems also incorporate activated carbon filtration. But highly effective filtration can also remove naturally occurring minerals such as calcium and magnesium, which is why some systems include remineralization.
We also talk distilled water, whole-house systems, countertop systems, remineralization and water softeners.
And yes, somehow garbage disposals, eggshells, carrots, beets and what looked like a horrific crime scene under Tasia’s sink make their way into a podcast about hydration.
Because obviously.
🫧 HYDROGEN WATER
Now things get interesting.
Hydrogen water is regular water with dissolved molecular hydrogen, and there is emerging research exploring potential effects related to oxidative stress, inflammation, metabolic health and exercise recovery.
Promising? Yes.
Miracle water? Settle down, Instagram.
As we discuss in the episode, the research is intriguing but still developing, and small studies shouldn't automatically be turned into universal health claims.
⚗️ ALKALINE WATER
Can alkaline water completely change your body's pH, detoxify you and transform you into an immortal wellness goddess?
Probably not.
Your body tightly regulates blood pH. While there may be specific areas of research worth exploring, including reflux, that's very different from claiming alkaline water can “detox” the entire body or prevent disease.
And if the rest of your lifestyle is working against you, one fancy bottle of alkaline water isn't riding in on a white horse to save the day.
🌀 STRUCTURED WATER, LIVING WATER & THE WOO-WOO CORNER
This is where we happily tumble down the rabbit hole.
Structured water. Hexagonal water. Living water. Vortex systems. Light-infused water. Crystals charging water.
There are fascinating questions being explored about the physical behavior and structure of water. But there's an important distinction between interesting science worth investigating and companies taking early research and sprinting straight into “THIS WATER HEALS EVERYTHING.”
Curiosity? YES.
Blindly buying the $4,000 magical countertop portal to eternal youth?
Maybe read the studies first.
🍋 RAPID-FIRE WATER
We finish with some quick hitters, including:
Sparkling water: Fine, but constantly sipping acidic flavored varieties isn't exactly your enamel's dream day.
Lemon water: Enjoy it if you love it, but remember the acidity. Rinse with plain water afterward and don't immediately brush.
Copper bottles: Interesting, but the evidence behind some of the bigger health claims is still limited.
Crystal-charged water: Pretty? Absolutely. Scientifically life-changing? That's where we start asking questions.
🎯 THE REAL TAKEAWAY
This episode isn't about convincing you that there's one “perfect” water.
It's about something much bigger:
Critical thinking.
Ask questions. Read studies. Look at who funded the research. Pay attention to study size and controls. Question marketing claims. Question influencers.
And hell, question us too.
You don't have to choose between believing everything and believing nothing. There's a beautiful little place in the middle called critical thinking.
Know your water.
Filter it if it makes sense for where you live.
Protect your saliva.
Stay curious.
And for the love of your dry-ass mouth…
💧 DRINK YOUR WATER.
🎧 New episodes every Wednesday
Follow The Unhinged Hygienists on your favorite podcast platform, YouTube and social media.
🌐 Visit theunhingedhygienist.com for more information, episode blogs and scientific studies connected to the topics we discuss.
Stay curious. Stay hydrated. Stay unhinged. 💧🦷