#85 Why Your Teeth Whitening Clients Are Sensitive

It’s Whitening Wednesday! ✨ Cozy season is here 🍂 (yes, I’m in an orange sweater lol). Autumn = coffee culture, which means whitening collabs with local cafés are a no-brainer. If you’re not doing a pumpkin-spice promo with a coffee house, add it to your to-do—today.

This week is a solo deep dive on the #1 thing providers stress about: sensitivity. We’re cutting the fluff and walking through why true dentin hypersensitivity should be rare with proper chairside methods, when it happens, and exactly how to fix it (without wasting time and money on gimmicky “pre-treatment” products).

⏱️ Timestamps:
00:00 – Fall vibes + why coffee-house collabs convert in Q4
00:52 – Today’s topic: sensitivity myths vs. reality (and why it’s rarely on my radar)
02:30 – Sponsor shoutout: Fern Whitening Supplies — blended gels, shorter chair time, fewer “zaps”
03:48 – Story time: first big-brand legal email (and the reminder to keep your compliance tight)
05:31 – What we can/can’t name publicly + why “no-ingredients-listed” products are 🚩
06:26 – Defining sensitivity: chromophore theory, where sensation actually starts (dentin)
08:23 – The normal “bubbling” sensation vs. true sensitivity
09:20 – Why sensitivity spikes: long chair times + high straight HP = overshock
10:20 – Microcracks, enamel wear, and fast absorption (yup, patient factors matter)
11:13 – When pulpal inflammation shows up (and why those all-day aches happen)
12:03 – Fix #1: shorten chair time; ditch heat-based lights or reduce rounds
12:48 – Fix #2: swap to Beyond II Ultra accelerator to oxidize fully without heat
13:39 – Fix #3: move to blended gels (HP/CP) or leverage CP to slow release
14:16 – Reality check: 25% blended ≠ automatic sensitivity monster (it’s usually technique)
15:04 – If you won’t switch gear yet: reduce time + send take-home to finish safely
15:59 – Four common pre-treatment traps (and why to stop using them)
16:58 – #1 Desensitizer liquids (fluoride-based): blocks fluid flow = blocks absorption
22:04 – #2 Blue sprays: illusion/color-correctors, not extrinsic-stain removers
24:36 – #3 “Pre-whitening swabs”: photo-initiator + blue tint; use (if at all) after, not before
27:09 – #4 Thick “desensitizing” gels: usually aqua + dye; great post-color-corrector, not pre
28:51 – Potassium nitrate/xylate vs. fluoride: numb the fluid around vs. block fluid flow
31:03 – The only real fix: correct technique → safe gel choice → smart chair time
33:13 – Cost per patient & chair-time savings when you ditch the pretreatment fluff
34:00 – Quick checklist you can implement this week

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