As a 13-year-old patient, Dr. Trevor Nichols (“The Finishing Touches”) asked Dr. Stuart Frost how he too could become an orthodontist;
today, Nichols practices alongside his mentor at a 12-chair orthodontic
office in the Phoenix metro area. This past May, you might have caught
him at the AAO Annual Session—either as a presenter for Spark clear
aligners or as one of the Bite Straight Boyzz dancers performing with
the band Relapse.
You graduated as valedictorian of your class
at Arizona State University, majoring in health
and wellness, which continues to play a big part
in your life today. With such a busy schedule,
how do you make time for this commitment?
Fitness has always played an important role in my life;
I make it a priority because it helps me feel my best, both
mentally and physically. To avoid conflicts with my schedule
and my family, I wake up early and go to the gym at
4:45 a.m. I enjoy starting the day working hard and pushing
myself, because it sets the mood for that day. I enjoy
that fitness is constant and limitless—there’s always more
to improve. Fitness is something I have control over when
so much in life is out of our control, and I enjoy the process
and the reward that comes with change.
As a speaker for Spark, you’ve gone on some
great trips to places like Thailand and Africa.
Any favorite memories?
The best part of these trips, hands down, is getting to
know the other doctors, as well as the culture and native
residents. The world is such an amazing place, and I feel
blessed to have seen a small part of it. I’ve learned so
much from the other doctors that has elevated me both
as a person and a clinician. Outside of ortho, one of my
favorite trip memories was Thailand. My wife and I had
the opportunity to visit an elephant sanctuary to interact
with, feed and bathe the elephants. This was a majestic
moment that I’ll always remember. It gave me a new
respect for nature and the beauty that surrounds us.
You’ve had patients travel more than 1,000 miles
to be treated at your practice. What do you think
makes their experience so special and different?
As a practice, we’ve had the privilege of showing our
work across the country. We have worked very hard on
our results and on our social media efforts to create a
recognizable brand. In combination with this, we treat
a lot of gummy-smile cases and have published these
cases for both the public and the ortho world.
Most of our traveling patients are coming to address
unique cases nonsurgically, such as gummy-smile
correction. Therefore, the combination of the opportunity
to spread our brand via social media, etc., and the
efforts to create the best smiles possible have led some
patients to seek out treatment and travel. (Although
we do have patients who travel with unique cases, I’d
like to clarify that our preference is to have them be
treated locally!)
How did you get roped into the Bite Straight Boyzz?
I really enjoyed my time with the Bite Straight Boyzz!
The members of Relapse have become close friends—
they’re amazing men, orthodontists, leaders and talented
musicians! They reached out to me and offered me
the opportunity to participate, and although I don’t have
all the dance moves, it was so much fun to practice
and perform with the group. I consider it a privilege to
have shared the stage with them, and look forward to a
reunion event.