Dr. Gallagher's Podcast by Brendan Gallagher, DDS

May 21, 2026 Oral Surgeon Drops Truths & Tips on Residency, Dental School, Dry Sockets, Stab Lab, How To Succeed

Top 5 Topics:

- Wisdom Teeth Nightmares & Dry Socket Horror

- Dental School Rejections & Comeback Stories

- Local Anesthesia / Stab Lab Tips & Dental School Hacks

- How Much Money Oral Surgeons Actually Make

- Brutal Truth About Becoming a Dentist / Oral Surgeon

Top 10 Viewers on this Episode on TikTok LIVE #97 Q&A:

1st - Ibrahim, @ll2u5

2nd – German Jose382, @germanjose18

3rd – @cuethis

4th – Christopher Moussa, @user127894592

5th – Tiara, @tiaraalynn_

6th – Emily, @emily.kahn

7th – Maaz Siddiqui, @siddiqui_maaz

8th – Alex, @alexkrivi

9th – Grant Gibbs, @grant.gibbs7

10th - @theorysmasher

11th - Pack, @packemallup

12th - Ahht ahht, @ahhtahht

Quotes & Wisdom:

"Self-awareness is recognizing what your strengths are from what your weaknesses... If you really love something, figure out what you're good at in it too. Go all in on those two things until you can combine them into one and the world, you're going to be smooth sailing and it won't be work. It's going to be like a hobby."

"You applied to 10, then 6, and got waitlisted at 6. I would probably increase the applications to at least 15 dental schools now. You're applying for the 3rd time. Think about these things."

"Only focus on what you can control. You can't control anything outside of that."

"Don't worry about other people's stats... I didn't get straight A's. I got A's and B's. That was a rule of mine, no C's. And I know people with C's that got into oral surgery. Just work hard, work as hard as you can, be a good person, be a teammate, and you're gonna be fine."

"You could have all the degrees in the world... but where you work and who you work for, and the community that you work in — that's all gunna determine and literally dictate whether you can even do all the things you want to do... That's something I've been thinking about for the last couple of years."

"Ice 30 minutes on, 30 minutes off, head elevated, for 2 days. No straws, no smoking. Be careful you don't get a dry socket."

"Mentorship is going to be your #1 go-to thing and just be a sponge. Absorb as much information anywhere that you can as possible."

"Go into the oral surgery clinic and ask if you could assist with anything... after a while, they're going to throw you a bone... I taught dental students how to take teeth out almost every day."

Questions:

00:45 – "Any tips on administering local anesthetic? LOL, I have Stab Lab Thursday."

05:33 – "If I haven't got my wisdom teeth out, should I get them out?"

07:10 – "My sister has an infected wisdom tooth hole. What's the worst that can happen?"

08:40 – "I'm an RDA going into RDH school. Any advice?"

12:45 – "I'm applying to dental school for the 3rd time this cycle, any tips?"

16:56 – "How much are you making now or expect to make?"

28:25 – "I had a really strong fall semester... and now I got a 1.8 GPA spring. Am I cooked?"

35:45 – "I'm almost done with medical school and I want to do my DMD after, for OMFS. Is it worth it?"

45:09 – "I'm an international dentist from UK who wants to become one in the USA but I'm terrified of the cost."

Now available on:

- Dr. Gallagher’s Podcast & YouTube Channel

My watch in this episode = Tag Heuer Aquaracer Calibre 16 Chrono

- 5.2026

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