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FXBG Neighbors Podcast
Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast
FXBG Neighbors Podcast
EP #86 Inside One Orthodontics: Early Care, Local Roots, Confident Smiles
Think orthodontics starts when the last baby tooth leaves? We dig into the earlier, smarter path with Dr. Mohammed Abdulateef of One Orthodontics, revealing how a simple age-seven check can prevent extractions, shorten treatment, and even reduce the chance of jaw surgery. This is a story of a first-day dental school friendship that became a Fredericksburg practice grounded in community, clarity, and care.
We walk through what a first visit really looks like: quick digital scans, a focused x-ray, and a thoughtful conversation that often ends with a yearly recall instead of treatment. When Phase I care makes sense, it is precise and practical—creating space for incoming teeth, guiding jaw growth, and setting up a healthier bite so teen braces or aligners are easier and faster. Dr. Mohammed explains how personalized plans for kids, teens, and adults—braces, Invisalign, retainers—keep comfort and outcomes front and center.
Beyond clinical steps, we talk about confidence. Patients who once hid their smile begin to enjoy photos, laugh with friends, and feel at ease. That transformation fuels the team’s mission and reflects the warmth of Fredericksburg’s small business community, which welcomed One Orthodontics from day one. Dr. Mohammed also shares grounded advice for new founders: be patient, move steadily, and celebrate small wins. If you’ve wondered when to schedule that first orthodontic visit—or whether aligners are right for you—this conversation offers clear guidance and local insight.
If you enjoy conversations that blend practical health tips with real community stories, follow the show, share it with a neighbor, and leave a quick review. Your feedback helps more listeners find trusted local care and uplifting stories.
Dr. Mohammed Abdulateef
One Orthodontics
Info@1-orthodontics.com
+1 826-204-2204
This is the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Dori Stewart.
Speaker 1:Welcome back to another episode of the FXBG Neighbors Podcast, where we share the stories of our favorite local brands. I'm excited to introduce you to my guest today. We have Dr. Mohammed Abdulateef joining us, and he is with One Orthodonics. Welcome to the podcast.
Speaker 2:Thank you. Thank you for having me, Dori. Thank you. And good morning.
Speaker 1:Yeah. Oh, well, I'm excited to dive into this and learn all about you and One Orthodonics.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah. Um, it's a new orthodontic office in the area, and it's basically like what the name sounds like. It's all about ortho.
Speaker 1:Amazing, amazing. So share with us a little bit about you. I want to learn about your journey and what led you to opening this new business in Fredericksburg.
Speaker 2:Yeah, uh, so my name is Dr. Mohammed Abdulateef. I go by Dr. Mo. I'm a board certified orthodontist. Um, this whole idea about opening an office is stemmed with me and my best friend, Dr. Bisher Osman. Um, he's not here with us today. Uh, but uh we basically what we met uh in the first day on dental school and we shared our passion about creating smiles and we were just like chit-chatting, and then we figured out like we both want to go back to Virginia, like once we're done. Uh we talked about orthodontics and also we both wanted to be an orthodontist. So that's how the whole idea stemmed out like probably six, seven years ago about opening a practice in Virginia and specifically in Fredericksburg area. Um, so now that the dream is true. Uh, we just opened like probably three, four weeks ago, accepting patients, offering strictly orthodontic treatment to our patients and their families. Uh, Invisalign braces anything on the menu uh to all the ages of patients.
Speaker 1:Amazing, amazing. Well, congratulations on your new opening. That is really exciting.
Speaker 2:It is, it is.
Speaker 1:So tell me, do you find that there are any myths or misconceptions about your business specifically or about the industry?
Speaker 2:Oh, uh actually, this is a very good question when it comes to orthodontics, because one of the biggest myths out there about orthodontics is that you don't need to see an orthodontist or even get an orthodontic consult until like the you lose all of your baby teeth when it comes to teenagers, basically. Um, and this is like far from truth because based on the American Academy of Orthodonics, every kid ideally needs to be seen around the age of seven, just like for a consult, because sometimes doing early interventions can help basically just like avoid bigger problems in futures. Like sometimes we can avoid doing surgeries or even taking teeth out. Um, so doing what we call it phase one of treatment between the age of seven to ten is basically geared toward creating more space, avoiding teeth, but also uh simulate uh the jaw growth, which can be like a very good foundation for the future uh health and uh and smile.
Speaker 1:I'm really grad that you brought that up because I I imagine a lot of parents wonder about that. And you know, maybe you kind of wait until you visually see an issue, but perhaps if you get in there a little bit earlier, it could do a lot of good.
Speaker 2:100%. And that's what we we get a lot of from our referring dentists, like when they want to send a parent and be like, oh, just go see an orthodontist around the age of eight. Um, the patients are like, oh no, it's still too early. But sometimes just we take an x-ray or we just have a quick peek. Literally, the appointment takes like 10 to 15 minutes, just like to see if there's anything need to be addressed. Majority of the times we don't end up doing anything, we just like we put them on something called a recall and we see them every year to avoid uh future problems.
Speaker 1:Very interesting. Thank you for sharing that. So, uh a personal question. You're very busy. Uh just open your business. So I know that takes a ton of work and very long hours. But when you're not working, what are you doing for fun?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, outside of work, like I'm a very sports-geared person. Like, I would like to have uh a sports activity scheduled every day after work, actually, or sometimes even before uh getting into work. So it's either it could be like uh playing soccer, tennis, boxing, crossfit, go on a ride on my bike. So I just like enjoy doing all of these things, basically. Um the other thing that I would like always to do is just like to explore restaurants, go around the new areas, new cuisines. Um, and the last thing that I really love doing is attend comedy shows. It's just like it's like really relaxed, charged, like that laugh it brings me back, I feel.
Speaker 1:That's awesome. That's awesome. It's uh some stress relief there too.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is actually.
Speaker 1:What are some things that you're loving about um about the Fredericksburg area and and opening your business here?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, like one of the main things that I've noticed just like by being at Fredericksburg, meeting the people is how friendly everyone is. Um, literally, like we have people just like stop by from the neighboring like small businesses. They would stop by and they'd be like, hey, welcome to the area. If you need any help, they shared their contact with us. Um, some people they just came and toured the office and they just and they wished us like a good luck, which is something we really, really appreciate nowadays.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. Fredericksburg has such a friendly business atmosphere. I really love it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's amazing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. So, what is something that you wish the listeners knew about One Orthodonics?
Speaker 2:Yeah, so uh One Orthodonics is basically a local small business that is founded by two best friends who met on day one in dental school again. Um, we focus mainly on patients' care. Um, we are geared towards like having a welcoming environment. Uh, every patient, like, I want them like to be treated fairly. They want to, we want to spend some time with them. Um, we want to give them a treatment plan that is basically tailored to their orthodontic needs. Um, so basically, this is what we do. Basically, we give our patients like uh complementary consultations at no cost. We'll take scans, we will take x-rays, we will do a thorough exam, take some notes as well, and then we will come up like with a game plan that's gonna fit their needs. Um, also, like one orthodontics, we see patients at seven, just like we mentioned, but also uh we see adults and we offer them like Invisalign, braces, retainers, and all of these kind of things as well.
Speaker 1:Yeah, amazing. I love that. And so it's been a lot of hard work, I imagine, opening your new business. And if someone came to you and asked you for some advice and you know, wanted to chase their dream and open a business, what advice would you give them?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, opening a new business is a tough journey, like for the most part, it's not easy. Um, so what I would say is just like be patient uh and celebrate and enjoy the small wins. This is one of the most important things. Um, but also I would recommend that uh just like take it slow, just be patient as much as you can. This is like because we are now like in a fast world, everything needs to be done like immediately, and you want to see results, but that usually doesn't happen with the small businesses. And just like by seeing your business grow a little bit, but at the same time, you provide care to your patients and to the community, it's it feels like really rewarding and like you're actually achieving something.
Speaker 1:That's really great advice. I love that you said celebrate the small wins. Sometimes we forget that, and we just get so busy with you know doing the next thing, we forget to celebrate. So I love that you said that.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I feel like this is like every time I go, like I'm done with my day, I just like reflect on the small things that happened throughout the day that made me feel like, okay, I'm doing the right thing. So it's just like it feels like if you will for the next day to do the same thing over and over again, and uh until like we get uh to the end goal, which is like making our community and patients happy.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. You're clearly community focused. I love it. What do you love most about what you do?
Speaker 2:Um, so an orthodontics is just like the most important thing, and that's what me and Dr. Osman, like when we were talking about like even like when we were in orthodontic residency, is like we built a long-lasting relationship with our patients. It's just like you see them grow, develop the personalities, and also you'll see, like, although like the like their smile is changing, but also you can see like the it's uh the self-esteem and the personality is changing as well. So it's like sometimes it's mind-blowing. Like when they walk in into the console visit, they're shy or like they're not willing to share. But like one year into the treatment, like we become friends, and I know a little bit more about like their schools, their friends, now about like their activities. So this is one of the most important things about uh and rewarding when it comes to orthodontics. But on top of that, obviously, it's just like um providing service to the patient. Some patients may walk in like with some kind of pain, or they don't like their smile, or like some some jaw discrepancy. So just like take that pain away or help like give them the confidence boost they need is also like very rewarding. And it pays like it makes it feel everything is is is amazing.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah. I imagine that's such a cool experience. Seeing someone walk in, and when they leave a year or so later, seeing their their big smile and their confidence, that's just really cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and then the biggest thing is when you show them their before and after pictures, and they were oh my, they totally forgot like how it looked. And a lot of them they start sharing even more stories. It was like, Yeah, I didn't want to smile before, I didn't want to even take photos, but now I really enjoy it. I like to hang out with friends and do it. So like you feel like you're doing something.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's really cool.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:So if the listeners want to learn more from you, want to connect with you, want to come visit you, where can they find you?
Speaker 2:Yeah, um, so we are in a Fredericksburg area. Uh, they can call us, uh, email us, schedule their appointments online for complimentary consultations. We're located at 139 uh Patriot Highway, Fredericksburg. Uh they want to just like inquire, give us a call, just like if they have any questions, but also if they are willing to stop by, tour the office, we're more than happy. We're very welcoming environment. Uh, we welcome everyone. We can show them how we do things differently, and hopefully we can uh bring that to this area.
Speaker 1:Amazing. Dr. Mo, thank you so much for joining me on the podcast today and sharing one orthodontics.
Speaker 2:Thank you. We really appreciate you coming to us and helping us like uh introduce ourselves to the business and best of luck to you too.
Speaker:Thank you.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much.
Speaker:Thank you for listening to the Fredericksburg Neighbors Podcast. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to FXBG NeighborsPodcast.com.