In recent decades the health care culture has changed from what it once was. It used to be one in which the doctor was the authority, and all of his patients blindly trusted his word. Now the culture has switched to one where we as patients have become independent thinkers. We have realized the need to become our own advocates and not rely solely on what the good doctor says. In many ways this has been a positive change, but has it ever caused problems for you or your patients? Does it always seem to benefit your patient? Does it ever...
In the past year, I’ve heard from many readers that share my sentiments about practicing dentistry and wanting to change. There was one element that I hadn’t really thought about sharing until someone brought it to my attention. A while back, I received an email from a man whose wife followed my blog because she, too, was unhappy in dentistry. He mentioned that as the spouse, he occasionally stopped in to read it looking for some insight and advice. There’s a fine balance of how you can lend support but maintain certain boundaries, and be firm yet gentle about what you...
Do you have good internet manners? If you have good manners in real life, it may not be safe to assume you know how to behave online. But should the rules here be any different? The Daily Posters at WordPress recently wrote an article about comment moderation by the blog host, but lately I’m much more fascinated by the actual readers’ comments and what these statements say about that individual. Online behavior generally mirrors the non-virtual segment of the world we live in: most people are polite, but there are a few that are just plain rude. We all know...
Remember those quizzes from Seventeen magazine? Seventeen (magazine) (Photo credit: Wikipedia) While my values and morals were taking shape during my teenage years, these quizzes helped guide me to make important life decisions. When my high school crush started dating my best friend, I still wondered: Is He More Than Just a Friend? (I needed to be sure he didn’t like me.) When word got out that my friend’s parents were out of town for the weekend, I needed to be prepared and know: What’s Your Party Personality? (Just took this, and I happen to be the Perfect Party Personality!!!!) ...
At first glance, reading the history of how tumultuous my relationship was with dentistry, it might appear that I am placing all of the blame on bad jobs, mean bosses, or difficult patients. But those are just details. The fact is that I am responsible for how this all ended up. I had a choice. (more…)
One or two of you might be wondering where I’ve been the past few weeks. I had a chance to do what I love doing most. Visit new cities… Prague Celebrate love and life with old friends… Lusi and Andrew’s Wedding And splurge on yummy foods I probably shouldn’t eat… Verona, Italy I’ll have more on that later, but first, I have some unfinished business here. You’re probably dying to know about this coming out business, right? (more…)
Finally! I could see the light at the end of my career tunnel! The depressed feelings dissolved, and a fresh hope blanketed over me. I was very lucky to rely on the stability of the dental practice while I started building the new weight loss practice. Keeping my old job while starting a new one was the combination that worked for me. I never would have felt comfortable quitting my job without having something else lined up. I’m not that adventurous. Luckily, I didn’t have to jump off the cliff into an unknown abyss. (Photo credit: ccheviron) (more…)
Alright, I’ll come clean. I’ve never actually had a root canal, and like many, I hope I never have to. Whether you want one or not, most of the time you feel better after it’s done. It can actually help you. Most leave feeling much less pain and much more relief than when they went in. And that has always been the outcome for me in my therapy sessions. Photo credit: Wikipedia Am I the only weirdo out there that loves therapy? (more…)
Surely you’ve heard the recent news about the dentist in Poland who PULLED OUT ALL OF HER EX-BOYFRIEND’S TEETH, right? The victim asked his 34 year-old ex-girlfriend to see him for a toothache. I guess when he showed up in her office with his new girlfriend shortly after dumping the old one, you could say she became a little disgruntled. Sorry, but this lady is just certifiable. They are saying she could face losing her license and 3 years in prison. That’s it?!?! You know that saying “an eye for an eye?” Well, I think that would be a more...
The work I did with my career coach was unlike anything I had ever done in my life. Even though I would consider myself pretty introspective, I wasn’t accustomed to dissecting myself in that way. I approached it with an open mind because at that point, I was willing to do anything to make a change. The first step was to discover “who am I?” Photo credit: pheezy We started with the basics to find that answer, addressing the concept of a higher self. The higher self is the part of you that knows everything. It’s your intuition, your wisdom. ...
