When to give up dentistry?

[Friggcakes]

Im currently a D2 student and I only passed pharmacology and general pathology during the first semester.I rested from school for a year and a half and I've fallen to a deep depression this entire time, Ive considered my options in other studies but I feel I am going to lose my identity and my passion for life itself. I must admit I was slacking off the entire semester. Im planning to continue my D2 year but I am terrified and scared to death I wont make it. When do you know when to give up and when to continue pursuing your dreams?

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[paradoxofchoice]

I think one of the things that helped myself and other classmates who faced difficulty in our education careers was speaking to people responsible for student health. You can go through your dean and seek help, whether it's medication, exploring your psychological state, and deveooping coping mechanisms and strategies for getting through this time one day at a time. I think it would be good to consider SSRIs at this point. We all have these moments of deep doubt and regrets, and our social and situational lives contribute significantly to these feelings of losing hope in life. At this point you need to consider is it being in dental school that is the problem or is it that you've had these issues for sometime and they manifested strongly in a time of stress which just happens to be dental school.

Why do you feel that you won't make it? I would advise that you try joining your classmates for study periods and get-togethers outside of schoolwork. You know, just to be social and to maybe feel hopeful that you also deserve to be happy in life.

As far as giving up dental school, it's going to annoy you, but none of us can tell you what to do. I have known people who dropped out of medical/law school, and later came to much sorrow over it. Perhaps explore the reasons you came to dental school in the first place. It gets hard to remove yourself from a bad situation and look at the long term. If you can no longer want yourself to achieve the same general goals as when you applied and first came to dental school, you should remove yourself from such a miserable experience.

 

[BigPat91]

Not to go off on a tangent (which I more than likely will), but simply put, don't give up. I was recently thinking, "...when to give up on a dream such as Dentistry". Being only 23 y.o., yeah, I've got some regrets and "what if's", but the biggest "what if" I couldn't live with is "what if I never became a Dentist?". I can honestly and truthfully say there would be such a huge void in my life. When you've worked so hard to be where you are, and have aspired for so long to become something, and achieve a dream, such as big and becoming a Dr.. I can only imagine the feeling, being 60+ and looking back on life and knowing what could have been. That right there is motivation enough for me. Quite scary actually.

 

[Ismet]

Moving to Dental forums...

 

[Saddleshoes]

Im currently a D2 student and I only passed pharmacology and general pathology during the first semester.I rested from school for a year and a half and I've fallen to a deep depression this entire time, Ive considered my options in other studies but I feel I am going to lose my identity and my passion for life itself. I must admit I was slacking off the entire semester. Im planning to continue my D2 year but I am terrified and scared to death I wont make it. When do you know when to give up and when to continue pursuing your dreams?

Get out now!
Don't be like those lost souls that plod on though dental school, hating every minute, only to discover that dentistry is only a JOB. It becomes a job that these poor bastards hate but feel trapped into due to high student loan debts. These people are some of the most unhappy professionals I know.

It is far better to be a happy truck driver making $50K a year then an unhappy dentist with $350K in debt.

 

[Daurang]

I was razor close to flunking out of dental school in my first year but I didn't give up; lucky for me it got progressively easier from then on. BUT that was 20 years ago. Dental school is much more expensive now... so you must quickly consider if you can handle it. If you only passed 2 classes for the semester, it doesn't sound very promising.

 

[ToothbrushBuddy]

I felt this way during undergrad. I suggest you take a year off, do something you've always wanted to do, but it never seemed practical. I joined AmeriCorps and did City Year in Little Rock, Arkansas (moving all the way across the country to do it) and got married. During this whole experience, I decided I wanted to become a dentist and I returned to school a better student, a happier person, with a passion and a purpose. Plus, after a year of hugs and fun from volunteering with second graders, my depression was gone! Sometimes you must get out of your current situation, radically change your life for a while and "find yourself." Counseling and some Zoloft probably wouldn't hurt either as you go on a soul-searching journey. You may discover you want to be a dentist after all, or you may find a new passion in life. BTW, your career shouldn't define who you are, as long as you are in a happy place with yourself, your life will be ok.

 

[cmcner]

You have to decide if you hate dental school or dentistry. Spend some more time with patients, if you hate it get out before you take on too much debt, if you realize that you like the dentistry but not the school then just suck it up work super hard be depressed and degraded for 3 more years and earn your stripes. Dental school almost seems to be designed to make you feel this way.

 

[dentzee]

Shadow a dentist for some time. IF you still feel like u're not meant for dentistry, it's still not too late. Get out ASAP. But like cmcner said earlier, if u like what u see and what you do at the clinic, suck it up and talk to your academic advisor. Try out what they have to offer. IF it still doesnt feel like can handle it, take a hiatus. Remember, if people around you can do it, there's nothing stopping you from achieving your goal! Whatever you do, time is crucial. So, dont be hasty, but be quick about your decision. Good luck and stay strong!

 

[doc toothache]

Dental school is not dentistry.

 

[clarkbar]

I would persevere, and i'll tell you why, knowing more about this than you know. Yes, dental school is hell, especially for a well-adjusted young person....but it's only four years, not 7-9 like medicine. Anyone can do four years of crap. Think week to week, not longer. Network with classmates to get special study sheets. Organize time to get stuff done. I think at this point, other than to not be ostracized, there's not reason to worry about your social life with school/life.

Dental school is worth it. Even if your in one of those dental mills, you can pay-off the debt (or do HPSP or military loan repayment), then rent out an old timer's practice part time during week days. Dentistry what have saturation problems for years...

P.S. If you take anti-depressants, you will be ostracized by the military, police work. That's a big part of our economy now, food for thought.

 

[ToothbrushBuddy]

^practically everyone takes anti-depressants!

 

[Screwtape]

^practically everyone takes anti-depressants!

TIL 1/10 people is "practically everyone".

Sauce: http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db76.htm

 

[DentalDoge]

Mmmmm alcohol