After 10 years, do you enjoy dentistry or is it boring

[Wiscobadger13]

I'm currently trying to decide between medicine and dentistry. I have been in both environments before and observed some of their work. I found the dental work to be interesting, but then again, I have only observed it for a couple hours, not a couple years.

My question is after working for many years, do you still love what you do? Or has it become something you don't mind doing, or even dislike, but it pays the bills?


By the way, don't tell me to go out and make this decision off of my own experiences. I have already seen a lot, I am just asking for your opinion on something that is impossible for me to experience (Years of working as a dentist).

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[Daurang]

I enjoy it a lot even after 10 years and the big money sure helps. I think if you stay away from removable denture, the happiness will be much more long lasting. The more I deal with these dentures, the unhappier and angrier I become.

 

[charlestweed]

I have the easiest job in the world…orthodontics. It’s still a job and it still gives me a lot of headaches like any other jobs:
- I still have to work hard to please the referring dentists and my patients.
- I still have to do my best to avoid getting sued.
- I have to deal with flaky lazy employees.
- I still have to worry about the low production number, equipment breakdown, rent increase, chart audits etc.
- I still have to show up for work to avoid bankruptcy. I can’t just close the office and take a month long vacation. I have not taken any vacation that is longer than one week.

I have a brother, brother-in-law, cousins and friends who are physicians (internal med, nephrology, anesthesiology, rheumatology, radiology, pain management etc). All of these doctors wish they could work as a dentist like my sister and me when they see the kind of lifestyle that my sister and I are enjoying.

 

[dentalWorks]

I enjoy it a lot even after 10 years and the big money sure helps. I think if you stay away from removable denture, the happiness will be much more long lasting. The more I deal with these dentures, the unhappier and angrier I become.

I have the easiest job in the world…orthodontics. It’s still a job and it still gives me a lot of headaches like any other jobs:
- I still have to work hard to please the referring dentists and my patients.
- I still have to do my best to avoid getting sued.
- I have to deal with flaky lazy employees.
- I still have to worry about the low production number, equipment breakdown, rent increase, chart audits etc.
- I still have to show up for work to avoid bankruptcy. I can’t just close the office and take a month long vacation. I have not taken any vacation that is longer than one week.

I have a brother, brother-in-law, cousins and friends who are physicians (internal med, nephrology, anesthesiology, rheumatology, radiology, pain management etc). All of these doctors wish they could work as a dentist like my sister and me when they see the kind of lifestyle that my sister and I are enjoying.

would you guys plz tell us how much debt you had when you first graduated?

 

[charlestweed]

would you guys plz tell us how much debt you had when you first graduated?

Me: $147k ($92k for dental school and $55 for ortho) + $25k in credit card debt.
My wife: $308 ($228k for dental school and $80k for perio)+ $15k in credit card debt.

We had to use the credit cards because the post grad schools didn’t give us enough loan money to pay for our specialty training + living expense.

 

[Wiscobadger13]

Thanks for your replies everyone.

 

[Daurang]

$150k debt when graduated. Borrowed another $120K immediately. Paid all off after a few years.

 

[Wiscobadger13]

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