Dentist to Psychologist?

[DDS2PhD]

Hello fellow SDNer's,

I do not want to bore you with the details of my recent revaluations of my delusions of grandeur so I'll just sum up the past two years of my life in sweet and simple bullet points
1. Accepted to dental school
2. Contracted deadly intestinal bacterial infection ( C.difficle)
3. Escaped death…barely
4. PSTD, Hypochondria, panic disorder
5. Leave of absence from school
6. Life saved by clinical psychologist
7. Came back to school realized that fixing teeth ain't my thing.
8. Came to SDN

So while I have always had an interest in psychology I never actually considered a career in psychology because I didn't want to listen to others "problems" all day. After this pretty dramatic experience I realized that psychology is for me ( I'll spare you the details). Anyway, I have been doing some research on the Gut-Brain-Axis and actually started the GAPS diet. I decided that I am going to pursue a PhD in psychology and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction so I can finally start to put the rubber to the road. I have 2 years left of dental school, and while I considered dropping out, I have decided to finished dental school first, then move onto psychology after graduation.

Here are a couple of questions...

Will I be at a disadvantage because I already completed another doctorate program?

When I look to schools that I want to attend what do I look for in a school? For dental school it is all about the name. I'm assuming for a PhD in psychology it is important to find a person at a certain university that you want to work under?

Does anyone know of any schools that have a focus on Psychology and Gut physiology?

I have zero research experience, is that going to be a problem?

I'm actually not really sure what else I even should be asking. Please excuse my ignorance and if have any other advice I would love it hear it.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

DDS2PhD

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[ArmyPsych]

It's great that a psychologist has had such an impact on your life, but it doesn't sound like you've done any research about the field whatsoever. These forums are a great starting point but as you will learn, if you are just interested in therapy, a PhD probably isn't for you.

 

[deleted176373]

So while I have always had an interest in psychology I never actually considered a career in psychology because I didn’t want to listen to others “problems” all day. After this pretty dramatic experience I realized that psychology is for me ( I’ll spare you the details). I decided that I am going to pursue a PhD in psychology and was wondering if someone could point me in the right direction so I can finally start to put the rubber to the road. I have 2 years left of dental school, and while I considered dropping out, I have decided to finished dental school first, then move onto psychology after graduation.

I’m actually not really sure what else I even should be asking. Please excuse my ignorance and if have any other advice I would love it hear it.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.

DDS2PhD

While I can appreciate the profound effect your experience had on you, I would suggest you spend some time rethinking this plan. I can't tell you whether it is the right or wrong decision for you, but your post has quite a few concerning statements.

You have no experience of what a psychologist does other than from a patient perspective, yet you now know that this is your calling? You emphatically stated that in the past you had little desire "to listen to the problems of others all day". Finally you have probably racked up considerable debt going to dental school and will only rack up more debt going to school for psychology, leaving you in a relatively low paying job with an absolute mountain of debt.

I am sure that others will chime in as well with plenty of great advice. My 2 cents, rethink this.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[AcronymAllergy]

While I can appreciate the profound effect your experience had on you, I would suggest you spend some time rethinking this plan. I can't tell you whether it is the right or wrong decision for you, but your post has quite a few concerning statements.

You have no experience of what a psychologist does other than from a patient perspective, yet you now know that this is your calling? You emphatically stated that in the past you had little desire "to listen to the problems of others all day". Finally you have probably racked up considerable debt going to dental school and will only rack up more debt going to school for psychology, leaving you in a relatively low paying job with an absolute mountain of debt.

I am sure that others will chime in as well with plenty of great advice. My 2 cents, rethink this.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

If nothing else, consider perhaps practicing dentistry for a year or two prior to committing to a psych doctoral program? This may help you develop further perspective, and will also allow you to save up some money so that you can possibly entirely avoid taking out additional loans.

As others have said, the biggest "ding" against you would be the lack of research experience, which is an absolute must when applying to clinical/counseling/school programs (particularly if you're looking for a funded offer). You'll also need to take the GRE at some point, although that may not be too rough for you. Your dentistry degree shouldn't hurt you, and can help in that it shows your ability to make it through such a program, but you'll definitely be asked about it in the, "why psychology?" sense.

 

[Doctor Eliza]

That's funny...whenever I go to my dentist, I wish I had been a dentist instead.

Don't forget, unless dentists make significantly less than I realize, you will not have the same earning power as a psychologist. My friend who is a dentist also says she doesn't like dealing with people's teeth all day, but she enjoys the lifestyle that being a dentist affords her. I like listening to people's problems all day, but I am very unhappy with my lifestyle (work like a dog and can barely make ends meet.)

It would be worth it talk to DDS and PhD folks about their lifestyle.

If memory serves, there is one psych prof out there who is a DDS and a PhD--maybe at Utah? Not sure, you'd have to do some searching.

Okay, if we are not done bursting your bubble, one last thing I feel compelled to mention...although a psychologist helped you, I wouldn't say that successful outcomes are the vast majority of cases you will deal with as a psychologist. Although treatment can work (and research shows it does) there are many obstacles to success: people won't come in, they can't afford your fee or even their copayment and don't make therapy a priority, they don't like what you say and they will find someone who will tell them what they want to hear...I could go on. Also, one thing I find very difficult to deal with is that so many patients need medication as part of their treatment and I cannot provide it to them (that last one might just be me though).

Okay, gotta run to my 11 hour, no lunch break day...

Dr. E

 

[4410]

Give it some time before making any drastic changes is what I would suggest. You have expressed some life and death experiences and frequently ones perspective and priorities change when this happens. To be at the point you are as a Dentist implies that you are dedicated and must have had some serious interest/motivation to get through the program. I would finish up your dentist program and give it some time before making any drastic career changes.

When you go through a major life event, it is not good timing to make drastic life changes. I remember a female cardiologist who had worked at a children's hospital a number of years and she was still in her 30's. She had dedicated her life to her career and was driven to be the best cardiologist. Unfortunately, she forgot to have a "Life" and became disenchanted or as some would say "burned out" and she decided to go to law school to be an attorney. She somehow just evaporated as I never heard what happened to her related to going to law school but she left the Children's Hospital. Money was not an issue as she was from a wealthy family and had inherited money from her grandparents. If I was you, before trashing your Dental career, I would seek out therapy rather than try to find your answers on a message board.

Oh...I believe what you have experienced as a phenomenon where you have inaccurately attributed saving your life to a clinical psychologists and giving far too much credit to the clinical psychologists. This is frequently the case for people who have had near death experiences. If the person who, as you claimed "saved your life" had been a dentist would you have wanted to continue to be a dentist? You need to deal with reality as the clinical psychologist does not save lives. You had to be at a point where you took advantage of the therapeutic alliance and listened to the clinical psychologist. A psychologist acts as a conduit to increasing your personal awareness, so in actually it is you who "saved your life" and not the clinical psychologist. I believe you have overly identified with the psychologist through the transference process and have given them far more credit for saving your life than is deserving. This is a common mistake that clients make without having the realization that it is themselves who have changed and it is not the psychologist who deserves credit.

 

[smitten]

To be honest, with your research interests and academic background, you'd probably be better off looking into medicine (psychiatry, perhaps). If you go the clinical psych route, you're looking at a couple years of pre-req classes and research assisting in order to get in, and your DDS will be of little benefit. You could likely apply to med school right away and do the work you're looking to do with that degree.

 

[DDS2PhD]

Well that's it, my bubble has busted…

Only on the psychology forums would I get such insightful advice. I'm aware that my previous life experiences may be clouding my judgment a little bit and I absolutely have to put in more research on this topic. The added debt, the decreased earning potential and extra 5-7 years of training after dental school is a bit daunting and that is something I have to consider.
I actually have a meeting with the psychology department here at my university and I'm sure I'll get a better sense of what a PhD entails.
I just wanted to thank everyone who responsed and I'll do some more research before I dive into anything.

Thanks again

 

[Pragma]

My first meeting with my dentist in graduate school was quite memorable. He asked me what I do and I told him I was in graduate school for clinical psychology. He asked me "How does that make you feel?" 😎

 

[Sanman]

Dentistry and psychology is an odd mix, but not necessarily unworkable. In fact, I know several psychologists that collaborate with dentistry to study pain. You don't necessarily need to accrue additional debt and I bet you could work as a dentist while you complete your prereqs, and probably even part time (like a day or two a month) to supplement your income while in graduate school.

Actually, I think dental phobia is a nice little niche. Of course, it does not tie into gut psychology, plenty of people panic/ suffer anxiety at the thought of seeing a dentist, but they need dental work. The OP could collaborate with a psychologist to treat dental phobic patients. It would likely be helpful to those in need and could be a lucrative niche market for him as a dentist. I don't think there are enough psychologically-minded, understanding dentists in this world. At least, not from my personal dental experiences.

 

[Sanman]

My first meeting with my dentist in graduate school was quite memorable. He asked me what I do and I told him I was in graduate school for clinical psychology. He asked me "How does that make you feel?" 😎

Lol, did you tell him it was like pulling teeth?

 

[cara susanna]

You could simply be a validating, warm dentist. Unlike my old one, who yelled at me for crying. 🙁

 

[Psychadelic2012]

Actually gut physiology is quite interesting from a psychological perspective. E.g., people with autism have all sorts of gut problems. The gut is, I think, the most complicated system outside of the brain and there are lots of brain interactions. Could be a really cool area of study. Dentistry and psychology is an odd mix, but not necessarily unworkable. In fact, I know several psychologists that collaborate with dentistry to study pain. You don't necessarily need to accrue additional debt and I bet you could work as a dentist while you complete your prereqs, and probably even part time (like a day or two a month) to supplement your income while in graduate school.

I love this! Totally anecdotal, but when I changed my diet and eliminated certain foods I went from having multiple cavities over several years to suddenly having none. I read that this is not uncommon. So, there is a connection there, too.

There are plenty of so-called "holistic" dentists out there. I've also met some who do hypnosis during dental procedures, etc. I agree that this could be an interesting niche in many ways.

 

[Doctor Eliza]

?... I've also met some who do hypnosis during dental procedures, etc. I agree that this could be an interesting niche in many ways.

Google Ashley Goodman, DDS. He is a guy that is a leader in using clinical hypnosis in dentistry. There is even stuff on YouTube with him doing dental procedures using only hypnosis to deal with pain. I met him when I was doing my own hypnosis training and was very impressed.

Dr. E

 

[Psychadelic2012]

Google Ashley Goodman, DDS. He is a guy that is a leader in using clinical hypnosis in dentistry. There is even stuff on YouTube with him doing dental procedures using only hypnosis to deal with pain. I met him when I was doing my own hypnosis training and was very impressed.

Dr. E

Yes! He is exactly who I was thinking of. He's a great dentist, too 🙂.

 

[Pragma]

Lol, did you tell him it was like pulling teeth?

Dang, I was not quick witted enough but that would have been great!

But seriously though, dentistry doesn't sound like a bad gig. The same dentist told me pretty soon he will be able to do his job from the beach looking at digital Xrays while his assistants take care of the in-office work.