dislikes/concerns about dentistry?

[messenger]

do people have any dislikes or concerns about dentistry, present or future?

like about insurance companies, procedural costs..?

or smelly breath, diseased patients?

just trying to get an idea.

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[OceanBlue]

do people have any dislikes or concerns about dentistry, present or future?

like about insurance companies, procedural costs..?

or smelly breath, diseased patients?

just trying to get an idea.

uhmmm....i'm thinking people are going to start making fun of you...starting 5...4...3...2...1.....

 

[messenger]

uh, ok.

well, how about, what dont you like about dentistry?

 

[Snahster]

uh, ok.

well, how about, what dont you like about dentistry?

why don't you ask this question in the med forums. I'm sure you'll get quite a response.

 

[darksky]

do people have any dislikes or concerns about dentistry, present or future?

like about insurance companies, procedural costs..?

or smelly breath, diseased patients?

just trying to get an idea.

dental education costs are so high. why ?
its only a professional undergrad degree ???

 

[PennPB]

do people have any dislikes or concerns about dentistry, present or future?

like about insurance companies, procedural costs..?

or smelly breath, diseased patients?

just trying to get an idea.

what used to bother me a bit was the look of blood on teeth... however, that was when I was ten.

 

[HermeytheElf]

do people have any dislikes or concerns about dentistry, present or future?

like about insurance companies, procedural costs..?

or smelly breath, diseased patients?

just trying to get an idea.

Sometimes I lie awake at night and worry that my patients won't like me. Or that they'll call me doctor, but inside they'll be thinking "he's not a real doctor...he's just a dentist"...and they won't respect me. Then I usually cry myself to sleep because I don't have what it takes to make it in real medicine.

 

[pmantz]

I am scared of growing up and acting like a profesional. I am super laid back and like to joke around a lot. I really like to mess with people(all in good fun), I am afraid I am going to let down my guard and freak some patient or assitent out.

I am also terrified of teeth and mouths, I am applying to dental school to get over my fear.

 

[messenger]

see i hate bad breath so much, that sometimes i dont think i can do this. like a phobia. peeve..i dont know. i feel like i will be wearing a mask the entire day long! seriuosly..

anyone feel me?

 

[xtractime]

I am scared of growing up and acting like a profesional. I am super laid back and like to joke around a lot. I really like to mess with people(all in good fun), I am afraid I am going to let down my guard and freak some patient or assitent out.

I am also terrified of teeth and mouths, I am applying to dental school to get over my fear.

the clinic i volunteer at, the dentist is sooo laid back. he blasts 80s rock in certain rooms and is always talking to me about sports or giving me weird secret handshakes. of course in front of patients he is as professional as can be, but when walking between opatories, its all play.

 

[dizzle23x]

uhmmm....i'm thinking people are going to start making fun of you...starting 5...4...3...2...1.....

this is a valid question..it's on penn's secondary

 

[Joe70h8]

This is definately a valid question. I don't think any of us can be certain that we will be able to operate inside of a person's mouth while they may be in obvious discomfort. Watching someone practice and doing it yourself is completely different. As of now, I think we all would like to believe that dentistry is for us, but we'll never truly know until we hit clinicals and deal with real patients. I guess that's my biggest fear. But I think I've shadowed enough professionals and underwent enough procedures that I can confidently say that dentistry is for me.

 

[Nasem]

uhmmm....i'm thinking people are going to start making fun of you...starting 5...4...3...2...1.....

This post is so funny

 

[Nasem]

This is definately a valid question. I don't think any of us can be certain that we will be able to operate inside of a person's mouth while they may be in obvious discomfort. Watching someone practice and doing it yourself is completely different. As of now, I think we all would like to believe that dentistry is for us, but we'll never truly know until we hit clinicals and deal with real patients. I guess that's my biggest fear. But I think I've shadowed enough professionals and underwent enough procedures that I can confidently say that dentistry is for me.

if you have ANY doubts whatsoever about dentistry, then I can assure you right now, you WILL have problems when you deal with real patients....

Dentistry is like many other medical fields, you have to deal with "disgusting" things (the way the public views it) and enjoy dealing with them. If you have any doubts whatsoever, then medicine is not for you....

 

[pmantz]

if you have ANY doubts whatsoever about dentistry, then I can assure you right now, you WILL have problems when you deal with real patients....

Dentistry is like many other medical fields, you have to deal with "disgusting" things (the way the public views it) and enjoy dealing with them. If you have any doubts whatsoever, then medicine is not for you....

I disagree, if you reservations it means you put a lot of thought into the issue. When I got married I was slightly aprehensive about it, I had some doubts. That is a natural thing, and does not mean my marriage was a wrong thing. In a lot of ways marriage and choosing a carear in dentistry are very similar. They are both life long commitments which should be taken very seriously. A part of this is analyzing your thought on all aspects of the field, this will create doubt in anyone. The field of dentistry is very demanding on an individual in so many aspects, intelecualy, emotionaly, socialy, physicaly. Unless you are perfect and have no room for improvement in any of those areas I guess, you won't have any doubts about your carear choice.
Some doubts should be taken seriously and an evaluation of carear plans should be done, if you don't care about people, you can't tie your own shoes, any unuasual sensitivity to blood, smells, ect.

I was doing some trying to find some pictures for a presentation I was doing for a presentation, I found a sight with pictures, of oral diseases. I was a little aprehensive at first when I saw some of these pic(some were pretty nasty). Doesn't mean I shouldn't be a DDS it just means I am going to have to aclimate to the field(like everyone else).

 

[Joe70h8]

if you have ANY doubts whatsoever about dentistry, then I can assure you right now, you WILL have problems when you deal with real patients....

Dentistry is like many other medical fields, you have to deal with "disgusting" things (the way the public views it) and enjoy dealing with them. If you have any doubts whatsoever, then medicine is not for you....

Fair response. When shadowing my dentist, orthodontist, and oral surgeon, I didn't find any aspect of their work "disgusting." I thoroughly enjoyed everything I saw and my interaction with the patients. When I actually got to assist the orthodontist and the oral surgeon, I thought it was the greatest thing ever. Those moments made me happy with the decision I have made to pursue this profession.

I just don't think anyone can be 100% when they say that any career is for them until they really get into the training/profession. That's why so many people change majors, change careers, etc. They come to realize that such and such profession is not all they thought it would be. All we can do as pre-dents is shadow professionals, research the field, and other activities that are mostly hands-off. And as pmantz was saying, this is a lifelong decision. I think it would be naive not to take a step back and examine the big picture.

Who knows what will happen when we're "inflicting" pain on people? While not disgusting, some people won't be able to handle that aspect of treating people. The orthodontist I worked for hated hurting people and said he would've quit dentistry if he didn't get into an orthodontic program.

I guess we'll have to agree to disagree here. I have no problem with the disgusting stuff and through extensive shadowing I'm certain that I can deal with causing momentary discomfort with treatment as the final goal. I'm as confident as can be that this is the right decision for me...even if I have a concern or two. Believe me, if I didn't think this was for me, I wouldn't be wasting thousands of dollars and a couple years of my life "testing the waters" hoping that this is what I want to do...all the "testing" is what undergrad, shadowing, working at offices, etc are for.