Why do we sacrifice the best years of our lives?

[Doctor Thriller]

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I'm trying to bad mouth you (the recent interviewee), but you may want to tone it down for the next interview, which i am sure you have already scheduled. I am sure you have excellent gpa/dat score to get an early interview, yet it is yours to lose once you get your fresh, dry cleaned suit on, stepping into _______ School of Dentistry then doing your 3 on 1's and 1 on 1 interviews. You have your foot in the door already, so just be a bit more down to earth (even though i am far from it but i am already in dental school).
After reading the relpies, I have come to the conclusion that you do have to sacrifice at sometime in your life if you want to be successful and why not it be now while you have the energy to do so and have the majority of people your age (in dental school) to do it with. I appreciate everyones replies, and i was being envy of all my buddies from college that are living it up right now and i am miserable, single and never going out.
i appreciate all the input guys and put a new perspective on what I have to do from here on out.
BTW for those who brought up the means of exchange issue. My father is an orthopedic surgean and my mother is the majority owner of a mid sized engineering firm so money is not an issue when is comes to having fun, but it is just finding the time in d school to have fun is the problem.

 

[DrReo]

Dental school isn't that bad. When else will you get to devote almost 90-95% of your time to learning, enriching yourself and, most importantly, learning about soft tissue and its management? Doesn't get better than that! Stick to the grind stone and you can definitely find a few spare hours to enjoy yourself.

 

[Lethstang]

Thanks for the advice op. It redeems your character to respond to an attack in a mature manner. However, I suggest you tone it up during your future interviews . My attitude has brought me, as society would call it, far. Dental school admissions is far easier than what I did before. Most ppl want a strong, confident candidate, not one who is afraid to speak plainly and act sure of themselves. This is coming from an applicant who used to interview for a top company in a top field. You go out there and TAKE success, you don't sit back and hope it happens. The meek shall inherit the earth only happens in the bible.

Hypothetical.

Interviewer : are you smart?
You : I believe so. I've worked hard and blah blah blah.....
Winner : I am EFFING smart.

Who do you want to hire? Regardless of your personal choice, the correct answer for a high stress highly demanding career is the winner answer.

But yes, there are some who would be turned off by it. And they shouldn't be interviewers.

 

[gryffindor]

Thanks for the advice op. It redeems your character to respond to an attack in a mature manner. However, I suggest you tone it up during your future interviews . My attitude has brought me, as society would call it, far. Dental school admissions is far easier than what I did before. Most ppl want a strong, confident candidate, not one who is afraid to speak plainly and act sure of themselves. This is coming from an applicant who used to interview for a top company in a top field. You go out there and TAKE success, you don't sit back and hope it happens. The meek shall inherit the earth only happens in the bible.

Hypothetical.

Interviewer : are you smart?
You : I believe so. I've worked hard and blah blah blah.....
Winner : I am EFFING smart.

Who do you want to hire? Regardless of your personal choice, the correct answer for a high stress highly demanding career is the winner answer.

But yes, there are some who would be turned off by it. And they shouldn't be interviewers.

I remember when these personalities used to come interview for residency. No one, and I mean no one, found it charming. It works for top companies in top fields. When granny or little Suzy asks you if pulling her tooth is going to hurt, she's not going to appreciate a confident presentation of the truth.

 

[nanilla]

Winner : I am EFFING smart.

Hopefully that will take you farther than Skilling.

 

[Lethstang]

gryffindor touche and ty for the insight. I will make sure and go about it a dif way when its time for residency. This is news to me.

nanilla i was hoping someone would get the reference, lol ..

 

[txlonghorn]

Lethstang, are you saying that people who answer that way are "the smartest guys in the room"? Lol. I couldn't help myself.

 

[Lethstang]

ahahahah tx, double touche 🙂

 

[DMD 4 Me]

Don't get me wrong? I am sure I will enjoy my life after dental school is over, but in the mean time this **** sucks. I just graduated in 09 from undergrad and am in my first year of dental school currently, yet I look at my buddies from college who have real world jobs (i.e., investment bankers and engineers) and they are having the time of their lives in the best years of our lives (your younger and mid 20's). I would love to travel to Vegas or different countries with them while we are not married, planning on popping out babies with the significant other, yet I do not have the time because my whole life is dedicated to the field of dentistry. When I graduate dental school I will be 27, which is relatively young, and I feel like with society expects is for me to plan on or be married while I am 1) paying back dental school debt, 2) trying to finally establish my career, 3) trying to catch up on the fun I didn't have while I was in dental school. Maybe I'm being a bit immature and love the single lifestyle too much right now; however, the only people who seem to enjoy dental school are my collegues that are married or in serious relationships. I feel your first two years of dental school should be all about you and correct me if I am wrong but a guy has needs so what do you do? Go out when you know you should be studying and just settle for B's and C's or stick it out and look at the long term goal that we have busted are ass for since freshmen in undergrad? Do your last two years really offer you more time to do more stuff that you really enjoy doing? Maybe it's true what they say, "more than 50% of students in medical and dental school are depressed" and that why I am writing on a blog right now looking for answers.

You can have it "easy" now and be stuck working in a cubicle dreaming of "the corner office" for the rest of your life...or

You can stay in dental school..suffer a little for 4 years, and reap the rewards later. They may have a 4 year head start on you, but you will pass them all by once you start practicing.

 

[yappy]

The more I read about dentistry the more excited I get to apply! I think the years I'll spend learning to be a dentist will be a great adventure. Hang in there OP.
This is a question I had for others: Did you receive discouragement when you decided to become a dentist.

The reason I ask is because my father is very negative about me wanting to do dentistry. He often brings up how long and expensive the schooling is. He never wented us (me and my bros) to get 4 year degrees and always steered us toward trades. Money isnt an issue because I joined the military TO attend college later in life. Just wondering if anyone else has had this experience?

 

[rimon5693]

Well, My Father is also a dentist, He also make your living very good. But I hate dentist when they pull our teeth from our mouth. Its painfull !!

 

[DudeDDS]

i hate it.

 

[beeho]

OP:

i'm a d1 as well, but i haven't felt the need to ask the questions you're having right now. the reasons, i believe, is because i really like my class. 99% of them are fun and friendly. studying with them has made the transition much easier than i had anticipated and i hope you can do the same.

as far as i can tell, it's been worth it so far. after all first string of weekly tests most of us all went out on the town and merrily drank the night away.

you said something about "50% of dental and med students are depressed." well those students must not have very good supportive people around them.

time management is key. you'll see that at least for the first semester, you can squeeze in quality time with friends and family. and i hope i can continue this next semester as well.

i have friends in their mid- 20's that are similar to your friends having the times of their lives right now. However, they're pissing away all their money trying to travel as often as possible, going to clubbing + parties, and buying up bling bling for social ego. Also, I have friends in their 30's who live like they're in their 20's. I've shortly lived that lifestyle having lived in Vegas for a year and I'm glad to have left it.


good luck, buddy.

 

[TexanGal]

I'm working in the corporate world right now and it is not fun. Sure, you get paid well and sure you work 40 hours a week. But other than that it's horrible. At least for me. I don't consider myself a type A personality, but I definitely don't appreciate bull****/mundane/stupid stuff - and there is a lot of it any time you work "under" other people. The only person I believe is truly happy at my job is the CEO here and that's because he's banking and he's hardly ever here.

I have to put up with supervisors who are on power trips and get on to me for the dumbest stuff, even when I am doing my job 100%.

Yeah, I get to party on the weekends and take vacations... but in my honest opinion, it is so not worth it. I'd rather go to dental school, do something I enjoy, and live it up later.

And maybe I'm the only one with this opinion, but I am so excited for my thirties. Most successful/happy people I've known say that their prime years were their thirties.

Hang in there. You're on a great track that is rewarding and fulfilling and will give you the best options for your future... don't forget it.

 

[La fea]

I hear you, OP. The first 2 years suck the life out of you. But D3 is less stressful and D4 even less so. You want to be kind with yourself coz you are learning new skills/thought processes. It gets better.

As far as comparing your life to your friends lives, who knows who is envying you, you know?

 

[crew09]

I hear you, OP. The first 2 years suck the life out of you. But D3 is less stressful and D4 even less so. You want to be kind with yourself coz you are learning new skills/thought processes. It gets better.

As far as comparing your life to your friends lives, who knows who is envying you, you know?

Pre-dents. Every single one of them.

 

[Firm]

Don't get me wrong? I am sure I will enjoy my life after dental school is over, but in the mean time this **** sucks. I just graduated in 09 from undergrad and am in my first year of dental school currently, yet I look at my buddies from college who have real world jobs (i.e., investment bankers and engineers) and they are having the time of their lives in the best years of our lives (your younger and mid 20's). I would love to travel to Vegas or different countries with them while we are not married, planning on popping out babies with the significant other, yet I do not have the time because my whole life is dedicated to the field of dentistry. When I graduate dental school I will be 27, which is relatively young, and I feel like with society expects is for me to plan on or be married while I am 1) paying back dental school debt, 2) trying to finally establish my career, 3) trying to catch up on the fun I didn't have while I was in dental school. Maybe I'm being a bit immature and love the single lifestyle too much right now; however, the only people who seem to enjoy dental school are my collegues that are married or in serious relationships. I feel your first two years of dental school should be all about you and correct me if I am wrong but a guy has needs so what do you do? Go out when you know you should be studying and just settle for B's and C's or stick it out and look at the long term goal that we have busted are ass for since freshmen in undergrad? Do your last two years really offer you more time to do more stuff that you really enjoy doing? Maybe it's true what they say, "more than 50% of students in medical and dental school are depressed" and that why I am writing on a blog right now looking for answers.

Yeah because the 30's really suck. There is no fun to be had past 29. You'll still find your opportunites to go while in dental school. When you get out, you will have skipped all the BS of the 20's (going to nasty bars, drinking cheap beer, blowing money on crappy stuff). When you rejoin the gang at 27 you'll realize that you are in much better shape (physically and financially).

 

[Rezdawg]

The best years of your life are your late 20's and early 30's...you ask why?

Im sitting at 30 years of age...when I go out, the range of girls that I can get is from 21-40.

Go to school, get that crap over with...then live it up.

 

[Firm]

The best years of your life are your late 20's and early 30's...you ask why?

Im sitting at 30 years of age...when I go out, the range of girls that I can get is from 21-40.

Go to school, get that crap over with...then live it up.

All of this. I would expand that range to 18-45 though.

 

[promolion]

HAHHAHAHHAHA. 19-44 is good. Just to be safe in case you slip and cross the borderline. But Rezdawg has a good point to comfort me 🙂

 

[Rezdawg]

HAHHAHAHHAHA. 19-44 is good. Just to be safe in case you slip and cross the borderline. But Rezdawg has a good point to comfort me 🙂

Yeah, dont worry...much better to go out and party when you are ~28 making 150K a year than to be 23 making 50K a year. Its better on so many levels, its not even a comparison.

And not sure if this is the appropriate place for this info, but I always thought I'd come out of dental school wanting to make 120K a year. I dont know of any of my classmates that made that little first year out, unless they literally just settled for a job. Lots of money to be made, lots of good traveling and parties to be had. 👍

 

[Msmouth]

I'll be blunt - you don't know jack about the real world yet and you're too immature to know what you don't know. You have managed to position yourself incredibly well in life and, assuming you actually like dentistry, will probably end up the envy of the people you are jealous of right now. Half of them would probably even trade places with you today if they had the opportunity.

Go tell a new parent that you got up at 4:30 this morning to study for an exam. See how much sympathy you get. Your 20s are a fine time, but if they're the highlight of your life I will feel tremendously disappointed for you. I really hope that you're just blowing off steam, because otherwise I'm afraid that the real world is going to punch you square in the mouth one day.

8 snake! That was so well put.
I am 38 years OLD. I will say the 30's have been the best time of my life so far. Life is short and when you look back you don't want to regret not putting the work in when you were younger. Youth is wasted on the young is the perfect saying.
I am a dental hygienist about to apply to dental school. Yes, a huge regret I didn't do it when I was young! But I figure, better late than never. If I'm lucky enough to get in, I will be commuting and balancing my young family life.
What I would give to be in your shoes, with the only thing on my plate being dental school and getting through it.

 

[Doctor Thriller]

HAHHAHAHHAHA. 19-44 is good. Just to be safe in case you slip and cross the borderline. But Rezdawg has a good point to comfort me 🙂

👍👍
19-44. hell with plastic surgery maybe even 54. just joking.