I’m a dentist and I had the same experience. I also got very burnt out. And I had retired my license for a few years. Then I reactivated my license. Now I’m working part time in a maximum security prison. I’ve grown to love it bc the majority of inmates are extremely grateful. I’ve not had any patients with attitudes. I have a completely different side hustle unrelated to dentistry and I feel it gives me balance in my life.
It’s actually very refreshing to hear someone in such an esteemed profession discuss their struggles with their job. I have a teaching degree, but I refuse to work in a school, public or private. For many of the exact reasons you list on your dislikes of being a dentist. Physically, emotionally, and mentally draining. I genuinely believe burnout would happen a lot less if many professions were 30 hrs with 3 day weekends vs 40 hrs with 2 day weekends
I was a dentist for 35 years, 30 of which I owned my own practice. I relate to all the challenges you talked about. Fortunately, for me I choose to work only 4 days a week, exercised regularly, and pursued a Masters Degree in History, perhaps my true love. I also had a healthy marriage and coached my two boys in baseball for years. My wife and I lived within our means and therefore I was never stressed for money and never challenged to over treat. The thing I miss most was getting to know my patients. She liked cats, he liked sports cars, she was a lawyer, he was a horse trainer, she had no kids but liked to travel. I was sincerely interested in their life experiences and loved living through their life journeys. This helped me grow spiritually as I began to genuinely love people, something that did not come naturally. Many, many of my patients cried when I retired, and when I occasionally see one of my patient's they usually say I was their all time favorite dentist. Additionally most of my staff said I was their all time favorite for any dentist they had worked for. I think part time dentistry will work well for you. It is also my hope that someday you will look back and say "I had several careers, one of which was dentistry, and it was an interesting chapter in my life." By the way i have two adopted Korean children. I live in Texas, and I could say " happy trails to you," but I prefer to say, "may the Lord bless you and keep you, and let his face shine on you."
I’ve been thinking about dentistry as a profession for so long now and it’s important to have conversations like this. Thanks so much for this video, truly
The absence of lunch breaks among health care workers in private practice is pretty common. My spouse is a clinical (not retail) pharmacist in California and she often gets little or no lunch break at all. Many times half the lunch or sometimes the whole lunch she brings doesn't get eaten. There are times she will have lunch at 2pm, 3pm, or sometimes not all between 9:30am and 7pm. Often times there are emergencies and patients have to have their meds stat so lunch goes out the window. Because she is on salary, she can work up to 11 hours a day from 9:30am to 8:30pm with an additional hour at home on the laptop finishing patient notes. Usually, it's 10 hours a day, though. Unfortunately, there is also call and there have been 2am wake up calls with urgent issues like an IV pump failure, sometimes on the weekend. It just goes with the territory, I guess. I tell my kids that tech careers are probably a better choice with a good income and less education requirements but the bottom line is that if you are doing what you enjoy, it's hard to argue with what you do. The satisfaction of helping patients really is an intangible benefit to working in health care!
California Clinical Pharmacist here. The workload is insane. I’ve worked at a government hospital and did the work of 3 people. The hours were irregular and unpredictable. It is so hard to plan anything with anyone. I did have a 1 hour lunch, but once back on the clock, it was a marathon. I took 3.5 years off from working after having my second child, and I now work per diem in a specialty pharmacy clinical role. Much more laid back. Lots of breaks and support. The moral of my story was that you need to be the leader of your own destiny and find a setting and employment situation that works best for you ❤️
Maddy, my name is Stacey and I am a Korean American dentist here in America. I agree 100% with every single thing you said. Thank you for putting all this out there. It’s wild how people will never truly know the good, bad and ugly sides to things like a profession/career before entering into it. If I had known all the things I know now I would have NEVER chosen dentistry. I also actively disparage anybody from going into this highly field. It is incredibly expensive to become a dentist and I have no idea how I will ever pay off my loans, especially since I am a “low earning” dentist because I HATE the sleazy sales of so many employers I’ve worked for. And pushing unnecessary treatment. I’ve seen so much of it, and seen so much crappy work out there that I’m LESS trusting of dentists being a dentist myself. I also actively choose to not really be friends with dentists in my personal life as well. While the money even as a low earning dentist is “good”, it is crazy expensive how much it costs to maintain all my insurances and licensing fees in order to continue being a dentist. I calculated it out to be about $500+ a month. I also wholeheartedly agree that meeting and connecting with different people from all walks of life is the most rewarding part, and the prestige/respect that comes with it, especially as a petite Asian American woman in this country. I don’t know if I would have the same confidence or be able to carry myself with the self respect that I do in all the different rooms I find myself in. Thank you again!!
I am from Brazil, I am a dentist and i recently changed my carrier now I am studying law. My two colleges was totally free for charges and fees and this is the exactly why I could change my carrier. I couldn’t imagine how bad it is having a huge debt because of the education. I am really sorry for you! Because I now how sad it staying in something that it doesn’t make sense anymore. Now, in my law school it’s totally free as well and I wish this could became a reality in the US onde day.
There is a very nice institucional tool that helps people grow in life under partnership agreement. It’s very popular, works really well when people aren’t insane or damaged by social media or lack of parents. It is called marriage. You should try. It works well financially too.
Hi I am a dentist here in the philippines, I wholeheartedly agree with everything you say. I always tell non dentist friends and other people that I meet, to always be careful of opportunistic denitst that will sell you all types of treatment (more expensive). To someone aspiring to be a dentist, make sure to know all the ugly and the expenses before you enter this field
I'm a predental student having doubts and I really appreciate your honesty. I feel like what I most enjoy about shadowing is chatting with the patient and of course the prestige that I feel as I am perceived as a "somebody" that's going to have a big title some day. Even without fully entering the career, I have come across rude dentists that are sexist or fake or just feel above others. I'm am also worried that the personalities I've come across with my peers as they try to get ahead is a preview into how cut throat students will be in dental school. Of course, I understand the need to network but I would hate to enter an environment where connections are solely made as potential career stepping stones rather than something genuine.
Appreciate the honesty of this comment!! As a non-dentist but a person who is trying to get into the habit of seeing a dentist regularly, how might you advise us to seek out dentists that don't push unnecessary treatments? Are there types of offices/practices to avoid, red flag signs, etc?
I have massive admiration for dentists! Y’all are superhuman to me. I’ve had my top front teeth saved TWICE, following a bad accident and long term effects. I’ve had really great dentists but have mostly lived in much smaller places than New York. Thanks for all you do!
Very well said. I’m a 29-year old Asian American dentist in my 5th year of practice in California. The first few years working full time were absolutely brutal; I was so depressed and desperately wanted a career change. I regretted not going into engineering but felt trapped because of the amount of student loans. I switched to public health in my 3rd year and it was much better than my private practice experience. All of the points you mentioned are still true, but it’s more manageable working at a community clinic and generally patients are much more grateful to just receive essential care. Anyway, I’m so glad you made this honest video about dentistry because had I known all these things beforehand, I definitely would have chosen a different field. It’s really not glamorous, especially when you have $400K in student loan debt. Thankfully I’m in a place now where I don’t dread going to work every day and I see more bright spots than darkness. But it’s a hard journey! And I’m glad there are other like-minded dentists out there like you who still care about their patients and can be vulnerable about how difficult it can be. Thank you Maddy! ❤
Hey, can you tell me which public health course you did? Like a master's in public health or dental public health? I'm confused between the two. Can you help me with this?😊
This has been very revealing and clarifying for not just aspiring dentists, but everyone else. Thank you for valuable transparency, it’s very rare to see people being honest about things like this
Hello. I'm a dental hygienist and I can relate to some of the factors of the dental world that you've mentioned. I have lower back pain, I see roughly 10-12 patients a day, patients can sometimes be rude. With that being said, I love being in the dental field and find it truly rewarding!! I enjoyed watching this video to see it from your perspective. The honesty is welcomed. I hope you continue to find the small joys when you're on the job. I so enjoy your content 🤎
Your honesty is so refreshing, Maddy! It's very similar in other health professions. I soooo agree about the physical and mental exhaustion. I have studied and worked part-time from 8 am- 11 pm for my entire young adulthood, but it was never exhausting in the way patient care is exhausting. Most days, I feel like a zombie😓 I think part-time dentistry / medicine / etc is really the way to go....if you can make it happen :) It's the only way to practice sustainably without sacrificing health and relationships. Glad you've found a part time position that give you balance 💜
I just discovered ur channel and can i just say how i loooove love love love how honest and transparant u are about this career path, the tratmentselling marketing, the privelege, the patients, thank u so much
What an interesting video Maddie! I work in mental health in the UK, and it's interesting to see the simiarities and differences in our experiences. For me, it is also the moments of connection (and making a difference) with patients that I love; it helps that I just find my field really interesting too. However, in our free healthcare system there are pressures in a slightly different way, to increase efficiencies due to big waiting lists and high need. Unfortunately that can lead to different issues in colleagues, like people becoming burned out or even cynical or guarded, which is really sad for the staff, and for the patients too! Thankfully we get a lot less people doing it for the money in a free healthcare system, but there will always be people a human propensity to like power and status (and unfortunately, people who abuse that)
Thank you for sharing this!! I'm a recent dental graduate and it's totally not what I expected based on my experience in uni. But I'm feel relieved that it's totally normal to feel this way :")
As unenjoyable as it is, you are definitely providing an invaluable service to the community through dentistry. We really need to fix our healthcare system so yall arent so overworked. And, your content is also an invaluable service, im glad youve found a way to do both for the time being.
Recently, I had to leave dental school during the end of my 2nd year due to my ongoing health issues. I still have a sense of regret about it, but after watching your video, I feel like I was idealizing becoming a dentist, and that it probably wasn’t the best fit for me. Your video gave me a really balanced perspective about dentistry and gave me hope that I’ll be able to find a different career that’s more suited towards my situation. 😊
just came from a dentist appointment and felt so bad for my dentist when i couldnt open my mouth fully; im glad youre bringing up the physical labor bc no amount of mouth guards and equipment makes the strength needed any less taxing. im also a nursing student and ik the struggle of no lunch breaks unless downtime. my gut reflex was to say "thats normal, im surprised ur shocked" but honestly, we need to have a much bigger conversation about how even though healthcare workers (and other related fields) are considered important and necessary for functioning of everyday life 24/7, most work in conditions where theyre seeing more pts than they can handle, no lunch breaks and shtty environment (including coworkers!!!). im glad u made this video!! its really cool to see someone embrace two sides of themselves and not pushing an idea that you always need to fully commit to one interest (tho no judgement if u quit dentistry, u gotta do u!). thanks maddy!!
As a dentist I do have a scheduled lunch break, but usually half the time gets filled with hygiene checks or an emergency. Being able to cut back my hours and take a longer weekend REALLY helped me. The day to day is just so physically and emotionally draining, my body needs the extra time to rest and reset. I am grateful that as dentists the work we do is very rewarding and purposeful. We also have the flexibility and job stability to pursue other hobbies and interests. Thank you for sharing, it was a huge encouragement to me!
I’m a nurse and it’s like this too. It’s physically and emotionally draining. I work at a large private hospital outpatient clinic and we are forced to take more patients everyday. They track statistics on everything. No scheduled lunch breaks. you basically find time in between patients to eat. Most of the nurses I work with don’t eat. It’s exhausting. It’s better than working as a nurse in the hospital definitely but I still hate it in the end. Nurses definitely don’t get paid enough for the amount of BS. I’m planning on switching careers now.
You are so brave for making this super honest video! I’ve had a lot of dental work done and have actually had conversations with dentists about some of these things but the sales aspect I can definitely understand and I will never forget my dentist selling me these treatments and fancy toothbrush and a bunch of other stuff. All of your frustrations are super valid. It sounds like a really hard but rewarding job. Also working with the public in general is really hard. Kudos to you!
Thank you Maddy. I love how your videos give a peek into your life without giving TMI and they truly convey your sincerity and genuineness. PS. I hate going to the dentist, but I love my dentist. I’m glad I’ve picked one who wants me to be healthy without selling me things.
Never felt seen and heard in a single video. Everything you said, spot on. I’m on transition, working towards a career path i truly enjoy and can do in the comforts of my home. God bless you!
I totally get this. I work in Optometry but not as an optometrist. I dispense glasses and it's exactly like this. I also think a big part is the prejudice against Asians in any front customer facing roles. I was born in NZ, dont speak any other languages and have the perfect kiwi accent. I will get hate for no reason from clients. If i make the slightest mistake, it comes down on me like a ton of bricks. If i am firm and stand up, people get aggressive. It's disgusting. There are lovely people around who appreciate your work. However, the prejudice and unruly ones just make it worse and no shame from them either.
LOOL EVERY SINGLE THING YOU MENTIONED!!!! I'm a Dentist in the UK and I could relate SO MUCH TO EVERY.SINGLE.THING. We usually get lunch breaks, 1 hr normally. HOW DO YOU NOT HAVE A LUNCH BREAK?? thank you for sharing. I think you're super creative, so full time dentistry is just A LOT! I really appreciate your honesty in this video. You mentioned, every. single. thing!🙆♀
I loved your video!!!! Thank you for this! I am a med student but don’t want to pursue only medicine in my life and I connect with your content and beliefs a lot 🥰
This feels like what my therapist used to always assign me when I was trying to find a decent job/career: list all the likes and dislikes of your current position and work from there. Loved this video :) so sad people are still very judgy abbout being a creator but so glad you ge to hold both hats! Part denstiry and part conctent creator :)
I'm a part time dentist. I prefer working for a large company in community health. Less pressure to push big treatment plans. I also work with a largely very pleasant patient population and get along with the other dentist I work with. It all makes a huge difference.
I am a dentistry student, and I already agree with what you’re saying. I also have some additions about education. Professors are egotistical and don’t seem to want to teach-it’s unbelievable. They’ve been doing this for years and belittle our lack of experience, making us feel inadequate. Exams and projects are excessively demanding; there’s no such thing as ‘university life.’ School is very expensive, filled with future concerns. I want to quit some times but feels like it’s too late, but your channel gives me strength.thank u ❤
@@beyza3257 Oh that’s great! I love your country a lot since I’m learning Turkish. I don’t think it’s unfortunate because Türkiye produces some of the best dentists in the world. I didn’t know dentistry was also expensive over there. Knowing what you know now, would you study dentistry again if given the opportunity to start afresh?
This is so true, people don't believe me when I say dental school is the most scandalous education system with absurb amount of bullying from staff coated as "tough love."
Thank you for this interesting, informative, & honest video. As someone who has spent quite a bit of time in the dentist’s chair, these insights were interesting. I’ve been fortunate to have a great dentist as a child & also in my adult years. My current dentist is a bit full of himself which I hate, though I’m not sure why. I am a social worker who works in behavioral health & I completely agree about the mental exhaustion, particularly when issues need continued follow-up and work even when the client isn’t in front of you. Social workers are not paid well, are usually over-worked, & are often victim to working longer hours than we are paid for. I agree that the interactions can make it all worthwhile. Thanks for a great vlog!
Working from home is not as glorious as some may think. I WFH in tech and I've never been more burnt out in my life mentally and physically. I was at my worst. You work harder and non-stop, I'm talking early morning to midnight meetings just to keep up with teams on the other side of the world.
I am an optometrist and the appointment time stress is SO real. I hate when patients overshare and talk about things unrelated to the appointment and take away from someone else's time to receive care and my sanity. I am definitely looking for ways to reduce my time in direct patient care too. Thanks for sharing your POV :)
I was a dental nurse in Australia for 5 years and I had to leave and start a new career because I was having so many problems with my lower back. I worked for a private, family owned clinic, and I was so thankful for that, because our dentists weren't under pressure to up-sell treatments to the patients. I've been to these networking events a few times as well, and each time I heard too many horror stories from other dental nurses who worked at corporate dental practices, of the dentists being pressured to sell crowns or implants when a filling by itself would have been an appropriate treatment. From what I was told, the dentists would be told to up-sell these treatments wherever possible, regardless of the patient's age or income. I think in the future, at least in Australia, there is going to have to be new regulations on corporate dental practices, because if even half of the stories I heard were true, this is extremely detrimental to the dental health of our society.
It makes me sad to see that you have struggles in the dentist. however people have struggles in life like they can't afford dental care or don't know how to get help. Thank you for being brave and creative. You should have a tv talk show!
I am a dental student and have been watching your cooking videos from the start when i wasn't even in dental school, it was suprising and fascinating to here your side of story , i can relate to it , by the way i never comment on any videos just wanted to tell you , i like your voice a lot its sweet and so calm i feel relieved watching your videos .
Thank you for telling the truth about being a dentist ❤. I’m a general dentist that juggled raising 2 kids & taking care of my elderly parents. There were many times when I felt like I was treading water & could barely keep my head above water. There is nothing worse than having a waiting room full of patients, a hygiene exam waiting for you, an emergency patient in another operatory, & a big restorative case that you are trying to complete. It is literally physically & mentally draining, but when things go well & you make a difference for a patient there is no better feeling. Having a lunch break is absolutely non-negotiable in my opinion. Most of the time I would end up catching up from the onslaught of the morning & endless chart notes that need to be done. But, I would always take time to leave the office to get a change of scenery & refresh my mind for the 2nd half of the day, even if this break out of the office is only for 10-15 minutes in order to clear my mind & recharge for the afternoon. The best thing about dentistry is that it is flexible & you can work part-time if you want & hopefully find the right practice philosophy & patient care environment that matches your beliefs. Don’t settle for a bad environment that stresses production & sacrifices your lunch break & mental health. You are blessed to have a wonderful creative outlet if you decide to retire from dentistry temporarily or permanently😊.
I can’t even imagine juggling all that you did…!! Thank you for sharing. This was actually so encouraging for me along with so many other healthcare workers who chimed in and shared the bright side and how they altered their work to fit their needs better without completely quitting. Dentistry really does provide a huge perk of choosing to be part time, posting this video was cathartic but reading the comment section is giving me a great perspective!
@@CafeMaddy I honestly don’t know how I did it when my kids were small. All I remember is pumping my breastmilk in a makeshift closet between patients and rushing home after work to get dinner ready, spending time with the kids & getting them ready for bed, endless chores, & then sterilizing all the bottles & pump equipment… only to do it all over again the next day. When I look back it was brutal. And then as my kids got older, the challenges changed and my parents got sicker and needed more help. It’s tough being part of the “sandwich generation” & Korean because there are so many expectations from everyone. The expectation to be successful outside of the home & take care of everyone first and yourself last. I ended up “retiring” from dentistry to take care of my parents & then the pandemic started & still has not ended. I planned to return to dentistry, but my priority now is to keep my family as healthy & safe as possible & free of Covid.
I don't like dentists either... I've been in full time practice for 9 years, 10 if you factor in a GPR, and I've gotten screwed over by several owners - so much so that I dumped private practice and work in an FQHC. I'm getting paid less than I ever have but I don't have the pressure to sell dentistry or do absurd treatment to make money. I also received loan repayment assistance because I work in an underserved area and finally paid of my 213K in loans about a year ago. While I'm happy about being free from my loans, I'm embarrassed to talk about my career because [compared to a lot of my classmates who I outperformed in dental school] it has been so disjointed. Sometimes I think working for myself would be preferable - but it's so damn expensive to run a dental office and I just can't imagine going into debt again to buy a practice. So I'm essentially stuck. I'm also stuck with constant discomfort in my back and shoulders. I often can't believe I spent 213K (well, 163K if you consider the 50K i got for working in the middle of nowhere) to be as unhappy and burned out as I am. Truthfully, I didn't really want to be a dentist so most of this is my fault. I thought I could learn to like it because I "like working with my hands, science, art, etc." But it just never happened. Dentistry is primarily sales, marketing and networking - and then clinical skills. Let that be a lesson to anyone considering dentistry - if you don't think you like it, you probably won't. It's nearly impossible to find a non-clinical career in dentistry compared to other health professions, too. The worst part of it all is the isolation - both self-imposed and not - that I feel. There are plenty of organizations for dentists who love dentistry but there are none for those who don't.
As a german dentist I can totally agree with the things you have mentioned in your video, especially about the job being emotionally draining. I also talked about it with a patient of mine last week, and he said that whenever he gets angry or is in a bad mood, it doesnt affect anyone else, since he works from home, but people expect their dentist to be in a good mood all day long, and that is very tiring. Of I want my patients to feel comfortable at my practice, but it is very hard to maintain the cheerful atmosphere, when you had a frustrating or difficult treatment before, and like you have mentioned, because of the hourly timed scedule it is hard to find some time in between to vent or destress... On the other side there are also many beautiful aspects about this jobs, many thankful patients and being able to see the results of your work immediately. So thank you for your honest words! (also, I didnt know you were a dentist, I have been following you on Instagram and just loved the food/lifestyle content, so please keep doing what you do!)
thank you. i've never seen someone speak so honestly about dentistry (i get it, appearances are highly emphasized in this field). my parents always want me to go to dental school but it's definitely not for me lol. i'm graduating hygiene school soon and plan on doing it until i get bored/find something new. meeting so many different types of people is what keeps me interested too though! my favorite patients are the super old couples that come in together:) so cute!
Thanks for validating my distrust of the dental profession in general. Conversely, I do have a degree of compassion given many of the stressors you mentioned as I'm sure they apply to the majority of clinicians. How about producing some content that would enable me, as a patient/consumer to find a reputable practitioner without having to jump through so many hoops just for a consult. Thank you for sharing your experience !
Relate to so many of these things! In healthcare, can’t take a lunch break (but they don’t pay the 30 mins anyway) and working the hourly/daily deadline gets to me too. Thanks for sharing! It is a huge privilege to work with patients but I wish I knew more about the job/my personality fit before I started this journey 😂
Thank you for this video, it’s kinda reassuring to know that I’m not alone haha. I’m a dentist in Australia and for me I think the most exhausting part is having to reset my mental every time I see a new patient. For one patient I may be spending a lot of energy emotionally regulating them because they have dental trauma and anxiety. They usually do a lot of nervous talking so I have to sift through all the excessive information and formulate the best treatment plan for them. Then after the actual procedure itself I mentally erase what just happened, be ready to empathise and repeat that with another patient. It also hurts when I scroll through dental shorts and the comment section is filled with so much trauma dumping and stigma. I say this because everyday there is at least one patient where the first thing they say to me without prompting after sitting in the chair is a hostile “I hate dentists by the way”. I try not to take it personally bc I’m not the one who caused this opinion directly but…it hurts sometimes. I wish they could communicate their anxiety in a gentler way :(
I'm new to your channel, but watching a small bit of your content already, I really appreciate how open you've been with aspects of your life, and creativity. I think I'm walking a similar road in some ways so I feel like I've connected with some of the things you've had to say. Best of luck moving forward, and I'll keep watching. Cheers.
Dang, I’m so glad the automotive industry prepared me to have a thicker skin to handle dentistry. I start dental school this summer so keeping these in mind will help a ton as they are so relatable to the automotive industry I worked in.
Amen to all of that. I’m a physician and worked at a job for 11 years where I didn’t have time to have lunch or even use the bathroom at least 65% of the days during that decade. Now at a different job and it’s quite a bit better in that regard, and my health is better now (lost 40 lbs), but all the other factors remain. Thank you for sharing, I know it took courage.
God bless you Maddie. Dentistry is a very difficult profession. I’ve been practicing dentistry for 23 years and still have the feelings you have expressed. I pray, take it one day at a time and keep pressing forward. I feel that God calls us to our professions and when I use my job to serve Him it makes all the difference! Keep up the good work 😊
Bravo, Dear One for your honesty! We don’t often see how the enslavement paradigm energy occurs in professional aspects as it does in retail, that is, your lack of lunch (wow!) and the pressure related to the bottom line. Although, as an intuitive, I'm glad to Know this matrix is ending, still, it's challenging to navigate when you know it's engineered, manipulated, should not be, and IS ending, to be replaced with our true reality, one so much, so much better...and happening in our lifetime! We weren't designed to serve the masses, only our families and communities. It's a numbers game, indeed, and, well, too much to explain here, it's Game Over, with a new higher-vibrational, better-sustainable, more humane paradigm that is ready to replace it. Brave souls such as yourself are making this happen, changing this world energetically. Even one-by-one, this energy matters. Nothing Can Stop What Is Coming!!
Hi Maddy I agree with all your points and experienced them myself. Here in South Africa, public and private clinics all get lunch breaks as well as in the Netherlands where I also worked. Its really tough that this is not regulated by labour laws over there. I didnt like the sales aspect in some practices ( mainly in the Netherlands) where they would try and coax patients to have more expensive treatments. I was a dentist for 7 years now working in public health for 16 years and don't regret changing careers early on. The training and people skills you learn as a dentist can be transferable to other careers as well. All the best!
My name Ramzi, and I'm from Jordan. I am currently studying AI and Data science, but I have always had pharmacy and/or Dentistry on my mind but just didn't know whether I should go towards the medicine and Dentistry route or just stay on my IT route and I think your video helped me understand more the reality of being a dentist and might help me deciding what to do. Thank you!
I never knew that my yapping was so draining to my dentist, hygienist, and even my optometrist (from reading other comments). I’ll practice brevity. You’re such a deep soul with the most soothing voice. 너무 멋있어요 😊 Balance를 잘 하세요
I'm an optometrist but your #7 hit home for me too. Where I'm from, most optometrists are self-employed and we rent the exam lane/services of a clinic. We get paid on a per act/patient basis. I get no cut from glasses or contact lens sales, but I do feel pressure sometimes. What makes me most uncomfortable though is when I try to "sell" a retinal photo or scan, even though it's for the best interest of the patient.
I am an engineer in the semiconductor industry and could relate to your “pain” in some extent. I think every career/job has many BS. Thanks for sharing.
I've worked in orthodontics and dentistry all my life, grew up in it. I absolutely hate it 🤣 I relate to everything you said, I'm midway into changing careers
Thank you for being so open about both fun and not so fun sides of your life! Learning about other people's experience is what helps me to navigate through my life. Wish you all the best, Maddy🤍
My husband is a dentist and a lot of the negative things you shared are so true- how physically taxing it is, how emotionally and mentally draining too. Lots of things people don’t realize when they think about the dental profession! He also did not have lunch breaks his first 2 jobs (but he didn’t mind too much, I probably cared more haha). Overall, my husband loves being a dentist and ended up finding a job where his current bosses give him a lunch break and treat him really well, so he’s fortunate in that. He is also pretty passionate about dentistry and loves meeting new people so the profession fits him well. One thing you didn’t mention that we have found to be quite common is that many places do not provide health insurance so that’s a bit of a bummer for us since I stay home with our child, so we have to pay out of pocket and it’s quite expensive where we are (Alaska). But on the flip side I’m able to stay home in the first place because he makes a good income and is able to provide well for our family, so I’m really thankful for that.
Thank you for this video. I'm in private practice, and we frequently find ourselves unable to take lunch or breaks due to the need to "fill the schedule". I hope this will give me courage to tell my boss we should also take time to fill our stomachs. Be well.
As a dental student, I agree, especially about the dental community. It felt really toxic and made me questioned my goals in becoming a healthcare worker. There would always cases of senior dentists asking juniors to do trivial tasks that felt like exploitation all in the purpose of getting on their goodside for future reference letters. That’s pretty upsetting for me😢
Im a dental hygienist. Everything you said is 100%. As a whole, dentistry is so physically and emotional draining. My neck hurts every day. Sales is the worst part for me. Debating a career change but..change is hard for me. Thanks for this video I love seeing other people admit the faults. People should know these things before making the decision to go into dentistry.
@@gourabsarker9552 hi, I live in the U.S so it varies state by state. In my state the range is $40-55 an hour. Some offices offer a bonus system too which could make you more money. BUT this is for dental hygiene NOT a dentist. Dentist make wayyy more.
as a dentist myself, i completely agree with the points you made, especially about the back and neck pain & the inability to work from home. i remember telling my manager once that i wish i could wfh, and she laughed in my face. it's not an easy job, and if i could, i would love to work part time and do something else instead. however, the amount of student loan debts made it prohibited to start over in another career at this stage.
3:00 I think it's the cutthroat profit-oriented system in the US that causes this. In Croatia (EU), public clinics (be it dentists or family doctors or specialists) as well as private (for profit) clinics, have scheduled break times, usually an hour, but I've seen longer too. The clinic open time as well as shifts, time allocated for accepting unscheduled patients, break time, and other dedicated time slots are all printed out on a paper or similar and usually pasted on the door or on a notice board for patients to see, as well as on the website.
As a working paramedic in new york city, healthcare is almost always the same in a nutshell. Overworked, underpaid with no lunch breaks but what makes it or breaks it is the trifecta of pay, work life balance and upper management. If you're confident with 2/3 most of the time people stay
I've been working as a GP for only 2 years, my first 4 months in private clinic I felt very similar to you so that's why I quit and joined the public hospital. The salary is very low but I have more free time and social to hang out with (friends at work), but even if the schedule is not so tight, the fact of stressful timed of each treatment and physically mentally exhausted still exist. So I hope I can relax more in the future and I hope my hobby as a content creator (which I just started) becomes more popular like yours. Thanks for sharing and I wish you all the best 🎉
I am a dentist and I hope you find your happiness and work-balance. I struggled through dental college with depression and a horrible relationship. It did not get better after graduation. I hope your mental health gets better.
I'm so glad you made this video!!! Speaking from a patient's perspective (in Canada and not a dentist), I've changed dentists because of some of the shitty things that they have done to me. For example, there was a time when my dentist had booked me for an appointment that I didn't need immediately even though they knew that my benefits were running low and I ended up having to pay 400 CAD (or ~300 USD) out of pocket. To be clear, I didn't realize my benefits were running low at that time and in Canada, dentists can find out how much benefits you've got left by sending in a fake claim to check (and most dentists do that if they know you've benefits and they want to milk your benefits).
It is your job to make sure how you have left on your insurance, not the dentist's. It the dentist happens to check it for you, it's a courtesy, not a duty.
I'm curious to see what made you pursue dentistry in the first place! I'm in surgery and I agree wholeheartedly with the lack of WFH opportunities - I love doing procedures and it's so exciting to do my job but man is it tiring to stand for hours and hours and go to work before the sun rises and go home after the sun has long set :(
I am in tech and trust me, it's not much better. I have contemplated getting out of tech many times, but it's just hard. Some of "tech" we all hear about are the startup phantom things - selling an idea or hope. Then there are another side of tech that actually sells tangible goods - things that make into our electronics, which is more like dentistry where you have to produce. I work 14-18 hours each day - call that the privilege of working from home. We have to deal with Asia every night and Europe every morning. I don't even remember the last time I finished work at 5pm (never). I don't have set lunch hours or dinner hour for that matter, because meetings cut through all those time slots. While we don't have deadlines by the hour, we do have deadlines by day or week but of much larger and complex tasks. In many case, we run on the mentality of "it was due yesterday", so we put in a lot of overtime. I dated someone in finance and it's the same with a different twist - they toss aside their lives when working towards putting a deal together. The real take-away is that higher paying job are higher pay for a reason - you put up with a lot even with you spent years in education.
Hi Maddy! I had no idea you were a dentist when I've run across your content. As a current dental student, I am glad that none of the reasons you stated in the video were surprising to me. Despite dentistry becoming much more female-dominated recently, dentistry has always been an old boy's club and it will likely take decades to change that aspect of organized dentistry. One of the aspects of dentistry I love that I see you are utilizing in your life is how flexible dentistry can be. The fact that you can just work part-time and earn a decent living while spending the rest of your time doing something you truly enjoy is a blessing that not many other careers have. In a worst case scenario when you are no longer able to subsist on your online career, you could go back to working full-time and you would not have to worry about financial stability. Another great aspect of dentistry is the job stability. People will always have dental issues that we can work on. While we definitely cannot do dentistry remotely yet, I do think that is a not a bad thing. While some people will choose to go overseas to get dental work done, that is not something most people will do, and there is little risk of our jobs being outsourced. As you have highlighted in your video, dentistry as a field is certainly not perfect and there are many ways which dentistry can be made better for the providers and the patients. Thank you for bringing these issues to light and for sharing your perspective.
Love everything you said Rebecca! I’m also a dental student in the US and believe the pros heavily outweigh the cons in this field. No career is perfect and I think we have a lot of opportunities that others don’t. You’ll be a great dentist 😁
1) physically tiring: yes. 2) no lunch hour: absolutely not. I absolutely make sure myself and my staff get a full hour lunch break each and everyday. In an absolute pinch maybe it’s more like 30minutes once in a blue moon but other times we take 90 minute breaks etc. I intentionally schedule light right before lunch. 3) emotionally draining: yes absolutely. But again over time you do get more and more thick skinned. 4) I’m a male dentist so have no idea what you’re talking about. If you had sleepy men make unwanted advances, it’s bc they’re sleezy men, not bc of dentistry profession. Most dentists are great people and it’s helpful to bounce ideas and problems off of each other. 5) can’t work from home is a good thing! I absolutely hate it when I have to teledentistry after hours for emergency situations. 6) schedule stress: absolutely! As a practice owner though I try to space things out and since I know which specific patients are tougher cases I can sort of plan accordingly. It gets better w experience. 7) no, as a practice owner I’m only answerable to myself. I can see as an associate you might have production targets, but as owner you control it more. But then there’s: 8) as a practice owner you have a whole LOT more stress: managing staff/ HR, insane insurance billing problems, equipment/facilities problems, etc etc all the stress of being a small business owner on top of all the stress of being a dentist.
I like my dentist in Silicon Valley, Calif a lot. She owns her practice, is part time and does not upsell (I would find another dentist if she did) and is friendly and wants to know about our family (my husband and both kids go to her). I’m horrified you don’t get a lunch break and I never thought about how physically demanding your job is. We need good dentists! I am a licensed mental health clinician and I have my own practice - 15 -20 clients a week. I can’t imagine 17 in a day like you! I really like my job but I am my own boss and get to set my own hours and clients. Plus I am privileged to have a husband who has a good job and provides our insurance. We need good healthcare providers and I think it’s getting harder to find them bc of the stress. My very smart daughter decided against medical school because she feels the stress is not worth it and she will find another way to use her bio chem degree. She would have been such a great Dr - so good w people - but I’m honestly relieved bc the stress on doctors is crazy!
I can relate to a lot this as a private practice psychologist! Except instead of being on my feet all day I have to sit perfectly still in a chair all day.
I am a dentist in Belgium for 10 years now and since having twins 5 years ago I work 3 days a week. Even when my boss is asking to work more days in the week since the kids are older now, I like to maintain the healthy work life balance I have now. I agree with all of your pro’s and cons about our profession but for me the pro’s still outweigh the cons. Greetings from Belgium!
Hi i am a practice owner Dentist in Turkey. And I have the same issues. I start to think that its about what you expect from your life and the moral side of your character. Bc not all of us bothered that much. But i see that it doesnt that much matter in which country you are. Its in dentistry’s nature. As a clinic owner i can look from the boss side too but its still so annoying working this hard, cannot working from home and still have to convince someone that they need a root canal instead of just a filling :) If i can go back to time, i prefer not to study Dentistry ever. But doing it part-time is much more relaxing i guess. I reallly start to think quiting dentistry. After all that work and physical damage, money and respect dont worth that much. I hope everything will be relaxing for us. Otherwise were gonna throw up some day :)
I’m a dentist in Wisconsin and some things I agree, but some things are so different in my experience! First of all, I am so sorry you’ve had such a horrible experience with various jobs and networking events there- it does sound awful! The physical labor and not being able to ever be remote is definitely a downside to our profession, but with good work/life balance and a nontoxic work setting (supportive boss), I still really enjoy my career after 5 years. I am currently in a small private practice and I’ve always had an hour lunch blocked out every work day and never been forced to push treatment, although I do get paid on a percentage of production. I used to work 5 days for 4 years and recently cut down to 4 days 8-5 and it’s a nice balance! I go to a lot of dental networking and study groups here in my town and we have a really honest, humble, kind, and welcoming group of people! Perhaps it’s just the location you are in that the culture is different (You are welcome in WI)! All that being said, I hope you are much happier now and I support your new journey!
I agree with most of the things in the video. I think my least favorite thing about dentistry, which maybe falls under the rude patient category, is how a lot of patients don’t view it as medical procedure and think they can pick and choose their own treatment, like they’re at a med spa or something. I love dentistry but the patients make it so hard. The frustration when you’re running behind bc you’re battling the worlds strongest tongue 🥲 or when they make the “I hate the dentist” “I don’t want to be here” comment, like wtf do you expect me to say to that/ not a smart thing to say if you still expect me to like you after that.
Sorry Maddy, if you get this post twice, I have posted this comment under your pasta-short instead of here the first time. 😂 One of the reasons I followed you (beside your wonderful recipes and soothing voice ✨) is that you have a career path I could relate to so much. It's quite rare to find an artist who also has an scientific profession of some kind. I mean it was so normal back then and now people think it's odd? And I couldn't agree more with you about the "status-thing". Although it may seem superficial it is so easy to go into a room of mostly superficial people (like you mentioned in the video) and just say "I am a pharmacist" (In my case) and they just *shut up™*. There are no more questions, just respect and people are more willing to listen to you. Some may say "Why would you like to talk to such people?" but it's a nasty feeling if they just ignore you and you stay there in the corner of a room because no one takes you seriously. Sometimes I wish I could avoid such places but it's not always possible. And it's just easier for the soul, you know? Before my carreer as a pharmacist I wanted to go to a university for filmmakers in Germany. When I mentioned I wanted to become a director for animated films I got these ugly reactions and that's why I know this feeling and the contrast quite well. (Still pursuing my dream, do not worry haha) But yeah, I work as a pharmacist and I also enjoy the perks just like you mentioned in the video (Meeting new people, helping people, good money). And I am good at what I am doing but I don't do it whole-heartedly and it's also physically and mentally exhausting and there are days I wish I could just work on my projects full-time but I am not far enough to earn money with them, yet. Ah, and about the lunch break: in Germany it's illegal to prevent workers from taking a break of at least 30 Minutes (after a working shift of at least 6 hours/day) and we can even sue our boss for it. (Good old Rechtsschutzversicherung). I am not sure how the legal system in America works though. What you described sounds terrible! Our doctors and dentists also have lunch breaks and close their offices for an hour or two. Either that or they have coworkers with whom they can change the workshift while the other one can eat in serenity and vice versa (it's a basic need, damn it!) Also they don't take appointments at lunch breaks. People with an emergency either have to wait a little or go to the hospital (doctors there have changing workshifts, too.) Phew, that was a long post, thank you for reading and I wish you all the best! ❤️
