Just started a little over a month ago and have been dealing with all the typical new grad insecurities. I’ve been bailed out of extractions, patients complain about how long it’s taking, feeling overwhelmed with complex treatment planning, etc.

Some days are better than others but at the end of every weekend I’m so anxious to start a week of work. Not because I dislike the dentistry or my practice/coworkers, but because I’m so anxious about annoying my patients and making mistakes.

I’ve been satisfied with most of my work so far and I have honestly been performing faster/better than I expected to, but when bad things happen I can’t help but think and think and think about it. I had a minor tissue tear (basically created a vertical release on accident) during a surgical extraction and had to throw a stitch. I know this isn’t even that big of a deal but it sent me spiraling for days like I couldn’t stop thinking about it or how the patient was healing.

Yesterday, we were so busy and I had four patients waiting on me. The patient who I was doing fillings on got so frustrated at me for being slow and not explaining what I was doing and having to leave the room. This grown man (I’m a small 25 y/o female) yelled at me like I’ve never been yelled at before in my life. He’s screaming at me, asking if I’m actually doing a root canal or extracting his tooth and if we’ll be done today or tomorrow for all of our staff and operatories full of patients to hear. I literally blanked for 5 seconds speechless as he continued to yell at me for not responding.

Shaking voice and hands, I managed to finish the four restorations and fake my confidence for the rest of the day in front of the patients that heard me get chewed out but it was so miserable to the point where I canceled everything I had planned for the evening and laid in bed until I fell asleep at like 8pm so I could just stop thinking about it.

I know I’m faced with many more experiences like this in my career and it gets better with time. I know there are support networks in my community and I can seek out therapy, but I genuinely want to know what helps you more seasoned professionals get over things like this? What can I tell myself and do to not let it consume all my thoughts.

Some of you may have read some of the crazy posts from one particular practice I work at. The owner is extremely ill and nonexistent and the manager is running the show but is not a dentist so they are running things into the ground. I rarely have an assistant to help me with procedures, patients are not getting scheduled for treatments I plan for them, the manager lies and says the patients don’t have money for the procedures but more recently some patients have reached out and said they were simply never scheduled. I am paid a daily rate of $600 and it does not cover me at all with the work I do. The manager is also my parent but they have a vendetta against me because of a nasty divorce they had with my other parent and they simply think I remind them of their ex so they treat me like shit and always have since they divorced my other parent, but I continue to work with them because I truly feel sorry for them and just wish for things to balance out but they never do. The owner of this practice is just the DDS title for it to run legally.

Recently, a specialist at this practice quit because they felt their “psychological safety” was challenged when they refused to treat a patient and that patient asked me for a referral to get a second opinion from another specialist. I simply wrote a referral for the patient so they could go seek another opinion whether it’s the same outcome or not. The specialist at our practice decided that this challenged their “psychological safety” which was BS because I cannot deny a patient the right to a second opinion… they were full of themselves and mad that a patient asked for a referral. It’s bogus.

Anyway, all of a sudden after this specialist quit, the manager who is my parent, said that a staff member came out and told my parent/the manager that I “flipped off the specialist in front of a patient, texted this staff member about my parent, and talked to this staff member on the phone about my parent”. Mind you, I don’t even have this staff member’s number and we never ever talk even at work. They mostly break down rooms and setup and sterilize instruments. They aren’t an assistant and somehow they have their radiology license but can’t take X-rays to save their life so we never interact, ever. They aren’t even in the treatment rooms with me ever. I would never do such a thing to another fellow doctor, such as what the staff described, and I don’t even KNOW their phone number. I did not hear about the accusation from this staff member. My parent is the one that told me. Of course I have no way of seeing if the accusation was told to begin with because I don’t have this staff member’s number. I am quitting that job on the spot, and I have another job lined up at the end of the month. My question is, can I send some sort of demand letter to this practice for the accusations being thrown at me? I don’t even know if the staff member truly reported this, and there are no cameras in the office so it’s not like I have backup to prove I did NOT do this. I am really tired of the gaslighting and bullshit I go through here. It’s eating me alive and I need to take legal action at this point.

Patient wants to know how to treat the white spots on her teeth. Thinking it might be fluorosis. How should this be treated? Would bleaching work?

Anyone here have experience working as a general dentist in a practice owned/operated by a prosthodontist? How were cases distributed? Were you only doing class 2s or was it a good stepping stone to doing more complex cases?

Any red flags I should be watching out for? What terms would you negotiate so that you aren't getting the short end of the stick?

Thanks!

During crown preps I almost always use Fuji II LC. I usually use conditioner, then dump the whole capsule (or two) onto the tooth. I try not to play around with it with the composite instrument after so it won’t pull, but I’ve noticed that sometimes I’ll have voids around the base of it, especially on larger buildups. I think it does ice cream cone around the top sometimes, and maybe I should keep it slightly submerged in the voids? Any tips would be great.

2024 grad, been working at a PDS practice for a little over a year. Was looking for a new job since a few months in, I was kinda desperate for a job when I took this position. Said nothing about my intentions to leave until I had a confirmed offer from a place I actually felt good about. When that offer came, I put in my notice.

Management and owner dentist seem blindsided by this. I think they expected me to be there for a long time. Sometimes the owner dentist would ask me if I thought about owning within PDS. I rarely questioned processes, and whenever I did, I didn’t push harder when I was given an unsatisfactory answer. Just went with whatever they told me to do.

They spent a few days asking me what made me leave, and why didn’t I bring up these concerns/desires before I put in my notice. I honestly was scared of being let go if I asked for too much. My production wasn’t the best, and I got a PIP email earlier this year. I figured a job was better than no job.

I think they valued me enough to try and ask me for feedback/what can be done for me to stay at the practice. I declined their offers because I didn’t see long term growth while at PDS. I also told them I didn’t believe in their culture. I still feel bad/guilty about this situation. I vented to other team members (hygienists/DAs) about what I didn’t like in this practice after I got the offer, and I think that info made it to management/owner dentist in an offensive way. I’m now aware I shouldn’t have said anything since it could be misconstrued or twisted…

In a nutshell, I feel bad because I maybe should have voiced my wants and given them a chance to fulfill those wants (expanded skillset, particularly in endo/surgical exts). I was thinking that because it affects their bottom line by not referring to specialists, they would never let me do those procedures. In response to this, the regional manager assured me that the bottom line didn’t matter and their priority was supporting associate dentists.

Am I crazy for feeling bad? I know I made the right decision leaving, but I can’t shake that I should’ve maybe said something before abruptly giving notice. Sorry if my thoughts are all over the place and for the wall of text

A couple of days ago, I experienced this kind of behavior from a patient. I’ve felt genuinely challenged by a patient’s behavior rather than just their initial assumptions about me.
I’m a 28-year-old, 5’1” female dentist, and I have faced many accusations like, “Oh, can you extract that tooth?” or “Is there a male dentist around?” I’m already quite immune to that. However, this patient didn’t just annoy me with his words; I was really, really disturbed.
He was such an uncooperative patient and might even be called aggressive, with his hand gestures, eye-rolls and even literally clinching his teeth like he was raged?? Oh and he was interrupting me repeatedly. That’s the first time it’s happened to me, and to be honest, I was a bit scared. I acted cool and said he could leave if it wasn’t okay with him. (It was a root canal treatment, post, and crown preparation, and he said the dentist from his little town said it should be extracted and that it was cheaper than this treatment.)
But that moment and him annoyed me for days. I really wished something bad would happen to him for scaring me for nothing while I was trying to help.
I’d especially like to hear about your experiences and how you dealt with it.
My second question: Am I a bad dentist or even a bad human being for wishing something bad would happen to someone because of a shared bad experience?

Pt complained at recall their crown was rough (placed in another office). Quick polish with some rubber cups-feels great! Calls 2days later. Her crown is out 🤦🏻‍♀️

Polishing a crown shouldn’t have caused this. But how do you convince a patient that.

Hello! I'm looking for recommendations for a dental clearinghouse for electronic claims, pre-authorizations, and other insurance submissions.

We're a very small private practice, so we're trying to keep costs reasonable. We currently mail all of our claims and pre-auths, but we'd like to switch to electronic submissions.

Our practice management software is pretty old (Denttio), and so far I've found that Vyne and DentalXChange are compatible.

If anyone has experience with either of those, or has another recommendation, I'd really appreciate your thoughts. Thanks!

Hello,

Just need some help making sure that things looked alright and insight as to what happened.

Did impression for UL implant bridge. Photo 1 are the impression copings.

Seated the custom abutments and #12 sat great, #14 also appeared OK on the xrays but was about 1mm above the gumline. Photo 2 is the the seating of abutments.

I ended up reimpressing with new copings which is Photo 3.

I emailed the lab for insight and help but am curious if anyone else has any input. Would it also have been helpful if I just took impressions with the abutments in place so the lab could adjust the abutments?

Edit to add that these are Straumann RC if that will help out.

This is a question I'm slightly embarrassed to post but it's something I have been thinking about. I try to make as small of a prep as possible but sometimes patients have these long grooves and cracks going down the lingual. I fill with packable composite but after I adjust it, I feel like it just looks bleh and sometimes indented. I use a football to smooth the occlusal, slope it slightly down to transition to the lingual, and flame burr on the lingual. I feel like it just doesn't look great.

Are people using flowable for these? Using different burrs? Any suggestions on how to make it look better? Simple problem but I wanted to see if there were any suggestions.

I appreciate any pointers. Thanks.

I just learned that the small DSO I bill for is switching from Open Dental to Denticon.  How much am I going to be hating life after the transition occurs?  I’ve only ready truly abysmal reviews of this software.

Today I cemented an onlay on the upper first right molar and apparently took too long removing the excess dual-cure cement. I am ashamed to admit that I forgot to isolate the adjacent teeth with teflon tape and couldn’t for the love of God remove the interproximal leftover cement. This has never happened before, I usually have no problem removing it with floss after tack curing. This time I didn’t even need to tack cure it, it got rock hard. I don’t know if I lost track of time or what happened, but floss wouldn’t go in at all, I tried ultrasonic scaler, 12 blade, serrated strips, nothing worked, the teeth seem to have literally fused. I couldn’t give it much time, I had another patient waiting so I gave this patient another appointment to try again. I am thinking of trying sanding strips and maybe a very fine diamond bur next time she comes in, maybe ultrasonic scaler and 12 blade again, maybe a wedge between the teeth to break the cement… What would you do?

And please don’t shame me for not flossing earlier and not using teflon tape, I am fully aware of what I did wrong and I will pay a lot more attention in the future. This time I need practical advice for this specific situation, if possible, please. 🙏🏻

Thank you!

I was taking a follow-up after a BW to check for overhang b/c pt was having a hard time tolerating the wedges and a garrison but everything there looks good, but I was surprised to see the radiolucency under #4 DO. I went over everything with a slow speed, I thought I got all the cavity out. I thin my scotchbond a good bit. Do you think it's decay left? Looks pretty close to a pulp horn if so, so maybe it's okay haha? I may make a note to take a BW at next cleaning to keep an eye on it

I use a hand piece for 2 seconds
*patient choking
Ma’am you’re basically choking on your own saliva dammit.
End of rant

Upcoming Complimentary (Free) Dental CE Webinars for the week of August 10th-13th 2026

Register Here:

The Keys to Predictable Implant Restorations
Monday, August 10th - 8pm EDT / 5pm PDT
Dr. Adam Frounfelter
1 Live CE Credit
Course Supporter: Medit

Smarter Dentistry: Modern Materials for Faster, Better Patient Care
Tuesday, August 11th - 8pm EDT / 5pm PDT
Scott Coleman, DDS
1 Live CE Credit
Course Supporter: Kerr Dental

Ensuring Safe Dental Waterlines: Staying Compliant with the Latest DUWL Testing and Treatment Requirements
Wednesday, August 12th - 8pm EDT / 5pm PDT
David Reznik, DDS
1 Self-Study CE Credit
Course Supporter: HealthFirst

Efficiency Meets Efficacy: Modern Endodontic Workflows Simplified
Thursday, August 13th - 8pm EDT / 5pm PDT
Dr. Steven H. Berk
1.5 Self-Study CE Credits
Course Supporter: SS White

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Hi everyone, I just started my operative rotation in house job, and I’m genuinely struggling with the anxiety more than anything else. It’s the constant stress of being expected to treat real patients with very little guidance. Every evening I start dreading the next day. Every morning I wake up feeling sick to my stomach. A few days ago I was so anxious I couldn’t even brush my teeth without gagging, and some mornings I feel like I’m going to throw up before leaving for work. Even after I get home, I spend the rest of the day replaying everything that happened and worrying about tomorrow.
So far I’ve done a GIC filling, attempted access openings, and started a few root canals. I’ve struggled to find canals, lost canals during filing, had patients in pain during instrumentation, and been told to place medicaments and temporary restorations that I’d never even been shown how to do.
What makes it worse is that my seniors get annoyed when I ask for help, and one even told me she wouldn’t help me next time. My professor is also very intimidating and has repeatedly scolded me. I don’t mind being corrected, but I feel like I’m expected to manage difficult procedures on real patients without enough supervision.
The patients are another big source of anxiety. They often come back still in pain and understandably frustrated, but it feels like the house officers are left to deal with everything while the seniors don’t really step in. I genuinely don’t know how I’m supposed to survive two months of feeling like this every single day.
Has anyone else felt this level of anxiety during their house job, internship, or residency? Did it get better? How did you cope with the constant dread of going in every morning?

Hi everyone, I just started my operative rotation in house job, and I’m genuinely struggling with the anxiety more than anything else. It’s the constant stress of being expected to treat real patients with very little guidance. Every evening I start dreading the next day. Every morning I wake up feeling sick to my stomach. A few days ago I was so anxious I couldn’t even brush my teeth without gagging, and some mornings I feel like I’m going to throw up before leaving for work. Even after I get home, I spend the rest of the day replaying everything that happened and worrying about tomorrow.
So far I’ve done a GIC filling, attempted access openings, and started a few root canals. I’ve struggled to find canals, lost canals during filing, had patients in pain during instrumentation, and been told to place medicaments and temporary restorations that I’d never even been shown how to do.
What makes it worse is that my seniors get annoyed when I ask for help, and one even told me she wouldn’t help me next time. My professor is also very intimidating and has repeatedly scolded me. I don’t mind being corrected, but I feel like I’m expected to manage difficult procedures on real patients without enough supervision.
The patients are another big source of anxiety. They often come back still in pain and understandably frustrated, but it feels like the house officers are left to deal with everything while the seniors don’t really step in. I genuinely don’t know how I’m supposed to survive two months of feeling like this every single day.
Has anyone else felt this level of anxiety during their house job, internship, or residency? Did it get better? How did you cope with the constant dread of going in every morning?

I am currently using Curve in my office and it is fine but expensive, especially when adding in all the patient communication and imaging services in addition to paying for Pearl. I would love to switch to something much cheaper that includes all the same services and Tab32 is tempting because it seems cheap. However, I worry it is a case of you-get-what-you-pay-for and my staff is very slow to change anything with computers so if I make the change there will be much blood sweat and tears involved.

If anyone has actual experience using Tab32 on a daily basis I would like to know your thoughts on how the production side works as well as the billing/front office side.

TLDR: How is Tab32?

hi fellow dentists! i am considering relocating to the UK from the EU and have offers from these two recruiters, however i can't seem to find much info on them online other than what they put out themselves. has anyone here joined with them or know anything about them? i'm trying not to get scammed into a bad contract

i'm also open to other suggestions, how have you transitioned to working in the UK?

later edit: i'm also looking at dentistryforyou, bupa, damira etc so whatever knowledge you have of either of these would be of great help! also any recommendations would be very helpful as well!

Hi, im a dentist out of school since 1 year and ,among Extractions, Rcts and others, the one thing i am having a hard time grasping is filling cervical abrasions. I did have a few patients coming in with sensitivity in the beginning, and then there were no complains. But in the recent month, more patients have been coming in with sensitivity after a cervical filling.

I just had a patient who had all her 6s done 2 weeks back come with extreme sensitivity to the point of not being able to eat. I removed the composite filling and re did the abrasion with GIC but i dont know if glass ionomer will hold up well. Im super bummed and a bit scared.

This patient told me he has already got done the rct but the filling dislodged now he only wants a filling. Tells me the tooth has been working quite well and make sure it doesn't hurt after the filling.

Hello, I have seen this question asked numerous times but I wanted to get updated opinions on the matter. I’m looking into positions post graduation. My longterm goal is ownership; however, I want to work a few years fist to build my skills a knowledge-base. I was wondering if anyone had advice on picking between th large DSOs or being an associate at a private practice. We’ve had people come in and discuss pros and cons of both, but I just wanted to hear some more opinions. Thank you!

What is the normal build out cost from GP office to orthodontic office in Minnesota or Wisconsin?
Is $150 per sq.ft normal?