The Mental Game Archives - Dental Head Start

FEATURE #79 – A Journey in Confidence with Dr Erica Hwin & Haydyn Bathurst

January 30, 2023January 30, 2023Leave a Comment

Happy New Year to our Dental Head Start family! To kick 2023 off, we wanted to touch base and share the big plans we have in store for you on The Dental Head Start Podcast.

Firstly, we’d like to welcome our superstar editor Haydyn Bathurst to the microphone for his official debut as our new student host! Haydyn has been a huge asset to the team and we’re excited to share his perspectives and advocacy for all the dental students out there.

With her shiny AHPRA registration in hand, Erica is now a new graduate dentist! In this episode, we’ll get to hear from her side of the table – her university experience, the lessons the podcast has taught her and how her first few weeks as a dentist have been. Join us as we dive into discussions about building confidence, exploring opportunities and the mentality we develop in order to navigate an industry as difficult as dentistry.

Thank you all for your endless support. Here’s to another bigger and better year!

TIP #80 – Dreaming Big For Life After Graduation with Dr Kaejenn Tchia

March 31, 2022April 20, 2022Leave a Comment

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When was the last time you sat back and asked yourself, “What are my dreams, and what kind of person do I want to become?

I think as students and new grads, it’s so easy to be lost when all our lives, we’ve always had some sort of curriculum to follow. However, the day we graduate, it’s the first time we have to really decide for ourselves what happens next. In this episode, we dive into the importance of dreaming big, how this influences our happiness and career fulfilment, and how to go about finding that spark.

TIP #79 – The 4 Crucial Tips to Avoid Burnout with Dr Kaejenn Tchia

March 17, 2022March 24, 2022Leave a Comment

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In an industry where we are almost geared to constantly pursue excellence and success, where we are often isolated in our practice and where the is an expectation to maintain our cool in front of patients, perhaps it’s no surprise that it forms the perfect breeding ground for burnout. But what exactly is burnout, and what can we do to prevent it?

In this episode, we’re joined the Dr Kaejenn Tchia who is The Limitless Dentist. Dr Kaejenn runs his own Facebook and Instagram page where he openly shares his experience with burnout as a recent grad and he uses his platform to regularly share tips on practicing mental well-being.

At DHS, we have always been advocates for mental health and we’re so glad to be able to dive into it in this episode to break down what burnout is, what causes it and Dr Kaejenn’s Top 4 tips on how to avoid it. For an industry that is so tight-knit, I really hope this helps us open up the discussion to talk about our shared experiences on a topic we all inevitably go through.

TIP #70 – Making the Most of Final Year with Dr Jeff Kho

December 13, 2021December 12, 2021Leave a Comment

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We all know that one kid who never seems to study, is always playing games or out hitting the town, and yet still passes with flying colours and is everyone’s favourite friend.
 Dental school is a rollercoaster. We’re learning the fundamentals of dentistry, figuring out what kinda dentist we want to be whilst trying to maintain a semblance of study-life balance. They say dental school is really just the beginnings of our journey and it all really starts the day we graduate, but what kind of things can we do now to really set us up on positive trajectory?

In this episode, Dr Jeff Kho reminisces on his days in dental school – and (surprise surprise!) how he wasn’t that superstar student. He talks about what he would do differently, knowing what he does now, and the stresses that in hindsight, he would’ve worried less about. We dive into the areas and disciplines that new grads don’t have as much experience in and what we can do to fill that gap in knowledge. Above all, we talk about the importance and value of investing in ourselves.

FEATURE #65 – Dental Practitioner Support with Dr Murray Thomas and Anthony Denham

October 25, 2021January 20, 2022Leave a Comment

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As a student and graduate it is common to feel stress when we think about our regulator. Yet this often comes from a misunderstanding of how the Dental Board of Australia and APHRA work and what there goals really are.

This episode we are lucky enough to be chatting the the Chair of the Dental Board, Dr Murray Thomas. But the core message is not the regulator themselves but an initive they support.

That is of course Dental Practitioner Support (www.dpsupport.org.au), a helpline for dental professionals and their families. This is funded by the DBA in an effort to support dentists however is a completely confidential and seperate.

Mr Anthony Denham joined us on this podcast as the Program Director at Turning Point, the organisation running dental practitioner support.

This was a great conversation about a critical topic. Because after all, we can’t look after others if we’re not looking after ourselves.

TIP #61 – [Re-Run] Take Care of Yourself with Dr Annalene Weston

October 7, 2021October 7, 2021Leave a Comment

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To take care of others we first need to take care of our-selves. Yet dentists rarely take time off for themselves when they need it. How can we do our best work when sick?

Dr Annalene Weston is well known for her work in Burnout and Mental Health for dentists and it is our pleasure to have her on the What I wish I Knew podcast again to share something she sees dentists making the mistake of time and time again, not taking care of yourself.

The concept of the Third Space resonated strongly with me as did much of what she had to say in this episode. I hope you take as much from this as I did.

TIP #41: Perfectly Imperfect You with Dr Sam Koh

April 8, 2021April 15, 2021Leave a Comment

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Perfectionism doesn’t NOT mean being perfect. It’s the tendency to strive for unrealistic or unattainable standards which often result in the formation highly critical self evaluations and excessive concern for others evaluations.

In dentistry, social media plays a major role in guiding the expectations we set on ourselves, because it’s one of the few windows we have into each other’s worlds. Unfortunately it can be a breeding ground for anxiety and self doubt. Even though we know it’s not a true representation of reality, it can still leave many of us feeling life we’re falling behind in our profession or that our work is not good enough.

Dr Sam Koh challenges the basis for these standards we set on ourselves and resets the perspective we should maintain when we enter this parallel universe. This podcast is a reality check and will leave you feeling less self-critical and more self-compassionate.

FEATURE #56 – Discovering Mindfulness with Dr Viet Le and Dr Chiraag Devani

April 5, 2021January 20, 2022Leave a Comment

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FEATURE #55 – Step On Fear with Dr Catherine Yang

March 23, 2021January 20, 2022Leave a Comment

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#44 – NSFW; The (Hilarious) side of Dentistry You Don’t See on Social Media

September 29, 2020September 29, 2020Leave a Comment

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Great dentistry takes decades to learn. Refinement of skills is a process of dedication and persistence. And these are traits Dr Anthony Mak has in droves.

Anthony spent his first few years spread between a few practices with varying experiences and this gave him the well rounded foundation to use as a spring board for his career. Just this story alone is so useful in allowing us to consider and plan our journey in dentistry.

This is just the start of the tips advice and concepts Anthony shares in this podcast.

Dr Anthony Mak is making waves in dentistry and really contributing to the education of the dental community so for that we say thanks and for joining us on this engaging podcast interview.