Finding Your Happiness

I believe we are all after happiness and sometimes can't quite figure out how to get there. I love this post from Project Happiness on how you can find your happiness! Follow the link here:  #ProjectHappiness.

Have a great week!!

Finding Success in Failures

In the US we are a culture defined by success. We punish children who get Cs (which is technically average - also a bad word) and we celebrate those that have tremendous wealth - no matter how it was achieved. We tend to set expectations so high that anything less than perfection is a disappointment or a failure. No wonder stress levels in the US are high. 

According to a US News report, Americans rate their stress at almost a 5 out of a 10 point ratings scale. While that is a decline from the 2007 rating of 6.2, it is still higher than recommended.

A few months ago my mother suffered a stroke that doctors attributed to stress. Since then I have heard of more than six cases of stroke or aneurysm among family and friends.  You can find studies all over the place that show a link between stress and strokes. One study showed that chronic stress increased the chances of a stroke by almost four-fold.

So what am I trying to say about stress and expectations? As we set our expectations at 10 on a scale of 1 - 10, we give ourselves very little room to experience success. Perfection should never be the goal. I know, I know, right now you are thinking I'm crazy, but hear me out. Perfection is an attempt to control an outcome that includes far more variables than you can ever control. It is a hard realization, but it's true. We cannot control every aspect of our lives.

Failures aren't negative. Failures are opportunities - ways we get a chance to learn and improve. This is definitely easier said than done. Avoiding failure is ingrained in our culture, but what most successful people will tell you is that they have failed more times than they have succeeded. The difference, they are not negatively impacted by failure. 

Robert F. Kennedy said it best, "Only those who dare to fail greatly can ever achieve greatly.”

What we can do is continue to push through and make our best efforts and focus on the process we are taking to get there-- living each moment and enjoying both the successes and the failures along the way.

This week celebrate all your successes, work to embrace all your failures, BUT most importantly remember to enjoy both!

Why I Feat the Dentist

Fear of the dentist is a real thing. Many people get extreme anxiety when even thinking of visiting the dentists -- WebMD.com says "...serious anxiety prevents millions of Americans from seeking proper preventative care." When I was a kid, a dentist failed to give me enough Novocaine and I ended up getting a cavity filled and wasn't numb. That was a devastating incident! I can see why there is anxiety, many people get nervous about the pain, however that is not why I suffer from dentophobia.

I would take the experience of having a tooth pulled without Novocaine (which did happen to me), the terrifying sound of the drill and the scraping sounds of removing tartar over what seems to happen to me every time I go to the dentist. 

What is it that I fear about the dentist? The up-sale!! You know the one... "Oh we see that you have a cavity, your insurance only covers amalgam, BUT we don't trust amalgam and so you should get composite." Or, "Your teeth are looking pretty yellow. Are you interested in getting them whitened?" All while my mouth is open and they are standing over me. It's very intimidating. I mean what am I supposed to say? Of course I want the product you recommend - yes I want white teeth. But I'm not sure that asking while I'm in the chair and feeling vulnerable is the appropriate thing. 

I can't imagine being at my doctor's office and while she's examining me, she says, "So you are overweight, and I really think you should take this shot that helps you lose weight. Oh it's not covered by insurance so you will have to pay out of pocket. You want it?  I'm not even sure that is allowed, but if it were, it would be weird.

I know that dentistry is a tough industry and that historically insurance companies haven't shown the value of the industry. There is very little financial support (i.e., proper insurance coverage to manage dental needs) for dentistry, but more importantly people do not realize how much your dentist can tell about your overall health from your mouth. 

For example, regular check up can identify digestive issues, heart disease and conditions like diabetes. By getting regular check ups you can help catch these aliments early and begin treatment to cure or manage them. Regular dental check ups should be as fundamental as annual physicals and regular contact with your primary care physician.

I would just feel better if it didn't feel like my dentist was a car salesman looking to push the under car protection. Patients in any situation feel vulnerable, even in the best case scenario. It's so important for practitioners to keep that in mind.