Dental specialists often believe that extreme stress is just a part of the job, but what do you do when it goes too far and starts taking over your life? Today on Everyday Oral Surgery, Dr. Stucki is joined by Dr. Joshua Austin to discuss how to recognize and manage burnout, depression, and anxiety as a surgeon. Tune in to hear about our guest’s career journey, what inspired his passion for talking about burnout, why dental specialists may be particularly vulnerable to burnout, depression, and anxiety, and how doctors can recognize when these challenges may be cause for concern. We delve into some practical things listeners can do to get into a better space when experiencing burnout, anxiety, or depression before discussing when to seek help and how beneficial it can be. We touch on how sedation is affected when patients use marijuana and antidepressants, and our guest talks about why oral surgeons are high-risk for prescription drug addictions. Finally, Dr. Austin shares some advice for oral surgeons who may be experiencing mental health issues and are unsure of how to seek help. Please note that this episode contains a trigger warning for suicidal ideation, depression, anxiety, and mental health struggles, so please listen with care!
Key Points From This Episode:
- Welcoming Dr. Joshua Austin to the show.
- A brief overview of Dr. Austin’s career and practice.
- How Dr. Austin got into lecturing about burnout.
- Why dental specialists are vulnerable to mental health issues.
- How to know when mental health issues are getting serious.
- Why boundaries matter for oral surgeons.
- Practical things to help improve burnout, anxiety, or depression.
- The power of receiving help from mental health professionals.
- How marijuana and SSRIs affect the ability to be sedated.
- Why oral surgeons are prone to having addiction issues.
- Dr. Austin shares advice for anyone struggling to seek help.
Links Mentioned in Today’s Episode:
Dr. Joshua Austin — https://www.joshuaaustindds.com/
Dr. Joshua Austin on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/joshuaaustindds/
Dr. Joshua Austin Email — jaustindds@icloud.com
The Mental Dental Connection Course — https://www.mcdcstl.org/courses/austin-am/
AAMFT — https://aamft.org/
Psychology Today — https://www.psychologytoday.com/
The Body Keeps the Score — https://www.amazon.com/Body-Keeps-Score/s?k=The+Body+Keeps+the+Score
Everyday Oral Surgery Website — https://www.everydayoralsurgery.com/
Everyday Oral Surgery on Instagram — https://www.instagram.com/everydayoralsurgery/
Everyday Oral Surgery on Facebook — https://www.facebook.com/EverydayOralSurgery/
Dr. Grant Stucki Email — grantstucki@gmail.com
Dr. Grant Stucki Phone — 720-441-6059
