Newsletters:
Reflecting
On 25 Years at 1950 Yonge Street
...and Looking Forward
While
attending dental school, I was drawn to my existing
office location. I remember saying to myself, when driving
down Yonge Street, “if I was not in dental school,
then this would be the office I would like to be a patient
in”. It looked different...it had a graphic on
the side of the building, with black lines representing
a 3-D forest! After three years of associating, I decided
to look for my own practice. When I called an agent
who transitioned practices, he told me that 1950 Yonge
Street was for sale. Needless to say this was the only
practice I looked at, knowing that this location would
be the workplace for me despite the fact that I was
told 53 dentists worked down the street at 1849 Yonge
Street.
I
soon learned that dental school taught us the basic
ABC’s. Once practicing I realized that there was
much more to be learned. Several thousands of hours
of continuing education has contributed to dentistry
becoming my passion. The ABC’s soon became words,
the words created sentences and over time, the paragraphs
reflected a deeper meaning about the impact of dentistry
on the whole person.
My motivation upon entering dental school was to overcome
my own fear of dentists, and after accomplishing this
feat, I felt I could help others overcome their anxieties,
as well as change the face of dentistry. In dental school,
I learned about how the mouth and body are interconnected.
This fixation has been a major area of interest and
study of mine since dental school for the past 28 years
(I spent 3 years associating at Jane & Finch).
Wellness
Based Dentistry ™ became a way of looking at,
and honouring the importance of our teeth and our smile.
Psychoneuro-immunology (PNI) medicine, naturopathic
medicine, physiotherapy and neuromuscular dentistry
were studied, and applicable portions were added into
my dental practice.
Beyond
traditional dental courses, I have also studied acupuncture
and cranio-sacral, therapeutic touch and motivation
courses. I chose not to use silver-mercury fillings
over 22 years ago. I have taken 7 one-week courses in
Florida at the Pankey Institute, along with intensive
studies of the temporo-mandibular joint. Behavioural
courses, listening courses, retreats in Keystone, Colorado
and Phoenix, Arizona have helped me and my team in our
personal growth, and this has helped us to contribute
to our clients’ best interests and our work environment.
Rosemary
and Stevka have been with me for 23 years and 20 years
respectively. Sharon, Terri, Caron, Karen, Sandy, Ljiljana
and Lana joined us over 10 years ago and today we have
become co-workers, good friends and a workplace family.
It is wonderful to be surrounded by people who share
my vision and philosophy. We have travelled and studied
many hours together, as I believe that the more we all
know, the more we can help each other, and in turn share
our knowledge with the people who visit us.
Research
has helped us so much to transform dentistry into a
pleasurable experience. The development of lasers and
cosmetic procedures, including whitening, porcelains,
smile makeovers, bonding and veneers, invisible orthodontics
and Invisalign, as well as spa dentistry (massage chairs,
paraffin hand wax, headphones, reflexology, home-brewed
ginger tea, and organic fresh squeezed carrot juice)
has enhanced our opportunity to relax when we are in
the dental office; to leave feeling better than when
we arrived. Jaw exercises and facial aerobics allow
us to control grinding and clenching to help us maintain
our teeth until 120.
We
can now look at achieving a smile that can be our best
feature until the day we die! To me the importance of
looking good, and feeling great is so important, not
only for our self esteem and the way we relate to others,
but also so that we can look in the mirror and say to
ourselves, “WOW, what a great smile, I look great.”
The endorphin release from within is our greatest natural
vitamin!
I
chose not to specialize in a specific area of dentistry
so that I could get to know my patients, and be there
for them over the years. It is wonderful seeing familiar
and new faces daily, sharing our lives, our sad times
and more often our happy times. Many of you have been
with me throughout my dental career. For this, I would
like to say “Thank You”! It means so much
to me to have you in my life. I feel blessed to have
a wonderful extension of like-minded people around me
who take responsibility for their lives and live with
optimism and hope. I learn daily from my interactions
with you and hope that I give back to you not only great
smiles, but a comfortable dental home, caring, not only
for your teeth but you as a person as well.
Blessings,
Dana & Team
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