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The inevitability of change: the place for mindfulness and compassion in dentistry

From Volume 48, Issue 6, June 2021 | Pages 435-440

Authors

Leonie Seager

BDS, MFDS, MSc MOrth, RCS Ed

Specialist Orthodontist, Shrewsbury Orthodontic Centre and Royal Stoke University Hospital

Articles by Leonie Seager

Email Leonie Seager

Karen Atkinson

Senior partner and co-founder of Mindfulness UK, author and Convenor or the British Association of Mindfulness-based Approaches (BAMBA).

Articles by Karen Atkinson

Article

There is a saying that goes: the only things that are certain in life are death and taxes. I would go one further and also say that there is one more thing that we can add to that – the inevitability of change.

Sudden and uncertain change is certainly something that has been brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic, and this change has had far-reaching effects on how we practise our profession. As with most dramatic shifts that occur in our lives, change is often accompanied by stress and anxiety. However, although the change itself is often inevitable and out of our control, a lot of the pain and suffering we experience that comes with it can be reduced by understanding our mind-set and using tools that can help us manage our thoughts and emotions.

Although it should not be considered as a panacea, mindfulness and compassion practices can give us the tools to help ourselves stay grounded during these remarkably overwhelming times of turbulence, enabling us to face these challenges with emotional balance, resilience and compassion.

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