by Joyce-Anne Locking
Honor thyself first, especially when it comes to medicine and medical practices.
When I walked into a dentist's office a couple of years ago, lots of bells and whistles were going off in my head. A young lady took my blood pressure, told me it was high and I should see a doctor. Then she proceeded with the preliminary examination of measuring various other things needed for the chart. She was obviously a student and this was her summer job.
If I were to ask myself how I measured her abilities to care for me professionally, based on my intuitive feelings, she obviously would not have passed my test.
When the dentist came in, I felt a little more at ease, as he was quite sure of himself.
When he told me it was his first time to be part of a dental office and that he had just graduated, I had some mixed feelings. But then, I thought I would give him the benefit of the doubt, as he would have the latest knowledge in the field.
If I were to ask myself how I measured his abilities to care for me professionally, based on my intuitive feelings, he probably would have barely passed the grade.
Next, I was directed to another room where my gums were evaluated. Another young man was in charge of this procedure. He was to measure many parts and pockets surrounding the gum area. He assured me he was very good at the work he was to do in providing root planning for my teeth.
If I had listened to my own intuitive feeling upon passing this room when I had first entered the office, I recall some inner voice advised me not to agree to have anything to do with him.
As it turned out, I did go to one session of root planning. All day, before I went to that evening appointment, I felt an inexplicable fear over the procedure. I tried to brush it off and told myself I was over reacting.
Now, two years later, a specialist in root planning has told me the work that had been done two years prior, is going to cause me to lose two teeth within the next few months.
If only I would have trusted my own judgment in the beginning, I could have prevented all this grief.
We each have an inner knowing, a sense of what is good and right for us. If only we would learn to follow this innermost feeling, we would be sure to always meet only with success in our dealings with many procedures and practices. People sometimes make mistakes. It is, after all, human to err. We don't have to be the victim, however, if we stay in tune with our own feelings and honor the advice they offer to us.
Posted: 11/02/2009
