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<\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A lot can change in a week\u2026 or a couple days, or 24 hours, or 60 minutes, or in a single moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I know that no matter who you are or where you are at reading this right now, you are going through a tough time and trying to make sense of all that we as a nation are facing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Please know, though it might not help much in a literal and tangible sense, we are here for you, thinking about you, and feeling for you. We will get through it together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Because it is the only option and it is what we always do \u2013 that is who we are.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First and foremost, take care of yourselves and your family. Be there for each other as team members and be there for your doctors \u2013 you are a DENTAL FAMILY \u2013 and the second word is more important than the first.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
While there may seem like non-stop changing information on every news channel, it doesn\u2019t mean you have to watch it non-stop. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
You must protect yourself from more than just a virus right now. You must stay focused, calm, and rational. You can\u2019t make any good decisions or have proper judgment if you let hysteria take over.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, we all have to take this situation seriously \u2013 it is. That said, we can also be proactive with it and we do not have to succumb to the negativity of \u201cwhat-if\u2019s\u201d and \u201cworst case scenario\u2019s\u201d \u2013 it does no one any good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I said last week \u2013 and I wasn\u2019t really joking \u2013 that everyone would be best served to turn off the TV, put down the phone, avoid the social media, and instead read a book, play a board game, spend time with your loved ones, and do things that you otherwise wouldn\u2019t have the time or energy to do.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We can waste away these moments and only look back at surviving through it or you can find some significance in personal reflection, in experiences with your family, and in getting back to basics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I am strongly encouraging you to stay in your patients\u2019 lives and bring them into your fold more than ever before. The more we stick together, the stronger we will become. The more you share positive energy, the more positive energy you fill find to share.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This pandemic has certainly changed our daily lives only temporarily. We don\u2019t know what that timeframe will look like but it will not be forever. You can\u2019t let it get the best of you. I challenge you to not be fatalistic and relinquish all hope. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, you can choose to think and feel however you want. For me, for my family, for my Doctors, for everyone I care about, I encourage, challenge, plead with them (and with you), don\u2019t let the virus, the panic, the media, the government, or anything else take and consume your life.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You should follow all of the practical advice and guidelines \u2013 of course. Be smart and stay healthy, as best you can. Still, your health goes far beyond just germs. For those who contract the virus, it can cause serious problems by getting inside your lungs and even result in death of some people; but for everyone else, we can\u2019t let it infect our spirits, our humanity, and our hope.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
I say to you: do not become paralyzed by what is going on. You are working so hard at keeping the virus out of your body, yet you are letting it in through your social media, news sites, and tv every second of every day.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Remember, there is a difference between being informed and being in fear.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Anyone can find happiness and be positive when things are great and times are going well. Yet it\u2019s times like these \u2013 the trying ones \u2013 that we need to dig deep in order to find the happiness and positivity. Ironically, it\u2019s hardest to find those powerful forces when we need them the most.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Find the hope. Discover your happiness. Share the positive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
We will get through this. Let\u2019s focus on what we want more of and not what we don\u2019t. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
I don\u2019t profess, nor am I saying it is a miracle, that good, powerful, and positive thoughts and energy alone are enough \u2013 but I darn sure say it beats the opposite.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Besides, right now, what else do you have to do\u2026 what else do you have as your focus? Ask yourself what do you want more of and let\u2019s put your attention there and let everything that is right expand and everything that is wrong dissipate. If not for yourself, at least for those you love.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It starts with You; it always does.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And you can know this: I\u2019m here with you. I\u2019ll be back every day in some way helping do my part to rise above our current circumstances. <\/p>\n\n\n\n