Why I Flunked Retirement by Dr. Anoop Sondhi

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Categories: Orthodontics; Practice Transitions;
Why I Flunked Retirement 

Rediscovering the joy of the profession

by Dr. Anoop Sondhi

The year was 2018. I was in the process of having the two other partners in my practice buy my share, while I worked a reduced number of days in the practice. The process was unfolding as designed; I was going to work just a couple of days a month for the next two years and then retire. However, the culture of the practice, which I had started ab initio in 1982, was changing under new ownership, and I was no longer enjoying being in the practice. So, it was time to call it quits and retire.

I’ll admit that the first year or two in retirement were a lot of fun. I didn’t have to set the alarm to wake up earlier than I wanted to, I could stay up late and read if I wanted to, play a round of golf whenever I felt like it (tee times are way easier to get on weekdays), and we could travel when we wanted. I read a lot more. Definitely enjoyable. After a while, though, I started to get a little restless. There seemed to be a lot of hours in the day where I didn’t really have anything to do. There were only so many long walks I could take with my dogs.

Being an orthodontist had been a significant and consuming presence in my life. So, although I had retired, I kept up with my subscriptions to journals, attended conferences and seminars, including all of the continuing education requirements to keep my license current. And then, a little more than a year ago, it was time for the oldest of my grandchildren to be evaluated for orthodontic treatment. I knew exactly where I was going to take them, because all eight of our grandchildren live within just a few minutes of where we live. Yes, I know, we are very lucky.

Dr. Brett Finkelmeier had been a patient of mine when he was a child. I had treated him and his sisters. They are a lovely family. Later, when Brett was in college at Indiana University, he decided he wanted to go to dental school. I spoke with him, and it was my pleasure to mentor him through dental school. Following graduation from dental school, he decided he wanted to specialize as an orthodontist, and I was happy to mentor him through that process too. Following graduation, he returned to the northern Indianapolis suburb of Carmel, where we live, to set up practice. It was definitely my pleasure to mentor him through that process as well. I had come to know him extremely well during all this time, and found him to be a consummate professional, a caring practitioner, and a talented clinician. So, my decision to take my grandchildren to his office was an easy one.

I went in for the consultation appointment and watched from a corner of the room as he examined my grandson, took intraoral photographs and scans, and went over the radiographs. His diagnosis and treatment plan were spot on. As I watched this whole process, I found myself asking, “Why did I stop doing this stuff?” I mean, I really enjoyed it. Not just the consultation process, which I relished, but also the clinical aspect of my work. Some reflection on that query to myself, over a martini at my home that evening, brought me to the realization that I really couldn’t answer that question. “Why did you retire?” I asked myself. And I really didn’t have an answer to that question. It’s just that you reach a certain age, have a certain level of financial stability, a number of your friends and colleagues are retiring, so maybe it was time to retire. So, I retired.

It was time for some introspection. When I took my grandchildren in for some further appointments, it was a pleasure to see how deftly Brett and his staff did their work. And then I found myself further enraptured by the technological advancements and innovations that had entered my profession. We were already doing our own intraoral scans in the later years of my practice, of course, but impressions of any kind were now history. The ability to process all the diagnostic data digitally during the patient consultation visit has allowed orthodontists to reformat the way I used to do my consultations. I mean, in 2003, I was invited to write an article in the Journal of Clinical Orthodontics on the process of doing efficient and effective consultations. They even put a picture of me talking to a child on the cover of that issue.

Boy, would I love to rewrite that article in view of contemporary technology.

I have always been a big proponent of indirect bonding, and we had our own in-house lab, partly for that reason. But now orthodontists can do a setup digitally. With current digital bonding systems, the bracket positioning becomes substantially more precise, and perfectly fabricated trays arrive well in time for the bonding appointment. Add to that the newer innovations in 3D-printed brackets, the refinement of clinical techniques with clear aligners, and it felt like a whole new world had opened up for me.

I remember having conversations with some younger orthodontists many years ago, in which they would refer to those of us who started practicing in the 1970s and ’80s as having had the opportunity to practice during the “Golden Age of orthodontics.” This was generally in reference to the fact that the competition in orthodontic practice back then was not as significant as it is today, and most dentists would refer patients to orthodontists, instead of providing treatment in their own offices with any of the multiple aligner systems available today.

I’m not sure that is my version of a “Golden Age.” Give some thought to the fact that we were still banding just about every tooth in the mouth and using headgears. Contrast that with the substantial improvement in patient comfort now, the use of lighter forces, and substantially reduced treatment times. To me, this feels more like a “Golden Age” in our profession.

It was clear to me that I was not done being an orthodontist. I brought the subject up with Brett, and was delighted that he was receptive to the idea of my joining his practice. We talked it over, laid out some ground rules, and decided that I would start on May 1, 2026. The official announcement of my joining his practice, on his website and all over the social media space that my children occupy, has been well received. Indeed, it appears that I will be treating the children of many of the children that I treated in my own practice 30 years ago. It has been an absolute pleasure to reconnect with several of my dental colleagues that I had worked with over the years.

I recently resumed treating patients and I’m finding it thoroughly enjoyable. It has been a pleasure to incorporate the newer technology into the way that I used to do my consultations, and doing indirect bonding setups digitally is a breeze. Brett and I have worked together to update some of the consultation forms in the office, and updated some of our patient education materials. He is a pleasure to work with. My decision to un-retire is reinforced every time I’m in the office.

For me at least, it turns out that it was a mistake to retire. I was not tired of my work, I definitely was not bored with it, my enthusiasm for it had not diminished, and I have absolutely no idea why I did retire. Fortunately, this is a mistake that I can undo.

So … I’m back at it! And loving every minute of it.
Author Bio
Dr. Anoop Sondhi Dr. Anoop Sondhi obtained his DDS from Indiana University, followed by an MS in orthodontics from the University of Illinois in 1977. He was on the full-time faculty at Indiana University, and has been in private practice in Indianapolis since 1982. Dr. Sondhi has published multiple articles in various orthodontic journals, and has taught courses all over the world, at last count in 63 different countries. His primary areas of interest are developing efficient treatment systems, management of TM disorders, and refining practice management systems.
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