BEHIND THE SMILE
A Virtual Mental Health Summit for Dentists
Helping dentists practice with more Peace, Purpose, and Possibility. In this virtual conference we will explore mental health through four primary topics – Hope, Grief, Change, and Healing. Within each of those topics you will get to learn causes and solutions to help you get unstuck!
Event Details:
- Date: May 22, 2026
- Time: 10am-3pm CDT (Chicago time)
- Virtual via zoom
- Your receipt for a donation of $100.00 to Hope For The Day is your ticket to the event.
- Bonus: Complimentary guided meditation session
- Recordings of the day will be available to ticket holders after the live event (keep an eye on your email for access).
After donating, you’ll receive:
- A tax receipt from Hope For The Day
- A Zoom access link for the event
- A short series of emails to prepare you
Hope For The Day® (H.F.T.D.) is a non-profit movement empowering the conversation on proactive suicide prevention and mental health education.
Suicide has no prejudice, and 700,000 suicides are reported each year, with many more going unreported. In the US alone, over 130 individuals complete suicide on a daily basis. Through outreach, education, and action, we can equip people with the right tools to be proactive in their communities!
Proactive prevention is about creating an environment that doesn’t wait for someone to reach a point of crisis to address their mental health. In doing proactive prevention, individuals step up to take action and facilitate the conversation on mental health in their spaces.
SPEAKERs
Hosted by Inspero
AGENDA & MORE
All times are Cental Daylight Time (Chicago)
Agenda times, speakers, titles subject to change.
10:00 AM
Welcome & Introductions
10:10 AM
Ben Kohn and Kira Berkoff, HFTD
Review HFTD and Coffee Talk
Ben and Kira: Meet Our Staff — Hope For The Day
About HFTD: About — Hope For The Day
This session will focus on stigmas, understanding self-care, and the basics of mental health. Knowing these fundamentals, you will explore ways to normalize conversations around mental health and navigate resources.
10:45 AM
Brian DesRoches, PhD (more about Brian)
Trigger-free Living
Emotional reactions are a natural part of life. But in a dental practice, they can easily derail the focus on building relationships and providing superior care, which are the mainstays of excellence in practice. This presentation will present the five-step neuroscience-based process you can apply to free yourself from patterns of emotional reactivity that interfere with and block your ability to positively influence your team members and your patients. You will learn how to create a trigger-free life.
11:05 AM
INTEGRATION Break
11:15 AM
Alan Stern, DDS, FACD, FICD (More about Alan)
Cracking the Code for Happiness in Life and Dentistry
This talk emphasizes the importance of finding one’s why and staying connected to the humanity of dentistry.
11:45 AM
Robert MacPhee (more about Robert)
The Values Based Approach to a Purpose Driven Life
In this interactive/experiential session learn how to live your life and run your practice in alignment with your highest values. The unique Values Based Life approach divides values into two categories to make them easier to remember and apply. In this session we will define values, discuss the importance of values clarity, do a simple values discovery process to begin clarifying our highest values in both VBL categories, and strategize how to implement our values into our life and business.
12:05 PM
INTEGRATION Break
12:30 PM
Josh Austin, DDS, MAGD (More About Josh)
The Mental-Dental Connection
Explore strategies for working together to improve mental health so we can be our best. It is time to remove the taboo and face the facts.
12:50 PM
Mary Osborne (More about Mary)
Embracing Transition
Change is an event. Transition is our experience of the change in the period surrounding the event. Whether the change is one we chose or one which was imposed upon transition is a journey that involves letting go of the “old” and embracing the “new.” The time between those two poles can be unsettling, challenging, and enlightening. In life’s personal changes — and in this time of rapid and unpredictable cultural change — we can learn to embrace transition and the wisdom it engenders.
1:20 PM
Brett Kessler, DDS (More about Brett)
Mindfulness Techniques I use to Unscramble My Brain
Learn the mindfulness
techniques that helped Brett excel as a leader, clinician, and athlete. No theory—just actionable practices you can implement immediately to overcome negative thought patterns and build mental resilience.
1:40 PM
INTEGRATION Break
1:50 PM
Jason Luchtefeld, DMD (More about Jason)
Fuel or Friction
Explore how the moments we don’t fully process begin to accumulate. In a profession defined by high expectations and constant pressure, small experiences can quietly compound into something heavier. This session introduces a simple framework to recognize when those moments are building into unhelpful mental loops, and how to interrupt them before they impact performance, wellbeing, and connection.
2:10 PM
Joan Unterschuetz (More about Joan)
Learning to Balance: “holding on” and “letting go” in times of sudden and dramatic change.
Please join me in a conversation about finding our way into and through the emotional ups and downs when living in and sudden changes in your life circumstances. Let’s explore how we can learn to deepen our gratitude even in times when our default emotional response is rigid denial of fear and our behavior becomes more controlling.
Let’s consider that sometimes it may be possible to engage with out fears, and embrace our vulnerability. Perhaps we can deepen our courage and let go of our want and need to control, more and more.
2:30 PM
INTEGRATION Break
2:50 PM
Allison Watts, DDS & Ryan Coulon, DDS
(More about Allison & Ryan)
What Actually Heals: A Way Forward When Success Stops Working
This talk explores what happens when the version of success we’ve been chasing no longer feels fulfilling, and why more effort, more achievement, or more fixing doesn’t resolve it.
You’ll discover a different path to healing. One that moves beyond pushing through and into a more honest, sustainable way of living and leading. You’ll leave with a clearer understanding of what actually creates change, and how to begin reconnecting with a life and practice that truly feels like your own.
3:10 PM
Closing, Wrap-Up, Next Steps
