A single reviewer followed me from Reddit to Google to my inbox
This account was submitted by a healthcare provider and de-identified before publication. Details that could identify a patient or practice have been removed, and it is shared with the provider’s consent.
It started with a Reddit post calling me the worst new dentist in the borough. Then a Google review appeared with the same phrasing and the same odd nickname for me. Soon the writer was commenting on unrelated local threads just to mention my name. The posts stopped referencing any appointment and instead described my personality and my looks. One suggested that a new dentist like me would not last long here, which read as more than a prediction. The same voice jumped from platform to platform, always circling back to me. It felt less like feedback and more like being followed.
Being only a year into practice, I cannot confirm whether this person is or ever was a patient, because HIPAA binds me either way. What I can observe is that none of the content is about dental care. The remarks about my personality, my appearance, and my longevity here are personal, not clinical. The way the same phrasing follows me across platforms shows this is a campaign, not a review. If I engaged anywhere, I would confirm that I recognize the pattern and possibly the person, which I cannot do. The cross platform pursuit is the clearest sign that the target is me, not my dentistry. I hold that understanding privately while the posts multiply in public.
As a brand new dentist, I lost sleep worrying that this would define my reputation before I had built one. I would wake at three in the morning and reach for my phone to see if a new post had appeared. The anxiety of never knowing which platform would light up next was constant. The suggestion that I would not last here frightened me on a level I had not anticipated. I felt isolated, unsure whether colleagues had seen the posts. The emotional distress of being pursued across the internet in my first year was profound. It made me question a career choice I had been so proud of.
I consulted an attorney early, given the veiled suggestion in the posts, and asked about documenting a pattern of harassment. The advice was not to respond on any platform, since a reply would confirm recognition and could intensify the pursuit. I reported the content on each site, framing it as cross platform harassment rather than a care dispute. I kept a careful log with dated screenshots showing the same voice moving between platforms. I tightened my own privacy settings and reviewed what personal information was publicly available. I leaned on a trusted mentor for perspective and support. Then I forced my attention back to my patients, because building good care was the only reply within my rights.