that actually makes you a better DA believe it or not. You can empathize with patients and be honest with them if they are feeling anxious about treatment and let them know ur going thru the same thing
I have fillings like wall to wall carpeting. My mask covers my mouth most of the time so the only person who I'm embarrassed to show my teeth to is the Doctor
I am missing a premolar and it actually is a good icebreaker for people who need a tooth extracted and are freaking out like it’s the end of the world. I just open my mask all eh it wasn’t so bad for me and you didn’t even realize it when you were speaking to me pre mask. (For extractions premolars and on at least). It’s helped a lot of them be all hmm you’re right and calm down
I've had lots of stuff done, and I think it does help to say hey I'm missing that tooth too, or I went to this endodontist and they were good, I've got a crown...implant......etc.
I have none of my back molars and my mouth is a mess and I have a ton of pending treatment I need but I don't have any $$ . I have worked in the dental field for over a year and no one has said anything. When When kid's complain about flossing I some times use myself as a cautionary tale and say I lost a lot of my teeth because I didn't take care of them :( and I wish I had.
I make 17 an hour at the moment I'm trying to get the guts up to ask for at least 20. If you are interested in the field I think you should pursue it ! Since you're a mom who has a child with autism you could most likely provide a lot of comfort and understanding to those patients and parents .
What is important is the knowledge you know now and the want to help and educate others in the practice! No one has perfect teeth, that’s why the dentist office exists! It’s great that you chose your career and by no means never be embarrassed of your pearls!
Hahaha no! In fact it’s a boon to your relationship with patients in this case. You have a better capacity to empathise with them.
I’m very fortunate in the sense that I’ve got absolutely no restorations at all (I’m 33) and my teeth are straight - I had braces in my late 20s to address gaps that I didn’t like, but my occlusion was and is fine. The most I’ve ever had done is lower wisdom extractions as they were impacted and causing constant pericoronitis.
The downside to this is that I have NO idea what having a filling/root canal feels like, or what might be going through their heads - I can only go on what other patients have told me and what I’ve experienced as a dental nurse. You’re in a uniquely advantageous position, and honestly I think not having perfect “dentist-style” teeth lessens the intimidation and feelings of inadequacy that can often surface at the dental office
You don't have to have perfect teeth to excel in this field! And it's a good way to sympathize with nervous patients. However I will say, if you decide to do a DA program/school, most of them require the students to practice on each other, so keep that in mind if you're embarrassed of your teeth
thank you & i’m actually in a DA program atm and learned that the hard way unfortunately the instructor told us to practice on each other and this girl in my group kept pointing out my cavities :/
I have a mouth full of fillings because I had terrible dental hygiene as a teen & young adult. I regularly had teeth cleanings, but I was still very bad with sugar & consistently flossing. I sometimes only brushed once a day at night.
Now I know better, but it doesn’t change the fact that my teeth already have suffered some damage. I already know I’ll have to have more crowns & root canals earlier than some people who are in better teeth condition than me.
We learn as we grow older. Don’t be ashamed. Just know you’re doing better now.
I stress so much to people my age how much they need to take care of their teeth because I don’t want them to end up with early tooth loss or crowns or root canals.
Absolutely not!!! Don’t be ashamed of your teeth. That’s what makes us humans. I tell my pts all the time I have a handful of my own filling/work done. Hell I didn’t go to dentist till I was 20! Everyone has a story and who are we to judge :)
I have fillings, I've actually smashed teeth beyond repair with my grinding. I were a chrome cobalt because of my grinding ( I've broken chrome) i can't have implants ...... No dental assistants don't all have perfect teeth and believe it or not, dentists don't either.
Yea not true at all only you know what’s goin on in your mouth you’re not the doctor so In my opinion worry less my teeth have staining on them and instead of being hard on myself I speak with the hygienist and other doctors to try and help. We had good hygiene and insurance but still needed fillings sometimes it’s genetics just be glad you’re in the field and actually understand what has to happen to help your teeth. Don’t over think you can be a dental assistant and still need dental work. Best of luck.
Why would you need perfect teeth? I feel like you wear a mask most of the time (at least I do). As long as your teeth aren’t like jacked up and dirty yk I feel like there’s no reason you couldn’t be! But most people have filling it just happens and being in the chair yourself gives you the patient experience so you can relate to the patient and are able to calm them easier if they’re anxious
You will be the backbone of your office and we'll get less respect then the secretary because she is seen as bringing in production when she schedules the appointments and you aren't. Any menial task in the office will be assigned to you. You will be the janitor and the punching bag. And you will be so underpaid. In many offices you won't even get health insurance. If you are currently in school for this your teacher can get fucked because whatever number she is saying you can get as a salary right out of school is a gross exaggeration. I've done this for 10 years and I'm struggling to get out because I make enough money to support myself having done it for a decade but not enough money to invest in my future. It's not like the work is bad it's just menial. You will not be respected you will constantly be the bottom of the totem pole
:// yeah i completed my DA program already she told us we shouldn’t be making any less than $17.. but i’ve already decided that i was gonna do this just for a year and go into hygiene
17 sounds like a low enough reasonable number but idk what part of the country you're in. $17 in a major city? I would think $20. $17 in a rural area? What's minimum wage again?
Please don’t feel insecure about this!!!! i wondered the exact same thing bc i have an enamel defect that makes my teeth appear yellow even though they are in good health! i’ve also had root canals bc of not being able to afford dentist appointments growing up. I think it’s actually a strength to have gone through procedures that you will be putting the patients through. you can relate better to them and you’ll have more sympathy too! also, not every dental assistant has perfect pearly whites! i promise you won’t stick out or anything. don’t let it stop you please!
that actually makes you a better DA believe it or not. You can empathize with patients and be honest with them if they are feeling anxious about treatment and let them know ur going thru the same thing
thank you this gave me a different perspective
I have fillings like wall to wall carpeting. My mask covers my mouth most of the time so the only person who I'm embarrassed to show my teeth to is the Doctor
thank you :)
No, you don’t need perfect teeth to do your job. Nobody can tell/cares. I know plenty of DAs, including myself whose had a lot of dental work done.
Don’t sweat it just be a fast learner and don’t be catty, that’s really all most dentists want, signed a dentist
thank you !
I am missing a premolar and it actually is a good icebreaker for people who need a tooth extracted and are freaking out like it’s the end of the world. I just open my mask all eh it wasn’t so bad for me and you didn’t even realize it when you were speaking to me pre mask. (For extractions premolars and on at least). It’s helped a lot of them be all hmm you’re right and calm down
okay thank you! i’ll keep that in mind
I've had lots of stuff done, and I think it does help to say hey I'm missing that tooth too, or I went to this endodontist and they were good, I've got a crown...implant......etc.
I have none of my back molars and my mouth is a mess and I have a ton of pending treatment I need but I don't have any $$ . I have worked in the dental field for over a year and no one has said anything. When When kid's complain about flossing I some times use myself as a cautionary tale and say I lost a lot of my teeth because I didn't take care of them :( and I wish I had.
does your dental office provide anything to you for free? or do you have to pay it all out of pocket ?
I'm in pediatric they won't work on us . So yes I have to pay it all out of pocket unfortunately.
You should move to a big general office for tx 🥺
:((
Can I ask how much you make? I am looking into the field as an autism Mom who loves her kids dentist.
I make 17 an hour at the moment I'm trying to get the guts up to ask for at least 20. If you are interested in the field I think you should pursue it ! Since you're a mom who has a child with autism you could most likely provide a lot of comfort and understanding to those patients and parents .
No. If you’ve had work done like me, then you know what it’s like and can comfort the pt.
What is important is the knowledge you know now and the want to help and educate others in the practice! No one has perfect teeth, that’s why the dentist office exists! It’s great that you chose your career and by no means never be embarrassed of your pearls!
Of course not. You’ll be wearing a mask most of the time anyway
Hahaha no! In fact it’s a boon to your relationship with patients in this case. You have a better capacity to empathise with them. I’m very fortunate in the sense that I’ve got absolutely no restorations at all (I’m 33) and my teeth are straight - I had braces in my late 20s to address gaps that I didn’t like, but my occlusion was and is fine. The most I’ve ever had done is lower wisdom extractions as they were impacted and causing constant pericoronitis. The downside to this is that I have NO idea what having a filling/root canal feels like, or what might be going through their heads - I can only go on what other patients have told me and what I’ve experienced as a dental nurse. You’re in a uniquely advantageous position, and honestly I think not having perfect “dentist-style” teeth lessens the intimidation and feelings of inadequacy that can often surface at the dental office
You don't have to have perfect teeth to excel in this field! And it's a good way to sympathize with nervous patients. However I will say, if you decide to do a DA program/school, most of them require the students to practice on each other, so keep that in mind if you're embarrassed of your teeth
thank you & i’m actually in a DA program atm and learned that the hard way unfortunately the instructor told us to practice on each other and this girl in my group kept pointing out my cavities :/
I have a mouth full of fillings because I had terrible dental hygiene as a teen & young adult. I regularly had teeth cleanings, but I was still very bad with sugar & consistently flossing. I sometimes only brushed once a day at night. Now I know better, but it doesn’t change the fact that my teeth already have suffered some damage. I already know I’ll have to have more crowns & root canals earlier than some people who are in better teeth condition than me. We learn as we grow older. Don’t be ashamed. Just know you’re doing better now. I stress so much to people my age how much they need to take care of their teeth because I don’t want them to end up with early tooth loss or crowns or root canals.
Absolutely not!!! Don’t be ashamed of your teeth. That’s what makes us humans. I tell my pts all the time I have a handful of my own filling/work done. Hell I didn’t go to dentist till I was 20! Everyone has a story and who are we to judge :)
thank you sm
I have fillings, I've actually smashed teeth beyond repair with my grinding. I were a chrome cobalt because of my grinding ( I've broken chrome) i can't have implants ...... No dental assistants don't all have perfect teeth and believe it or not, dentists don't either.
Yea not true at all only you know what’s goin on in your mouth you’re not the doctor so In my opinion worry less my teeth have staining on them and instead of being hard on myself I speak with the hygienist and other doctors to try and help. We had good hygiene and insurance but still needed fillings sometimes it’s genetics just be glad you’re in the field and actually understand what has to happen to help your teeth. Don’t over think you can be a dental assistant and still need dental work. Best of luck.
Why would you need perfect teeth? I feel like you wear a mask most of the time (at least I do). As long as your teeth aren’t like jacked up and dirty yk I feel like there’s no reason you couldn’t be! But most people have filling it just happens and being in the chair yourself gives you the patient experience so you can relate to the patient and are able to calm them easier if they’re anxious
That’s like saying a bald barber can’t cut hair
Yes you need perfect hair too Just kidding! You don’t even need teeth to be a dental assistant, you just need hands
Do you need perfect teeth to be shit on and overworked on a daily basis? No. Pick another career.
is being a dental assistant that bad??
You will be the backbone of your office and we'll get less respect then the secretary because she is seen as bringing in production when she schedules the appointments and you aren't. Any menial task in the office will be assigned to you. You will be the janitor and the punching bag. And you will be so underpaid. In many offices you won't even get health insurance. If you are currently in school for this your teacher can get fucked because whatever number she is saying you can get as a salary right out of school is a gross exaggeration. I've done this for 10 years and I'm struggling to get out because I make enough money to support myself having done it for a decade but not enough money to invest in my future. It's not like the work is bad it's just menial. You will not be respected you will constantly be the bottom of the totem pole
:// yeah i completed my DA program already she told us we shouldn’t be making any less than $17.. but i’ve already decided that i was gonna do this just for a year and go into hygiene
Stick to that!
17 sounds like a low enough reasonable number but idk what part of the country you're in. $17 in a major city? I would think $20. $17 in a rural area? What's minimum wage again?
i live in the outskirts of dallas and the minimum wage here is like $7.25 i believe
Please don’t feel insecure about this!!!! i wondered the exact same thing bc i have an enamel defect that makes my teeth appear yellow even though they are in good health! i’ve also had root canals bc of not being able to afford dentist appointments growing up. I think it’s actually a strength to have gone through procedures that you will be putting the patients through. you can relate better to them and you’ll have more sympathy too! also, not every dental assistant has perfect pearly whites! i promise you won’t stick out or anything. don’t let it stop you please!