Personal Narrative: Changing My Teeth

As a four-year old, I was unfortunate enough to have my four, upper front teeth surgically removed. Due to the absence of these teeth, I had a speech impediment early in my life and could not properly hold a conversation without people noticing my abnormality. Though this was “cute” from an adult’s perspective, the playful jesters that targeted my missing smile and my mispronunciation of particular words made me tremendously self-conscious. As my teeth grew out, my smile only became worse and I would take all measures to avoid showing my teeth by avoiding interaction with others. Consequently, I was one of the more reserved kids in elementary school. However, this introverted lifestyle of mine took a turn for the better once my dental insurance offered to pay for my braces. In two and a half years, this magical wire …show more content…
By the time high school started, I was able to a replace my closed-mouth smile with wide grin, spanning from cheek to cheek. Just by people commenting on how I had a great smile made me feel as if I was a new person. In all honesty, I can attribute my non-academic successes such as holding several leadership positions not because I simply looked better but because my self-confidence skyrocketed and turned me into a more charismatic and sociable person. This is exactly why I want to be dentist – to provide service to those that have faced similar challenges and also share the joy, benefits, and proud smile that I now have. Coming from a long ancestry of doctors and nurses, I have always dreamed of working in the medical field to share my compassion of helping fellow human beings. Among the many health professions that have sparked my interests, I became set on dentistry only after my freshman year in college. This is primarily due to fact that I wanted to be 100% positive that I would be following a career path I would thoroughly enjoy for the rest of my