Reflecting on my journey through dental hygiene school brings up a lot of great memories.
The
last two years have been filled with personal growth, learning, and friendships. I am lucky to have had
such great classmates to get me through it all. Without them, I would not be graduating in a couple
weeks. Dental hygiene school taught me how to persevere, to get comfortable being uncomfortable,
and to step outside the box. Learning so many new things at one time was scary and very foreign to me.
I like being comfortable and knowing what to expect which did not happen a whole lot the last two
years. Dental hygiene school pushed me to be a better version of myself and it was not only
academically challenging but mentally challenging.
I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do after high school. I attended the University of Iowa as a pre-
dentistry major. I enjoyed anatomy and physiology but was also interested in art and music. I was always
doing different things and changing up my routine. Dental hygiene school was like a full-time job with
many chapters to read, tests to study for, and clinic. On top of all that, learning a new skill like
instrumentation was so hard. I had never held a scaler in my hand before and learning how to use it was
difficult. I remember seeing my first patient in clinic. I was stressed and nervous and felt like I did not
know what I was doing. I learn something knew every day in clinic. I have finally developed a routine and
get through one appointment efficiently. I was working as a waitress at the same time to support myself.
I was always busy whether I was at school or at work. I enjoyed having a routine and being productive
even though it was exhausting at times.
I almost can’t believe that I am graduating in a couple weeks. I passed many proficiencies,
treated a lot of patients, and studied many hours to get where I am today. Dental hygiene school forced
me to be very disciplined. There wasn’t a lot of extra time to have a social life and it wasn’t an option to
put schoolwork on the back burner. I had to learn how to buckle down and get things done and
sometimes that meant sacrificing time with family and friends. I am proud of all the things I’ve
accomplished and thankful for the new things I’ve learned from the program. I have a good base
knowledge and I know how to do my job although I know that I will never stop learning throughout this
career.
I learned a lot of things from dental hygiene school and it wasn’t just textbook stuff. I learned a
lot about myself. I am a people pleaser and a perfectionist. I found that sometimes in clinic I was so
worried about what the instructors were thinking or what everyone else was doing that I wasn’t even
paying attention to what was happening in my own operatory. I felt like I wasn’t progressing as fast as I
should due to the high stress environment and it only being a two year program. As the semesters went
by and each time, I came back to clinic more comfortable. I learned how to work with each instructor
individually and got comfortable communicating with my supervising dentist. It wasn’t always easy and
definitely wasn’t perfect but all those experiences have helped shape the dental hygienist I am today.
I have realized that I don’t have to be perfect. I won’t always remove every bit of calculus every
time. I may not please every patient that sits in my chair, and that’s ok. I will do my best and work with
the time I have to help the patient to the best of my abilities. Getting comfortable in uncomfortable
situations is an important factor as a hygienist. Not every appointment is going to go as planned so it’s
important to be able to adapt to the changes and stay calm under pressure.
I look forward to my career as a dental hygienist. I have fallen in love with helping people with
their oral health and overall health. I like the small talk that comes along with each patient during the
appointment, and I am thankful for the connections I’ve made with my instructors, classmates and
patients. I can’t wait to start seeing the same patients every six months and be able to form real
friendships! It hasn’t set in yet that I am graduating and finally moving onto the real world. After feeling
lost for so many years I’ve finally found something I love and am excited to do every day. There were a
lot of days that I doubted myself and my abilities. The doubt crowded my mind a lot of the times and
made me feel like I was going to fail. Although, with every day that passed I continued to push myself
and trust the process. Rachel Vondrak RDH, coming soon!
