Why did you decide to become a dentist?
I’ve been in dentistry since I was a little girl. My parents owned a dental laboratory in the Midwest, where I used to play with stone models, watch the porcelain crowns come out of the oven, and the fire of the gold crowns being cast. My brother became a dentist, and it was natural that I would follow in their footsteps.
Was the profession what you expected?
I graduated from Loma Linda University School of Dentistry in 2015. I reached the finish line, finally achieving this goal I had been working toward since middle school. However, the high was short-lived as I began to figure out exactly how ill-prepared I was for the real world.
First, I was not prepared for how physically and emotionally exhausting the job was, and I would come home with daily hip and back pain. Being an introvert, I was not good at patient communication. I had a hard time explaining diagnoses and treatments to patients, and had my share bad online reviews. Secondly, I did not know how to plan for the real world, and being conservative in my treatment planning meant I was always the lowest-producing dentist, making me feel like I was constantly failing. I finally hit rock bottom when I saw my clinical cases fail. At this point, I wanted to quit.
How did you turn your career around?
I knew that I needed to improve my knowledge of clinical dentistry and gain confidence in my work. So I started investing in continuing education courses—a lot. I took courses ranging from biomimetic dentistry to occlusion. It took a few years, but gaining the knowledge and predictability in my outcomes is what helped me start to enjoy dentistry.
How did you get started on Instagram?
In 2020, I started my Instagram at the urging of a mentor who believed posting clinical cases publicly on social media would push us to improve rapidly. I was initially scared to start sharing my work, as it was not good, especially next to the picture-perfect cases on the 'gram, but my priority was to try and improve.
In the end, I followed the advice of my mentor and started posting. I was still afraid of the trolls, so I started sharing all my thoughts on the cases I posted. I would point out my mistakes and frustrations. I had so many self-doubts that I figured no troll could be harder on me than I was on myself.
But something magical happened during this process. People began to reach out and tell me how much they related to my thoughts and feelings. So many others felt anxious about their jobs, struggled with patient management, and worried about their clinical work, just like me.
I always thought I was unique in my struggles, but I was wrong. The realization that I was not alone on this journey brought me comfort. Dentistry tends to be a lonely job where we are only exposed to a few other dentists in our offices and immediate circle, but with social media, this circle can be widened globally. I now know dentists worldwide and have even learned about different cultures and economies; our struggles are similar. Four years later, I am still creating content. These days, I post about everything from my restorative cases to educational information, weightlifting, and finances, all to show my career journey to other dentists.
Are you ready to shine the spotlight on the brilliant young dentists who are revolutionizing the world of dental care? Submit your nomination today!
