Real patient day a.k.a "torture little brother day"

PHEW. Real patient day is over. It was stressful! It went by so fast, and I only got through the OHI. It was craziness. My little brother, Ben, was my patient. He was awesome. Poor kid. He's only 18 and he has like 12 "suspicious areas" and two 4mm pockets. I can't wait to clean his teeth next semester.

Operator day #2

Woohoo! I finished my first patient from start to finish. What a relief! Today wasn't too bad. I only had 3 quads to do today because I got one finished on Monday. I also passed off my sealant PE. There were no problems today at all. I tried on Megan's loupes for about 5 minutes while scaling. I still haven't decided if I want to get some or not. I probably will. I am going to try on a bunch at the ADA convention in March.

All I need now is a dr. pepper.

mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm. tasty stuff.

Operator day#1

Today I was the operator and Karen was my patient. I got through the HHx, HHxRx, OD, OHI, and one quad of scaling. I scaled her lower right quadrant. The time went by so fast today it was craziness. It went pretty well. I was in a big hurry while scaling. It has been such a long time since I have scaled that it was really hard to remember what I was supposed to be doing. I'm hoping that Wednesday will go smoother.

Week of relaxation

This week and next week are mock-patient week. We are each spending two clinic sessions working on another student or being their patient. This week has been simple because I'm the patient! It's been nice to lay in the chair and relax. I am paired up with Karen for the next two weeks. I had never worked with Karen before and I'm glad she's my partner. She has done a great job this week. My teeth feel super clean. I am glad that she went first as the operator so that I could observe the way that she did things. Hopefully, I won't be too flustered when she is my patient!

Air-powder polish pass off and FLUORIDE!

Today we passed off our air-powder polishing PE and our fluoride PE. I was with Adrienne again today. We both despise the air-powder polisher. I would never use it on a patient unless I absolutely had to because I hate it being done on me.

We learned how to sharpen instruments today. I hope I'm doing it right. I don't want to ruin my instruments.

I also passed off my Eaglesoft walk-out PE today. I wasn't bad. We only have TWO more PE's to pass of this semester! Sharpening and sealants. This semester has flown by.

Sealant day!

Sealant day was awesome! I love doing sealants. Adrienne was my patient today and she was fabulous. I really like using the Clinpro sealant material because I like that it is pink before you cure it with the light. It makes it easier to see where you are putting it. I did three sealants on Adrienne today: #29, #30, and #31. It was super fun. Sealants are one of my favorite things to do.

Instructor Chaffe used the diagnodent on some of us and she told me I have cavities! I am ticked! I have never had a cavity before. I am going to have my dentist check and see if it is right. I haven't learned much about the diagnodent, but I'm hoping it was wrong. Eeeek!!

Polishing with salt. Lovely.

Today was disgusting. We learned air-powder polishing and rubber-cup polishing. Air-powder polishing is freaking nasty. I felt like there was an ocean full of salt in my mouth. It didn't feel great either. I would feel bad doing it on a patient just because I know how awful it tastes! I keep brushing salt off of my face. It is all gritty. YUCK. Rubber-cup polishing was just the same old thing I've done before. Then we put fluoride varnish on eachother. Holy vomit. That stuff is terrible. I can still feel it on my teeth. My teeth are sticky together. The taste is the worst part. It's making me sick to my stomach. We are all thoroughly grossed out.

Then.... passing off the dental screening PE! I stressed out over it last night a lot. But I did pretty well! I passed. Woo hoo!

My tummy is grumbly. STARVING.

Peace out hommies.

10/25/10

It wasn't my best day. When I went to leave my house this morning my car wouldn't start so I was almost late to clinic. Stressful. Mostly we just passed off our OHI and intraoral camera PE's today with a tiny bit of time for practicing instrumentation. I feel like I'm getting WORSE at posterior instrumentation. So frustrating. I was super nervous during my PE's too so I struggled through them. Oh well. Hopefully better next time!

Operator all day.... CRAZINESS.

I was the operator all wednesday AND I had 4 PE's to pass off. I was super stressed. But I got it all done! Phew. It was a good experience to do everything in order like we would on a real patient. We have learned everything separate but we hadn't combined everything into one session yet. I definitely need to review everything so that I don't forget anything. It is a lot to remember!

Fantastic Patient

Today I was just a patient. I layed in a chair and held open my mouth. It was a nice nap time for me. Jodie worked on me today. She did great. I am a little stressed because next time I have to pass off 4 PE's but hopefully it won't be too bad because Jodie is my patient the whole time and we aren't switching. I'm sure there will be enough time to do everything.

All in all, a good day in clinic. A good time to rest! Time for lunch!

Dental Screening Day

Today in clinic we did dental screenings on eachother. (we checked to find any cavities or exisiting fillings, bridges, crowns, implants, etc.) I thought it would be harder to tell than it is, but it's still a little bit tricky sometimes. I'm going to have to study the ways to chart everything because it is a lot different than I am used to.

I passed off my probing PE and my instrument classification PE today! I'm feeling pretty good about it. I can't wait for the weekend. I think I'm coming down with something. I'm not feeling great today. :(

Oral Hygiene Instruction

Today was pretty fun in clinic. We learned about oral hygiene instruction. We got to use disclosing solution on each other's teeth and figure out their PFI (plaque free index). It was really interesting to see. My PFI was not what I thought it would be. I need to really work on keeping my permanent retainers clean. That is where the majority of my plaque was. Also, I need to floss better.

I passed off my explorer PE! It feels good to have that over with. Time for lunch. I'm starving!

Barnhart day!

Today was barnhart day. (techincally it was universal instrumentation day, but what the heck?)It was the best day I've had in clinic so far. I felt like I understood the concept and I was on top of my game. I'm starting to feel more confident about things. I was going to pass off my explorer PE today but there wasn't enough time. So I'll do it on monday.

My partner today was Jamie. She is a great patient and a great clinician! She's a little timid, but awesome nonetheless!

Over and out!

Anterior Instrumentation Baby!

FINALLY!

Actual instrumentation. I've been looking forward to this since day one. I did a LOT better today than I have been doing. It is helping me a lot to practice on Larry (my typodont) at home. I really need to work on my indirect vision. The lingual aspect of the maxillary anteriors is hard for me because it's hard to figure out which direction I should be moving when I'm looking in it.

I'm starving! Totally stoked for lunch today.

Ta, ta!

SCIENCE SATURDAY

Science Saturday was pretty cool. It was a little bit slow, but the kids that we saw were all super cute. It still didn't take away my fear of having children someday. It scares me to death. BUT, since I'm not married or dating anyone I don't need to worry about it yet. My favorite part of the day?

This video..... playing over and over and over.....

Sterilization mode!

Today in clinic we put all of of instruments in the cassettes and bags the way they are supposed to be and we are sterilizing everything! Woo hoo! You know what that means?! Soon we'll be using them. Nice.

I had a problem with one of my mirrors today. I was trying to screw the mirror portion into the cone socket on one of them and it wouldn't screw in. So Professor Costley tried to fix it and my mirror ended up breaking. It was kind of funny, except I'm short one mirror now. She is going to get me a new one.

We also practiced exploring more. I worked on Ashley today. She has braces so it was hard to do on the buccal surface of the tooth. I practiced a TON on Larry (my trusty typodont) at home so I am learning new angles so that I can actually fulcrum in most areas. The posterior teeth are still a beast though. I'll practice more over the weekend and hopefully I can figure out how to make it work with my short fingers.

Terrible day.

Today was AWFUL. I don't know if it could have been any worse for me. I have really been struggling ever since we learned how to fulcrum. I kept getting so frustrated, thinking that I am just retarded or something since everyone is doing fine. I was having such a hard time fulcruming because it felt impossible for my ring finger to reach any of the teeth so that I can actually fulcrum and use the instrument correctly at the same time.

Instructor Demings was so nice today to spend a lot of time with me to try to figure out my problem. I was getting so frustrated. After many failed attempts, she brought in the big guns. (Professor Costley) I explained to Professor Costley my problem about how i can't seem to reach any of the teeth to fulcrum and maintain the right grasp (or any grasp for that matter) and use the instrument correctly all at the same time. I showed her what I meant. She had me try choking up on the instrument, trying numerous incorrect grasps, and many other things. Nothing works. My fingers are too short. My ring finger literally can't reach the area I'm supposed to be fulcruming on. BIG PROBLEM. I never thought that the fact that I am tiny would ever effect my ability to be a dental hygienist.

Professor Costley told me that she honestly doesn't know what I should do. She is going to talk to all of the instructors in the program to see if any of them can come up with a solution to my problem. She said they've never had this problem before. I am totally stressed out. I've been super bummed about it all day. I've wanted to be a dental hygienist since I was eight years old. I am so sad. I really hope we can figure out something. Until then I'll probably remain very anxious and unhappy.

UGH.

It's only wednesday?!

Phew. What a week. I can't believe it's only half over! I still have two tests to take before the end of the week. Head and neck anatomy and Statistics. LAME. I'm mostly just worried about stats. I am so far from being a math person. Taking an online math class wasn't one of the brightest ideas I've ever had.

Today in clinic we practiced probing! I've been excited for this day for a long time! It is a lot harder than it looks. I've learned so far that pretty much everything about dental hygiene is harder than I thought it was going to be. I think it's too bad that many people don't know all that it takes for people to become a dental hygienist.

Fulcruming? What the.....

Oh my heck. Today in clinic was SO incredibly frustrating. I can't seem to get it. Posterior teeth are the worst. Anterior teeth are hard too. I feel like I suck! It kept trying and trying but just couldn't get it. Instructor Demings kept trying to help me out but what she was saying wasn't making sense to me.

I had two slight "Ah HA!" moments but it did me no good because I still couldn't seem to apply them correctly. Poor Adrienne had to endure my frustration while I tried over and over and over on her but she was awesome about it. We didn't have time to pass off our Health History PE's today so I feel like I am really behind. I am so stressed out.

I have so much homework to do tonight along with a test tomorrow in Perry's class and our readiness assessment in Costley's class. I don't know how to fit it all in. I hope I can get a hang of this.

Extra oral exams!

Today in clinic we learned how to perform an extra oral exam and also how to use our mouth mirrors properly in the mouth. Professor Costley used me as the demo student and performed an extra oral exam on me. It was fun to sit in the chair! Fulcruming isn't too bad but I need to practice so that I can find what is the most comfortable for me.

So far, I'm loving school! It is hard and there is a lot to take in but I'm still loving every second of it!

health histories and vital signs

The last two clinic sessions have been more stressful for me. There is a lot to remember when filling out the treatment sheet with the health history information. I'm worried that I'm going to forget something. I also have never taken vital signs before so that was a new experience for me. I am going to have to practice on my brother and parents so that I can get it down really well. I'm sure it will all become second nature to me eventually. Practice makes perfect, right?

I am running for Junior class vice president and Junior class representative. I'm also running for some committee co-chair positions but i REALLY want to either be Junior class vice president or Junior class representative. I really want to get involved. It would be a great experience for me and I've always wanted to be in a leadership position. I would give it 110% and love it.

VOTE FOR ME!

8-1!

Today in clinic we learned all about the postions we should/shouldn't sit in, the correct posture to have, and where our chair should be positioned when we are cleaning certain areas of the patient's mouth. Because I'm right handed, I sit between 8 o'clock and 1 o'clock while working on my patient. I tested it out on Larry (my trusty typodont) and it was really helpful for me. I learned that I can see all of the areas in the mouth AND maintain correct posture all at the same time.

I also tried on a pair of Loupes and I am in love with them! I am definitely going to get a pair. I'm excited to try on a bunch of different kinds at the UDHA convention this month and see which kind works best for me.

I need to practice my suctioning "skills"

Clinic was fun today! We learned how to set up everything with barriers, clean up and disinfect, and how to bag our instruments. We also practiced seating each other and suctioning out each others mouths. Karlie was my "patient." I did really well suctioning on her up until I tried to use the high volume evacuator with my left hand. As an assistant, I always used it in my right hand so it is something I am definitely not used to. I have a weak left hand and wrist because of it so I kept suctioning up Karlie's lips and cheeks. It was PERFECT timing that while I was doing just that, Professor Costley walked in and watched me. She started laughing and told me to try not to give Karlie a hickey. Hahaha, awkward. I definitely need to practice that skill (or lack of skill).

BlueBoa, Tymphodont practice, and Handwashing

Today in clinic was good. We had the inventor of the BlueBoa evacuation system come and teach us how to use it. I practiced using it on my tymphodont, who I have named Larry. We all learned the proper way to wash our hands, and put on all of our Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). I am going to be roasting wearing scrubs, my lab coat, a mask, safety glasses, and gloves. I might pass out one day on top of my patient. (Hopefully not!)

I'm a lot less stressed today that I was after my first and second day of hygiene school. I can't believe it's only Wednesday though! I am so excited to learn new things and do lots of hands on stuff. The best part is, I'm not in this alone. There are 28 other awesome girls. We're going to do great!

First Clinic Day!

The first day of clinic ran smoothly. I'm glad that I was able to put all of my instruments in my unit and get familiar with everything. I am much less anxious about everything now that I am aware of where everything is. I am in pod 1 with Adrienne, Ashley, and Karlie. I'm sure we'll become pod buddies soon. This is all so exciting for me! I have a dental operatory to use and everything works perfectly! The only downside of clinic is that I am going to be boiling hot in all of the stuff I need to wear. There are lots of layers. I'll get used to it. We can all sweat together. Yay, clinic!

One more day til school starts!

Tomorrow is the big day! I'm so ready for it. Waking up early isn't my forte, but I'll make it work and get used to it. I have everything labeled and ready to go. I'm betting that it will be hard to sleep tonight because of the anticipation. I can't wait to finally start on my journey in the dental hygiene program!

Last day of work!

Today was my last day at the dentist office I've worked at for almost three years. It's a little bit sad but I am so excited to start the dental hygiene program! It's been my dream for as long as I can remember. Tomorrow is CPR class. YES.

first post!

Testing 1,2,3. . .


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