Today was such a great day in clinic. I really enjoyed being able to identify all of the tools that I have purchased and be able to understand why I have so many scalers. I hopefully will be able recall the names of them but I am sure that will take me a little more time. It is amazing how many scalers there are and have to remember which one is rigid enough to be able to scale off the most difficult calculus. Oh, and the best thing about today is there was some time to be able to practice probing. Yes, I am still not comfortable and I am not feeling confident that I can pass the probing PE. However, I didn't stress myself out but tried to calm myself down and tried to take as much from the experience as possible. Oh, and I am ahead with the PE's because of the extra time that we had today.

1 hour is never enough

I feel like every day I get further and further behind. I don't know if 1 hour of probing and then 1 hour of exploring is enough. I don't know how I am going to catch up and especially pass off the PE's for them. I feel lost, scared that I am not going to be good, and frustrated that we can't have more time. This can't be good after only 1 month of school and I have at least two more months before I have to have a patient. I tried practicing on my typodont this weekend but it isn't the same as real gingiva, blood, and someone screaming in pain.

I have to say that today was better than last week. I enjoyed learning how to explore more than probing. I really focused on trying to calm myself down and focusing on the one thing at a time, but this next couple of months are really going to be difficult for me.

I'm mine own worst critic

Yesterday was a really rough day for me. It seemed like nothing was going right but how could things go right when I was so uptight and didn't let myself think. In clinic today we learned how to probe, but I limited how much I learned by freaking out and not letting myself just try. I need to remember that it is my first day and I will never be perfect or even the best on my first day. I don't have the experience as others in my class with working with little instruments and my reflection in the mirror. I really just need to relax and just have fun. Of course, I need to take something from the day and work on it. I brought my typodont home just to get more comfortable with the angles but I really have a hard time finding the col on a person and getting back on the back molars. It is something that I am just going to have to practice but not let it get to me or break me down. My mom explained to me that I am my own worst critic and I have always been this way but I need to change that about myself or I won't be able to get the most of school. It is hard to hear things like that but I am really going to try to keep that in mind for now on and work on it. I also need to not worry about hurting my poor pod partner. I am grateful for a patient pod partner like Jenny. I don't think anyone else would be as wonderful of a pod partner with me working on their teeth.

My goal from this experience is to not worry anymore because it only hinders me and my opportunity to grow.

Yippee! I passed off my Health History PE

Yesterday we worked on intraoral examinations and instrument grasp fulcrum. I think that my biggest challenge is trying to work with a mirror and an instrument in both hands and thinking of the proper way to hold both instruments. I tend to focus on one instrument and forget about the other. I am really horrible at the mirror already and then throwing another instrument in my care is definitely more difficult for me. I plan on sitting with the TA's and practicing it with them. I also plan on taking my typodont that has the cheeks home and practicing on it. I really want it to become second nature to me.

And of course....I passed of my Health History PE! I have many more to hurry and pass off.