Culminating Blog Reflection

I never thought this day would actually come! I can finally say I'm ALMOST done with senior project. I'm almost there!

Honestly, this whole experience was stressful. From the very start, I just couldn't wait for this project to be over. I never intended on doing dentistry in the first place. I really wanted to do something along pediatrics, preferably, pediatric nursing. Due to liability issues and time constraints, I realized I couldn't find a mentor on time. I had to do a lot of critical thinking when looking for a mentor. Finally, I decided I had to turn to my parents for help and ask them to find me whoever was willing to let me job shadow them. Fortunately, my parents were able to convince their friend, Dr. Yamat to let me job shadow at her office. I was really sad at first because like I said, I really wanted to pediatric nursing but I just told myself I had to deal with it because it was better than nothing. A lot of communication was involved primarily because I had to communicate with my mentor in order for me to understand dentistry. Just watching what she does is obviously not enough. I had to ask her a lot of questions about her profession. It really made me step out of my comfort zone. Collaborating with my mentor as well was also done because we had to figure out when I was going to come in and observe. Both of our schedules were really different. Most days I was available were days she was not and days she was were days I was not. Moreover, since there are a lot of other students job shadowing her in the office, she really didn't want it to become crowded so we had to set up a time schedule. Creativity was used as well because I had to be creative in how to try to understand dentistry. There are many technical terms in this profession and I had to find ways in which I can understand the language. I also had to find good ways in communicating with the patients. Some were really interested in learning about this project and others were there just to do business which made situations awkward.

This capstone project made me realize the increase of responsibility I need in order for me to make my way around the adult world. Being an adult is tough! Trying to balance school, church, and my mentor hours was really challenging for me. This resulted in me not being able to do as many hours as I hoped I would do. Moreover, I also realized how much liability adults have on them and how easy it is for one to get in trouble if they don't handle the situation. Also, the fact that I had to step out of my comfort zone to talk to strangers did improve my social skills. I'm still a shy person but when I'm in situations where I just HAVE to talk to people, I will. I'm happy this project helped me with my social skills. It made me a not-so-much of an awkward person anymore! Intellectually, this project made me more away of my oral hygiene habits. I'm glad I was able to learn more about the proper way in maintaining good oral hygiene.

Like I mentioned before some of the challenges I encountered was really trying to balance everything out. I had personal obligations I had to fulfill so trying to get in as many hours with my mentor seemed impossible. I also had to give up a lot of social events that went on just so I can work on this project, especially when it came to writing the research paper. Writing the research paper was not much of an issue for me, but trying to find time and motivation to write it was a big challenge. Senioritis really got to me during this last semester and it just got to the point where I really didn't care about what I got on the paper. I really needed to figure out how to manage my time wisely. I eventually figured it out because I'm here now! Another challenge I faced was trying to step out of my comfort zone. Like I mentioned before, I'm a pretty shy person and I usually don't like asking questions, especially when I know someone is really busy. But I really needed to ask questions since I wouldn't learn anything if I didn't. I also forced myself to talk to the patients so I can build friendly relationships with them.

Overall, this project was a really good experience and it really gave me a lot of insight to the adult world. It was a very stressful journey but I'm really glad I did it and I know for a fact that I'm going to use what I learned in the near future.

Mentor Log #7

So Tuesday, May 7 was my last day at the dental office. Business was the same as usual. I learned more about the machine used to fix dentures. The dentist was trimming the extra acrylic on the dentures which came from the pink paste mixture they used. The dentures also have different colors on the surface and I learned that the reason behind this is because dentists use different acrylic. Throughout time, the different acrylic will produce different colors on the dentures. I also watched another bridge installment procedure. I gained more in-depth knowledge about this procedure. The dentist would make the mold directly from the mouth. Then, they would use the mold and send it to the laboratory to make the bridge (teeth). I also watched another procedure where a patient was getting her molars polished. The patient has braces and also had molar bands. The molar bands holds the wire of the braces on her teeth. I also realized how much stress dentists go through when things don't go the way they expect it to be. The patient getting her molars polished kept complaining because the molar bands weren't the proper size and the dentist was getting stressed out. The overall lesson here is that dentists deal with different patients everyday and they all require special individual attention. Dr. Yamat also told me that their average work day is usually around 8-10 hours depending on the patients.


Total: 2 Hours

Running Total: 26 Hours

Mentor Log #6

On Tuesday, April 30, I was able to witness another type of dentist procedure. One patient was receiving a bridge delivery, which is when a dentist replaces a missing or infected tooth with artificial ones. The patient I watched had broken and infecting looking teeth. At first, the dentist took out the temporary teeth out and put the new/bridge teeth over the broken one. Unlike the temporary teeth, the bridge implant had metal in it. The dentist also uses this molding tool so they will be able to find the right size for the temporary and bridge implant. However, the bridge did look very artificial compared to her real teeth but nonetheless, the patient's smile was beautiful! The procedure also looked very painful because the patient would constantly tense up and her gums would bleed. I was also able to help Dr. Yamat with the x-rays. Although my only task was to press the button, I was really excited because I actually felt useful for once. Aside from the new things I learned that day, I also witnessed a patient receive a filling, general cleaning, and a patient getting her braces tightened. What I noticed about the patient getting her braces tightened was that it was really different compared to the way I got my braces tightened. Dr. Yamat would take off her wires and give her a general cleaning. I asked if it was a cleaning but she told me she was just getting her braces tightened. I thought it was really cool because she would actually clean her teeth whereas when I got my braces tightened, they would just replace the wire and I would be done.

I honestly can't wait to go back a few more times before this project is done. I'm learning so much! I still have a lot of questions to ask but nonetheless, I'm starting to find dentistry a lot more enjoyable than I imagined.

Total: 3.5 Hours

Running Total: 24 Hours

Mentor Log #5

So last Tuesday, April 16, I took the opportunity of the whole star-testing schedule to go to my mentor much earlier than usual. I arrived there around two and the place was packed with patients. Every single chair had a person sitting in it waiting for Dr. Yamat and her assistants to do their procedure. The first patient I watched was getting a crown delivery. The assistant told me that she needed to receive a crown delivery because her real tooth was all messed up. Fillings, she said, are also not going to help so they make a fake looking tooth to mimick the temporary one she had in her mouth. The patient had to take her blood pressure first, as usual, for safety reasons. From what I observed, Dr. Yamat took out the temporary tooth (it looked like a half of a tooth) and put in the crown delivery. The patient also told Dr. Yamat that the temporary one was getting colored by the food she would eat. After putting the crown delivery in, they used a blue light which is called the curing light because it hardens the cement placed on the tooth.

The next patient I witnessed was a man receiving a deep cleaning. I thought it was really weird because the man uses dentures and before the procedure, they had to take the dentures out. Dr. Yamat was telling him that he has gum problems so she would really go in between his real teeth and underneath the gums. The dentist also told him he had a lot of tar. Moreover, she said that she needed to realign his dentures. The assistant took his dentures to this one machine that I guess took off some scum off the base and then took this pink powder called Jet Denture Repair Powder to make it into a sticky paste so it would stick on the roof of his mouth. The paste helps the dentures keep it tight. Before she put the dentures back, Dr. Yamat put it these things that look like screws and this yellow paste that would get hard after a few seconds. I'm not really sure what it was or what she was doing and I forgot to ask her afterwards because there was just too many patients waiting!

The next patient I watched was a patient getting his braces tightened. I kind of came during the middle of the procedure so all i really saw was Dr. Yamat trying to put in the last wire on his bottom teeth. The last patient I saw that day was a woman also getting a deep cleaning. Unlike the other patient, this woman's teeth was clean and very well taken care of. Just like any other deep cleaning I saw, Dr. Yamat would really dig into her teeth.

What I learned on this day is that dentistry is so tiring! After spending a little over three hours in the office, I was exhausted. Exhausted from walking back and forth from patient to patient and looking at people's mouths. What I also learned is how the dentist would try to build friendly relationships with the patients. I remember thinking how annoying it was to have the dentist talk to me while they were working on my teeth. But I realized how awkward it also is when they just sit there and work. All in all, I realized the hard work that people really do put into their jobs everyday for the benefit of others. No wonder they get paid a lot!

Total: 3.5 Hours

Running Total: 20.5 Hours.

Mentor Log #4

On Tuesday, April 9, I was able to watched a man receive a regular cleaning and a tooth extraction. I was really excited because like I mentioned in my previous posts, the most I saw was a bunch of tooth cleanings. The man was getting his third molar out, which is really just a wisdom tooth. After the cleaning and before the procedure, he was giving me advice about how I should get my wisdom teeth pulled out as soon as possible because he said it's much harder once you're older. Anyways, during the procedure, Dr. Yamat and her assistant kept giving him anesthesia because he kept tensing up and they needed to make sure that his blood pressure didn't get too high enough or it will lead to major consequences. She would also have to take breaks because his blood pressure would get too high. Dr. Yamat was also having a hard time trying to pull out the tooth. She mentioned how she was able to pull out the other two molars easier before. Because of this, she said that she had to split the tooth. I wasn't able to ask her about the tools she was using because first, I didn't want to break her concentration and second, she went off to work on another patient right after. Anyways, the tools she was using looked like a bunch of screwdrivers. She would use to to dig into the gums while her assistant would use the "sucker" to suck out the blood. There were times where I couldn't even look because it looked very painful. It felt as if I could feel the pain too! When she finally pulled it out, the tooth was really small. It was much smaller than I expected. After the procedure, they gave him an ice pack and told him to rest. I didn't want to talk to him because I feel like it would just hurt him. Overall, as disgusting as the procedure was, I thought it was really interesting. I cringed most of the time but I was very interested. I couldn't wait to see something cool like that next time.

On Friday, April 12, I went into the office again hoping that I would witness something just as cool as I did on Tuesday. Unfortunately, they said that there isn't much going on when I got there so I just watched a patient receive a regular cleaning. Dr. Yamat's assistant kept telling the patient that she needed to brush and floss more because her gums kept bleeding. To be honest, that advice is something I really kept at heart. Watching the patient helped me remember of my old habits. I used to hate flossing, especially when I had braces. But because my dentist would tell me that my gums would always bleed, I started to take her advice more seriously not only because it would improve my oral health, but because she would tell me that in front of other patients and it was just really embarrassing.

I really do this this whole experience got a lot more interesting than I expected. I really do hope to see a little bit more before my time is up.

Tuesday, April 9: 3.5 hours
Friday, April 12: 1.5 hours
Total: 5 hours

Running total: 17 hours

Theme/Motif in The Great Gatsby

One of the most important themes in F. Scott Fritzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby, is the theme of the American dream. The American dream can be defined as someone who becomes happy and successful in life through hard work. Fritzgerald uses this theme to show how the American dream can fail. Although Gatsby became rich, he did it through illegal practices, the practice of prohibition. He did this because he thought he would be able to win the love of Daisy Buchanan. Unfortunately, his American dream only failed due to his obliviousness to the faces of reality. The reality of realizing that his money will never be the same compared to the Buchanans who were actually born in the American dream. Aside from Gatsby, Myrtle Wilson is also another person trying to achieve the American dream. Her desperation to reach that goal goes to the extent that she would cheat on her husband with Tom so she would be able to receive all the material items that rich people would have. She likes to act as if she belongs to the upper-class. However, it is obvious that she can never be part of the upper-class such as when Tom punches her in the face for mentioning Daisy's name. Tom shows that just because she's dress like she's rich, it doesn't mean that she's actually rich which means that she has no right to speak about them in vain. Tom shows that he is much superior than her and will always be.

A motif in this novel is the color green. The color green is seen through money and the green light on the dock.Green money represents the people's desire to attain wealth which is also the American dream. The green light represents Gatsby's dream-Daisy. He uses that green light to watch Daisy on her dock. He would always admire her whenever he saw her.

A Modern Hero

A modern hero is defined to be someone who is your average every day man. However, that person carries a sense of human weakness which causes them to make sacrifices for the sake of the greater good. An example of a modern hero would be Jay Gatsby from F. Scott Fritzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby's human weakness of becoming wealthy for the sake of his relationship with Daisy Buchanan only leads to his own tragic downfall, thus making him a modern hero.

Just like any other modern hero, Jay Gatsby appears to be an average man. In the eyes of the public, he is young and very wealthy. However, after learning about his past, readers learn that Jay Gatsby is not the same man in which the other characters in the novel, aside form Nick Carraway, sees him to be. For instance, readers learn that unlike Tom and Daisy Buchanan, Gatsby is not born into wealth and privilege, but rather comes from a poor farm family. However, Gatsby likes to portray himself as if he is born wealthy and would create stories of where he comes from, such as when he lies to Nick about him coming from San Francisco. Gatsby's goal to achieve the American Dream only blinds him as he continues to lie about his identity. Even Nick Carraway is able to see right through Gatsby's lies when he compares Gatsby's idealism to a world that a seventeen year-old boy would create. The fact that another person can identify Gatsby's fake identity shows that Gatsby is only an average man who has high hopes and dreams in life. 

Not only does Gatsby like to think he is rich and wealthy, but he also blinds himself from facing reality. For example, Gatsby's unconditional love for Daisy Buchanan causes him to think that she is the most perfect human being he has ever seen. He uses his fake persona to attract Daisy because he thinks this is the only way that she will be attracted to him and therefore, be willing to marry him. However, it is obvious to  readers that Daisy is nothing close to perfect for she is only in for the money. Gatsby does not realize that if it wasn't for the army suit he wore when Daisy first saw him, she would have never cared for him in the first place. Gatsby likes to think this way because this is what he expects to happen in his own idealistic world. He expects that if he continues to put on his fake identity, not only will Daisy accept him, but the rest of society as well. He believes this is the only way he will gain their respect. However, as much as one tries to run away from the past, they can never get away from it because the past will always be there behind them. Gatsby does not realize this because he is so caught up in his own idealistic world that he cannot even distinguish whats real and not real. He can't realize that just because he is rich does not mean he is actually rich. The fact that he had to go to turn to illegal ways, such as bootlegging, shows that he will never be like Tom and Daisy. 

Gatsby's desire to become rich for Daisy only leads to his own tragic downfall. Not only is Nick able to see right through Gatsby's lies, but Tom Buchanan as well. Although Tom's actions leads to Gatsby's death, it is Gatsby himself who actually brings himself to his downfall. Gatsby's unconditional love for Daisy causes him to lie for her and also causes Tom to show strong hatred towards him, resulting in the action of killing him. If it wasn't for his fake identity, none of what happened to Gatsby would happen in the first place. However, the fact that he decides to put on an act for Daisy shows that Gatsby is unable to move on from his "American Dream". He is unable to move past his "perfect world" simply because he believes he finally found his dream: finally being able to spend his life with Daisy. It is evident in the end that Gatsby did not achieve his goal after readers learn that none of the people, except his father and Nick, he thought accepted him didn't even go to his own funeral. This only proves that in reality, Gatsby never really achieved the life he thought to have lived after all. He never realized that he never really did have money, a lot friends, or Daisy.  

Gatsby's struggle to achieve the American Dream only leads to his own downfall. His weakness of trying to become rich for the love of Daisy Buchanan is what makes him a modern hero. 

Mentor Log #3

So I forgot to blog about my last two mentor days because I've been so busy! So I decided to just combine those two days together.

On Tuesday, March 12, the office wasn't that busy so there wasn't that much to do that day. Most of the patients during the time I came were only getting cleanings. I watched one patient receive a deep cleaning. A deep cleaning, in Dr. Yamat's words, is just like a regular cleaning but they dig much deeper in the gum line so they can get rid of the bacteria. The words only make the procedure sound more painful than it really is. Of course she numbed the patient with novocaine (the numbing drug) so she wouldn't feel a thing. She kept asking her if she was alright and offered her some more of the drug if she ever starts  to feel uncomfortable. When I was watching, I couldn't stop cringing because it really did look painful. There were times when the patient's gum would bleed which made the experience even more horrifying. The dentist says that the gums bleed due to lack of flossing since there is a lot of bacteria that build up there if left uncleaned. After watching this, I found that this procedure was disgusting, yet intriguing at the same time. As much as I didn't want to  look, I was curious and just wanted to see more. After, she asked me if I just wanted to help at the front desk. I helped sort papers and organized some files on the computer. It seems so simple, but the task is so boring. I came to a conclusion that I can never work in an office.

The following Tuesday, March 19, I went to the dentist office again hoping that I was going to witness something cool that day. To my luck, Dr. Yamat asked me if I wanted to try x-raying one side of a patient's teeth. At first, I hesitated because obviously, I didn't know a clue about the machine. But she told me the basics of how to properly position it. It seemed so simple but after seeing the results the x-ray was totally off. Dr. Yamat told me to try it again but it was only worse. I was getting frustrated so I told her to just take it from there. I hate how they make it look so easy, but I mean, they're trained professionals so it shouldn't be a surprised. After a failed attempt at x-raying, I just watched another teeth cleaning. I finally asked her what that paste they used to polish teeth. She told me it's called prophylaxis paste. This paste is sort of like toothpaste and is used to make teeth shiny. She told me that they don't sell those in stores because using too much can damage the enamel After, she applied some fluoride foam which lasted for about 30 seconds. She said that this helps strengthen the teeth.

I think I found this whole experience more interesting once I learned about some of the different products they used. I'm hoping I will be able to learn more about more tools and different procedures next time.

Tuesday, March 12: 3.5 hours
Tuesday, March 19: 3 hours
Total: 6 hours

Running total: 12 hours

Mentor Log #2

On Tuesday, February 5, I watched my mentor do a teeth cleaning on a patient. She told me that she was doing a regular cleaning which is basically cleaning the outside of the teeth. At first, I didn't really think it would be interesting because all you really do is check if the person has cavities or not and use that special paste to clean the teeth against the enamel. After the cleaning, she checked for cavities. From my point of view, it seemed as if she was digging into the patient's teeth very roughly. It made me cringe and not want to look. After the cleaning, I watched her work on a patient with braces. It wasn't really anything new. It was just like the last time I went. The patient needed to get his braces tightened. It was like a regular checkup. After that, there wasn't really much to do since there wasn't much patients assigned that day. After watching Dr. Yamat, she asked me if I could help clean around the office. I sweeped the floor, threw the used "bibs" away, and placed some of the dental instruments in the sink. She told me that I don't have to clean the instruments because they used this special procedure to clean it. It was pretty much a chill day. I hope next time, I will be able to learn more about the procedure of cleaning the instruments and a variety of patients who need special treatment such as the patient last week who had to fix his implants.

HOURS: 3

TOTAL HOURS: 6

Mentor Log #1

On January 29, I was really excited to finally start my hours at the dental office. When I first got there, I found out that Dr. Yamat, the dentist, just got back from her trip from the Philippines and so she was jet-lagged and really tired. I didn't really want to overwhelm her with a lot of questions so I told her that I would just follow her around the clinic and job-shadow. 

The first thing I saw her do was work with a patient with implants. The patient was also hooked up to a heart monitor sort of type machine because she injected him with this fluid (I forgot what it was called) because she said that the fluid can affect your heart rate if given too much so she said they need to monitor your heart in order to prevent anything that would lead you to the hospital. Anyways, when I was watching her, I couldn't help but look away because it was just so disgusting! She was using this needle trying to dig out something. I couldn't really tell what she was trying to do because it was just so disgusting. 

After watching her dig through a man's gums, she moved on to the next patient who was getting his braces fixed. In all honesty, I never knew how complicated it would be! The patient's brackets came off and so she had to get all these tools and her assistant to fix it. After that, she had to make sure that it was properly placed and she also had to change the little's boy's wires. I think just the fact that there were two people working on it made it look very complicated. 

After watching her do her job, I decided to ask her a few questions in regarding about my research. I asked her about what her thoughts on the idea of giving anything fluoride related items like toothpaste or supplements to little children. She told me that she does give fluoride treatments to her young patients but only in small amounts. She said that the use of fluoride is proven to be effective because it leaves people with a better shield from tooth decay. Moreover, she is also aware of the dangerous affects it can cause. 

So far, I realized that dentistry is scarier than I thought. I really do think what she did to the guy with implants scarred me for life. Oh goodness, I don't think I can watch anything like that anymore. 

But I really do find dentistry to be really interesting, so I'm hoping to be able to learn more things next time. 

TOTAL HOURS: 3 

A Mid-Summer Night's Dream

In William Shakespeare play A Mid-Summer Night's Dream, the theme, "...The course of true love never did run smooth" is evident throughout the story. One of the main characters that is able to execute this theme is Puck, the loyal servant of Oberon, the king of the fairies. Considering the fact that Puck is a clever mischief, his actions throughout the play causes problems between the four Athenian lovers, Titania, and Bottom.

The overall theme of the play means that true love isn't easy. That true love is going to have to overcome obstacles along the way and that people should be willing to endure it in order to persevere. In the beginning of the play, the reader learns about the complicated love triangle between the four Athenian lovers. Hermia is in love with Lysander and Helena is in love with Demetrius but Demetrius is in love with Hermia. When Oberon learns about this issue, he decides to make Demetrius fall in love with Helena. However, the mischievous Puck accidentally makes Demetrius and Lysander fall in love with Helena with no one loving Hermia. Rather than fixing his mistakes, he decides to just sit back and enjoy the show. The fact that no one loved Helena in the beginning causes her to have a hard time in accepting Demetrius and Lysander's love for her. The theme of "the course of true love never did run smooth" is evident in this scenario because of the way the four lovers has to fight each other for their one true love. The fact that all four had to work in order to win their true love shows that "true love never did run smooth". Puck's decision to not fix his mistakes right away causes the four lovers to hate each other leaves them all heartbroken.

Moreover, Puck turns Bottom into a hairy ass in which Titania falls in love with. Since Titania is under a spell, she couldn't really help herself from falling in love with Bottom. The whole repulsive situation changes the way she feels about Oberon. The theme is evident in this scene because of the way Puck and Bottom has to show Titania whose "boss". Oberon's decision to put her under a spell and have Puck make her fall in love with the first thing she sees, in this case, Bottom, shows that "the course of true love never did run smooth" because he is willing to put their relationship in a situation where Titania is under a spell and is force to do something she never expected herself to do.

Puck's careless mistakes throughout the play is really what the overall theme is all about. Rather than fixing them, he decides to watch and enjoy the show instead. His actions causes all four to love someone they never really had feelings for. His actions only made complicated situations even more complicated. This only forces the four Athenian lovers to face obstacles and fight for their one and only true love. In Titania and Bottom's case, he decides to turn Bottom into an ass without Oberon knowing and Titania really having no option to refuse to.