Self- Check after Competency Evaluation

I know the tooth numbering method and identifying the correct working end that I can even teach others. I know what EXTU17/23 and mirror are and their purpose since I saw them a gazillion times while I worked at a dental office. I am competent to identify the right working end. Besides, with little help from God and good luck, things will be on my side this morning that I shall smoothly pass the competency exam. Yup, that was EXACTLY how I believed in myself until 9:40 AM yesterday.

I did not have to wait for Ms. Swecker for the news. I knew how I did and what I did not perform. The miserable feeling I had, I would not even wish for anybody. The sky seemed gloomy and all the wild flowers on the street had disappeared on homebound. Sure, I can start blaming on other external sources for my failure including the weather. But that will not conceal the fact that I was not fully prepared for the exam. What I knew was insufficient and it was clearly showed. I was solely responsible for it. I felt ridiculously stupid and embarrassed for being over competent and being a failure.

It did not take long for my innate optimism to kick in. My glass was half full again. Looking back at my past, a word of FAIL is not a stranger in my life. I did not pass a driving written test, motorcycle riding test, the series 24 exam, etc., at the first. I just had to try harder for the second time. Furthermore, this is not the end of my dental hygiene student life. I now know what I need to work on. In a way, I am relieved that it happened yesterday instead of in the near future with an actual patient. This offset event was necessary for me as a wake-up call and it will guide me to become a better dental hygienist after all. Meanwhile, congratulations to those who passed it!