There goes a saying “A smile is a curve that sets everything straight“, who doesn’t want a beautiful smile and a charming personality? But sometimes it’s the smile that can make life upside down. Such was the case of my patient “Ashish Sharma” (Name Changed), a 12 year old boy. I still remember how Ashish was trying to hide behind his father and not at all interested in the dental checkup when he 1st visited my clinic.
In the very 1st appointment Ashish’s father shared that Ashish often used to be upset because of his protruded upper front teeth, he felt shy to smile in front of people. He was a bright student but his grades had dropped as well. His dad also mentioned that his classmates bullied him because of his crooked teeth. During our conversation I noticed that Ashish was sitting on the chair with his face low. We did not have an eye contact even once. He seemed to be a boy with no confidence and zero self esteem. I strongly felt that Ashish’s smile was the root cause of all the problems he was facing and suggested his father about the corrective treatment options.
As Ashish’s father was ready for the treatment, I did a smile analysis and asked to get an OPG (larger Xray) and I found that it was possible that Ashish could have a perfect smile, maybe even better than many of us. I explained all the pros and cons of braces treatment & assured both Ashish & his father that there is nothing to worry about the treatment and the only thing they had to do was follow monthly appointments for at least a year to complete the whole procedure. As they agreed, I started with Ashish’s treatment.
May be due to the constant bullying of friends, Ashish got inside a shell and separated him from the world. He felt he was the “odd one out”. In initial few visits Ashish seemed sad and a bit reluctant about the treatment with the braces in his mouth.
After 2-3 sittings the situation changed, the boy who never spoke a word was not the same now. He started asking me questions about the treatment and having little chit chats with me like his favorite subject, interests, friends and many other things. I could see the happiness in his eyes and I knew all this was because his smile was getting better than before.
Eventually, Mr.Sharma reveled that Ashish’s grades improved, he was no more concerned about others words. He smiled more often and said he feels good when he looks into the mirror. The shy Ashish was now a part of his school’s debate team and a tough competitor for others. He had got back his lost confidence and excelled in school.
It took me one year to correct Ashish’s smile but what I achieved was far more rewarding. In the last appointment Ashish came with his mother, who seemed to be very obliged to me for my treatment that brought back the smile on her son’s face. My patient was happy, his parents were happy, what more can any dentist ask for?
Ashish’s behavior was a reflection of the inferiority complex which was making him sad, lonely and aloof! It just took a small corrective dental treatment to bring back the person he was. Many of us have people around who are facing similar situations which might be breaking them emotionally and affecting their lives.
If you know anyone whose life can change with better smile then ask them to get in touch for a “Free Orthodontic Consultation”.