As I reflect on my journey towards orthodontics, my thoughts are drawn to my many years spent becoming a five-time Canadian national champion synchronized swimmer, and how they led me to this career path before I even knew it was my passion. Although at first glance vastly different from synchronized swimming, orthodontics drew my attention early on in dental school with its use of a complex, yet systemized interlacing of details –a skill I had spent years training to master.
In orthodontics, just as in synchronized swimming, each action causes a reaction, and these must all be accounted for to achieve a goal. Swimmers must perform in unison in order to succeed; teeth are steel-tied to act as a single unit. The idea that each intricacy must be examined so that the sum of its parts results in an ideal outcome piqued my interest. I felt a powerful connection to a profession that so closely paralleled the mindset of my sport. My athletic success was accomplished by embracing teamwork, collaborative problem solving, self-evaluation, constructive criticism; fundamental skills of a successful orthodontist.
I chose dentistry to make a difference and, to me, there is no greater opportunity to do just that than in the field of
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Once in dental school, I combined my passion for research with my interest in orthodontics, and became involved in three separate research projects in Nova Southeastern University’s (NSU) Orthodontics and Dentofacial Orthopedics Department. The projects study vastly different concepts, from Human Papillomavirus vaccination education, to motivational factors for selecting a university-based clinic for orthodontic treatment, to comparing preformed archwires to pretreatment casts. I welcome the opportunity to further develop my skills, as one of my aspirations is to contribute to innovative research in