Dental Hygienist- A Great Career Choice!

Hey everyone! I am excited for where life is taking me at the moment... actually I think I am just excited that the hardest part of dental hygiene school is behind me so I feel like I have my whole life ahead of me finally!! When in a rigorious full-time academic program such as dental hygiene it is difficult to work a job and have any sort of normal consistent schedule like you when having a full-time job. Let's admit it, being in school full-time is worse then having a full-time job! You could say it's like working a 40 hour work week with 20 hours of overtime!!! The work you do outside of school really adds up! I'm sure many of you remembers those days or can currently relate. I am so glad I made the decision to go to school though! Despite the difficulties (I had plenty), I feel like I have made it even though I am not yet done!

Did you know to become a licensed dental hygienist in the State of Florida you must take 5 board examinations?!? (1) National Board, (1) Local Anesthesia Certification exam, (1) State Computerized exam, (1) Clinical exam (when I actually have to clean someone's teeth), and (1) Juris Prudence (fancy words for FL State Laws exam).... INSANE, RIGHT!? I have completed (pending results) on the first 3 exams listed! The last two exams will be taken during the month of April and May. According to U.S News, dental hygienist was ranked #4 on a list of Best Health Care Jobs of 2015! I believe this post was going based on salary (avg. 59k-85k annually), however there are many more benefits to a career as a dental hygienist then just money. Yes, we need money to survive and it was a motivating factor for me to continue my education, but it is really a great job. I wanted to work less and make more- that's what everyone wants, right? That is why I decided to continue my education from dental assisting to becoming a dental hygienist! 

Dental hygienists generally work Monday-Thursday since many dental offices are closed on Fridays. Granted there are many offices now open on Fridays, nights, and weekends to accommodate the working person. Hygienists usually work an 8-10 hour day and get to care for patients over all needs (not just their teeth!). When patients return to see you on a 3-6 month basis you really get to develop a relationship with them and get to know them and their families. You become apart of their lives. I love helping people and people in general, so to be able to develop these relationships is very important to me. As a dental assistant you are not the main provider for the patient so you don't develop the same sort of relationships. Dental hygienists also have a little more flexibility in their schedules then a dental assistant does. Many hygienists are able to work for multiple doctors spending as little as 1-2 days in a particular practice. For a person who likes variety and change, this may be the position for you!

So as a dental hygienist you just "clean teeth'" right? FAR FROM IT! As a dental hygienist the main focus of your education is examination of the head and neck of your patients, however we are also trained and educated to do much more then that! Many people don't know that the mouth in the opening to the rest of the body and that you can tell a lot about a person's overall health based on the health of their mouth. We have been trained to be able to spot abnormalities in our patients as we treat them. I have seen visible signs of diabetes, hypertension/heart disease, and active herpes virus. I can tell whether a patient is taking a medication that is effecting their mouth and can consult the patient to help them combat these nasty oral side effects by means of a dental product that I have researched.  We are health care providers and are many times the first provider to note signs of oral and skin cancer along with other overall health care changes since our patients see us so regularly. 

Needless to say, being a hygienist involves much more then just "cleaning teeth". We are the first line of defense when it comes to spotting and treating Periodontal Disease (Gum Disease). Early diagnosis and treatment of Periodontal Disease is so important if we are going to prevent further break down of the periodontium (bone and gum that support the teeth). I will be blogging further in depth about Periodontal Disease- the cause and prevention later down the road, so come back for that!

I truly feel that becoming a dental hygienst is a great way to be able to work less, make more, help people/touch people lives, and still have a life beyond the job. I am a spiritual person with many spiritual goals. I intend to use the flexible schedule that becoming a hygienist has given me to serve God more fully!

Think you might be interested in joining  the ranks of a great profession of people who want to make a difference in people's lives? Google search to locate a local college with a Dental Hygiene Program or:

For more information about the Dental Hygiene Program at St. Petersburg College click the link HERE

Are you currently a registered dental hygienist? Considering continuing your education? St. Petersburg College offers an ALL ONLINE Bachelor's Degree Completion Program. Click HERE to learn more! 

On a little side note before I go... I purchased a MacBook Air and I am super excited to be carrying this little device around more often (it's SOO light) in hopes to have more convince for blogging! I also have a little more time on my hands since studying for school will be minimal from now on!!

What are your educational goals? What do you currently do for work? Do you love it?! 
Leave a comment below! I would love to hear! 

Marathoning for Mortals

Hi all! 

Thanks for stopping by today! Life has been busy, but isn't it always? I wanted to share my marathon experience with you all. If you are just an average person -a mortal- you CAN run a marathon just as I did! 

As you may have read in a previous post of mine, I was having a difficult time with training. You really do need to stick to the training plan in order to feel confident at the start like that you could actually do this! The training program I chose to go with was an intermediate 1 runners plan by Hal Higdon. I went with this plan because I am an experience runner ( 6 half marathons along with many other distances). The plan seemed reasonable with what is required of me to do and it seemed to fit well with my busy school schedule...so I thought. 

I did well with the first 1.5-2 months of the training plan, but as the weekend "long runs" got longer, I began to fade in my dedication to the plan. Thankfully I had a few people who were there to encourage me. First and foremost my buddy Zane who I run for. Zane and his family have been a HUGE support to me and my running. They have so much confidence in me and that I can really do what I put my mind to and for them I am forever grateful! Right next to Zane and his family, I have my great friend Rebecca who was training for the same race as I was and this would also be her FIRST MARATHON! We spent many days together over the past 4 months (we go to school together) so we were a constant reminder to each other that we HAD to run! I will be honest, I had times where I wish I had never signed up for this race. Rebecca and I would turn toward each other and say "were we smoking crack when we signed up for this race while in school full time??" Of course we weren't but we were so weighed down by life, school, and family at times to where we questioned our reasons for running a marathon, but let's face it... there is never an "ideal" time in life to run a MARATHON! I always kept in mind why I was training for 26.2:

1. Zane- plain and simple
2. To say 'I DID IT!'
3. To push myself to see what I am capable of
4. To never have to wonder 'what if'
5. The feeling of the finish line & accomplishment

About 10 days prior to race day I received a message from my great friend Run Jodi, who is an amazing runner, dental hygienist, and person. She asked me how training was going and if I was ready for 26.2. I was nervous... NO I WASN'T READY AT ALL! The longest distance I had ran at this point was 13 miles! I told Jodi my concerns and she gave me a few wise recommendations. She suggested I run 16 miles that coming Friday, consider that my longest training run, and then spend the next week recovering. She said that since I didn't train as well as I could have, I could at least do a few things to make the a great first marathon experience. Jodi said to avoid sugar 1 week prior, drink WATER ONLY (I was doing a gallon a day for about 5 days leading up to the race), get a good nights rest up to 3 days prior to the race, and begin carbohydrate loading 1-2 days prior to the race. I took these suggestions and 'ran' with it since I know I had not put in the training miles needed to feel confident about the race, so the least I could do would be to listen to these suggestions!

It was finally race weekend! My family and I drove over to Melbourne, FL on Thursday to hang out and relax for the weekend. We love visiting the Space Coast! We spend our days driving around Historic Cocoa Village and Cocoa Beach, walking on the pier, checking out condos, pretty much any mindless wandering thing that will fill up our days- we just enjoy it :) Saturday night prior to the race a bunch of runner friends an I (along with family) all went to the race expo to get our packets/bibs and then headed to an Italian restaurant to "carb load"! I order a big bowl of pasta with meatballs... it was DELISH! I finished every last piece of pasta from that dish! That's not normal for me because I usually get full pretty quick, but I think my body knew I needed every last bit of carbs for the big race the following day.

Well here we arrive! It's race day! 3:15 wake up call! I was so unhappy about the early wake up call- to be honest, I wasn't looking forward to this day at all. I was nervous, scared, and quite frankly, a little mad at myself for putting myself up to this. I kept it moving though. I got dressed, had a bagel with jelly for breakfast and began drinking more water. Christy got dressed and went with Rebecca and I to the race start. Dad so kindly drove us at 4:45a to the race area.Rebecca and I got to meet with our "I Run 4" friends and take pictures!! I LOVE meeting our I Run 4 family at races! After our photo-op we went to the port-a-pots to 'take care of business' and then we headed to the start line.

Christy walked toward her set-up spot where she would photograph Rebecca and I .2 miles into the race and then at that same point on our way back which would be the 13.1 or half way mark! The start line was EMOTIONAL to say the LEAST! Rebecca and I stood at the start line together, smiling, shaking(it was cold), praying.... we couldn't believe what we were about to do, but it was going to happen. The race was the "SPACE coast marathon" so they stuck with the space theme and there was a video screen with the recording and audio recording of the Space Shuttle Discovery's last launch. Something came over me and when the countdown began "4, 3, 2, 1 and lift off!" I started to ball my eyes out... THIS WAS IT! Rebecca and I hugged each other and off we went!

At the beginning of races it seems the trend is (at least with me) that I start out too fast! There is so much adrenaline and excitement happening that you take off like a bullet and that's what happened to me! For the first .75-1.00mi. I was running under a 9 minute mile, which is SUPER fast for me!! I finally slowed and found my 'happy pace' around 11:30/mi!

Around mile 3 my right knee injury started to act up. It felt like my tendons were ripping! I had to slow and walk many times during the race to give myself some relief from the pain. I spent time with some of the pace groups that were holding up a stick with their expected finish times on it. They were "Jeff Galloway Pacers"- following his run/walk method. Run a minute, walk a minute was their strategy. I never really researched that method, nor did I train with the method, but for the sake of my knee injury and wanting to make it to the finish line I followed some pace groups throughout the race. I grew to really like it! Moments where I had to stop stretch and work out my knee pain I looked down at my bracelets and Zane's name on my leg and I remembered why I had to keep pushing forward!   

My face at 13.1mi looking back at Christy as she is telling me "KEEP GOING! YOU CAN DO IT! ONLYYYY 13 more miles!"

I stayed fueled throughout the race on Powerbar's Raspberry energy chews and Stinger's Pink Lemonade chews. I trained with them and that's what I felt comfortable with. I altered Gatorade and water at each water stop. Around miles 18 I ran past a friend who was already heading back toward the finish line and he gave me some Tylenol for my knee and no more then 2 miles later I felt like new! I was like a different person- I had caught my second wind and was feeling good! In training I had never ran/walked more then 16 miles, so reaching the 17+ range felt amazing to me since that was like uncharted territory! Although I still had 9 miles to go I could envision the victory and I was on my way back toward the finish!

At a mile and a half to go till the finish I ran into the 6:15 pacer... I was finishing with her, no question about it! We continued a walk run into the park where the finish line was. The stretch to the finish was about a half .25mi. in a circle around a park. Everyone is screaming and cheering for you- it's an amazing feeling. I started to cry as I saw Christy and Cody as I first entered in the park. Cody ran out in front of me and ended up finishing the race before me! LOL I ended up finishing with the 6:15 stick in my hand, but my official time was 6:20!! I wanted to finish before the cut off of 7 hours, so look at that!!

The finish was overwhelming- so many emotions! I was happy, accomplished, satisfied, humbled, thankful and so many more emotions all wrapped in a ball. I was so thankful and happy to see my family and friends at the finish line to support me. That day will forever live in my memory as a

I know this was a LONG play-by-play of my marathoning events, but I wanted to give the average person who has never experienced a marathon the "inside scoop" on what it's all about!

Before I started to train for the marathon I bought a book called "Marathoning for Mortals" recommended by my cousin Erica who has run 2 NYC marathons. What I gained from this book is something I want EVERYONE to know who has a desire to run a marathon: YOU CAN DO IT! There are so many training plans out there for beginners, for people who have never run a mile in their life! This book brought out that in the 80s when running races got big, it was more of an event that only elite athletes participated in. NOT ANYMORE! Running has evolved into someone that people of all ages, races, and genders partake it. People run for themselves, others who can't, causes, and to raise awareness. This is no longer a sport for elite runners, but for the average person who has a goal to go the distance and cross that finish line! So I want to encourage everyone who has a desire to run 26.2- DO IT! Set a goal, plan for it, and then DO IT! Comment below with any questions or you next fitness goal!

Jamaica Mon'

Hello everyone! Wagwon?(How are you?)

Among my busy schedule these days (full time dental hygiene school, training for a marathon, my spiritual & family obligations, and the list goes on) I have been traveling!! I had the wonderful opportunity of traveling to the country of Jamaica to study abroad with some of my classmates. It's amazing how fast time flys by. I remember at orientation for dental hygiene school, our program director said that we would be the first class to have the opportunity to study abroad in Jamaica! The moment I heard that I knew I was going! I HAD to!! I have a heart for helping others. I feel that if we have the means and ability (whether it be financial, physically with our hands, or verbally with our words) we should be helping others! I knew this was going to be the experience of a lifetime and I did not want to miss out on it! 

The class found out that there would only be 6 spots available for students to attend the trip out of 31 students. I started to get nervous. Would I be chosen to go? The class all thought I would because I am the "president" of my class, but I didn't believe that. I didn't believe students would be chosen to go by their status, but by their character and work ethic. When all was said and done, I WAS chosen to go!! I will thrilled! Now came the start of the hard work.

As soon as the 5 other students and I found out we were going to Jamaica, we began our meetings. We arranged fundraisers, started to contact major dental supply companies for product donations, and soliciting our family and friends for donations. Each student had to come up with about $2000 for this entire trip. This amount would include our program fees to participate with Great Shape Inc., the 501c3 non-profit organization which would be arranging the dental work through their dental program of 12 years- 1000 Smiles. This amount would also include the estimate amount for air fair, and other estimated expenses. We needed to promptly submit our passport information and request temporary work visas from the Ministry of Health of Jamaica. Needless to say, getting accepted to go was the easy part! 

Over the following months my classmates and I worked very hard to raise money for the mission we were about to go on. We were SO AMAZINGLY supported by out student government association of St. Petersburg College and was given $1000 per student. This amount covered a majority of the expenses. The remaining balance of money we would need for this trip was donated from family and friends. My classmates and I will be forever grateful for the loving support we received from everyone! We created a letter to send out to possible sponsors and to our surprise we started to get support and donations. Big name companies like Colgate, Listerine, and Patterson Dental started to donate supplies to us! I am guesstimating that we brought along with us over $5,000 worth of dental supplies. We shipped the supplies out in July so they would have time to arrive in Jamaica and go through customs. Our hard work had paid off! All of the leg work was done and we were finally able to relax and just prepare for the adventure. 

When the day finally came to leave for Jamaica we were all ecstatic! We weren't sure what to expect except to have a great time!! Our plane ride went great and next thing you know we were on the beautiful island of Jamaica!! Once arriving at the gorgeous Sandals resort of Whitehouse, Jamaica we quickly got to work. We had meetings and orientations to organize the coming weeks activities. There were 3 clinics that we would be working in. The closest was 10 minutes from the resort (the clinic I worked at), the farthest was 1 hour 45 minutes up the mountains! All 3 clinics were in rural areas that have 1 dentist for every 100,000 people, SO you could imagine that the access to dental care was extremely limited. My clinic was located in a beautiful fishing village with lots of goats running around and a market down the road.

While working my classmates and I saw some of the worst periodontal conditions we have ever seen, likely due to lack of education and access to care.We loved working with all the Jamaican people. They were all so loving and kind, so patient and tolerant of dental treatment. Some teeth I was going into pockets 6-10mm and my patients would not even flinch! They were so appreciative. It was a very different experience then working with American people. The working conditions were hard because we had portable units that were not ideal, along with chairs that were basically beach chairs. Ergonomics were out the window this week, unfortunately.

Here is one before and after of a female patient I treated!She was so thankful that I cleaned the stain off her teeth that she screamed and jumped out of the chair SO HAPPY! She said she couldn't get dental floss so she had been using thread from a t-shirt to floss! I ended up giving her about 50 floss boxes (thanks REACH)! She was genuinely grateful!

We had so many great experiences that is is hard to recall them all! After working on these Jamaicans for 5 days I had fallen in love with them and their culture. I have been dubbed a "JAMERICAN"!!!   After a long and busy week of working we were finally able to take a break and see the country! We all went to YS Falls. We went Zip-linning and swung off a rope swing and jumped in the falls! It was so refreshing! It was an amazing day!!

 I feel so privileged to have been able to have this experience while in dental hygiene school. I have benefited greatly from studying abroad and would recommend it to anyone! I am more confident in my clinical skills. While in Jamaica I was only able to use one sickle hand instrument, an ultrasonic, and a mirror due to the lack of instruments available as compared to school where I have 15 instruments to chose from so I had to learn to adapt quickly. I feel I worked harder there then I ever have in clinic at school and I would have never been able to grow as fast as I did in Jamaica. I am looking forward to volunteering my time again next year!! I highly recommend this for any dental professional who has the means and ability to care for others to extend your gifts in this way. My heart is full and I feel I got back much more then I could have ever given to the people of Jamaica!    

~One Love~

Your meal could use a little more ~HEART~

Hi ALL! My life has been a little more then hectic over the past couple of months, therefore neglecting my blog! More details of my BIG ADVENTURES to come on my next blog post!

Today I wanted to write about an awesome opportunity I had to do a product review! I am apart of an organization called #sweatpink (link to my blog about becoming a Sweat Pink Ambassador)! Through this organization we encourage others to get ACTIVE and have FUN while doing it! Being an ambassador for Sweat Pink you have the chance to review up-and -coming products! In the month of October (I told you I was a little behind), I was thrilled to be mailed a little package of hearts >HEMP HEARTS< from a company named Manitoba Harvest!

manitobaharvest.com

Hemp Hearts are a simple little addition to any meal. Hemp is a plant which has been around for centuries and has been used for various things such as rope, paper,clothing, food, and much more! The Hemp Hearts I sampled are actually hemp seeds found at the top of the hemp plant. Here is Manitoba Harvest's Top 10 Reasons to choose Hemp Hearts:

manitobaharvest.com

I have enjoyed experimenting with Hemp Hearts. They are a FUN/easy-to-use product! Hemp Hearts are a healthy addition to any meal. They are GMO free and are an AMAZING source of PROTEIN and OMEGAs. They are semi-soft to chew and add a nice nutty taste to whatever you choose to put it on. I have enjoyed putting it in yogurt, on top of salads, and even in hot cereals. To be honest, you can add Hemp Hearts in pretty much anywhere you desire! My next little experiment will be adding them to a smoothie!

                                                                                                                                                                      

Key Lime Greek Yogurt

Wedge Salad

I have loved trying out this product and I want to give you the same opportunity to try it!! Manitoba Harvest has been to kind as to give me a DISCOUNT CODE to use for 20% OFF your purchases on their website until November 30th. Again I apologize for my tardiness because you will only have a few days to shop with the discount code! Please take a look at their site- they have multiple hemp products which you may find fit your needs! Comment below if you have used hemp products before or are excited about a purchase you have made from Manitoba Harvest!! 

The DISCOUNT CODE is: HHSweatPink14

Use this code at: www.manitobaharvest.com  

kriyaliving.com

I look forward to seeing how everyone is enjoying their Hemp Hearts!

Marathon Training: my thoughts and experiences thus far

MARATHON TRAINING!

Wow, I am already  8 weeks into training for the Space Coast Marathon! Time has flown by and partly because I am just so busy with everything else in life! It has been difficult keeping up my motivation and excitement for running. When you aren't training for a race, you run for fun- no real goal at the end. However, knowing that I HAVE to run a certain distance on a certain day has really been rough for me. Although I have 5 half marathons under my belt, I cannot honestly say I had trained for any of them! Therefore, this regimented schedule of running has taken quite the discipline.

The training program I am following is a Hal Higdon marathon training schedule for an "intermediate" runner. Since I have been running for a little over 2 years, a friend of mine who is a seasoned marathoner recommended this was the plan I follow. Mondays are left for "cross-training" activity. In the beginning I left that as a rest day, however within the past few weeks I have been using Mondays to work my upper body (arms, back, abs etc.) using my own body weight, a yoga ball, and/or kettle bells. Tuesdays thru Saturdays are spent doing various distances anywhere from 3-8 miles per day with Fridays as a "rest" day. Then to complete the week we arrive at Sundays for the long runs.

Speaking of long runs... I have missed the past 3 weeks of long runs, which are probably the most important. I believe it's because Sundays are a my day to sleep in and therefore I find it difficult to wake up and go after waking up in the 4am hour every day during the week! This is no excuse however because it will be these long runs that get me across the finish-line at the marathon, not these little midweek runs of 7 miles or so. 

The biggest challenge I have faced so far is my own failure to plan. When you are a busy person, whether it's with school, work, kids, or other obligations and then you throw training for a marathon in the mix, it can be very hard to balance. My suggestion for anyone planning to run a marathon is to carefully consider what the months look like in which you will be training. Do you have any big events coming up that would hinder multiple days or even weeks of your training? Will you be able to have time to do the things that are necessary on a daily basis and still have time for your runs? Lets face it, there are definitely better times then others to take on such a task as training for a 26.2 mile race! However, the mind is a powerful thing and if there is something you want to accomplish, you will find ways to make it work even if the circumstances aren't favorable.  

All in all though, I am happy about the person this marathon training is making me become. It is making me become an early riser, which I've always had to do, but because it was for work not exercise! I am becoming more aware of my body and the things I need to be eating/drinking to sustain it for running. And I am becoming more focused and scheduled. Trying to balance school, studying, working here and there, and my spiritual and family obligations has been a little exhausting, but it is all making me a better/stronger person!

Well, those are my thoughts at the current time, however my mind is constantly 'running' so I will be back much sooner then the length of time between this post and my last to keep you up to date with my marathon training. I have been experimenting with many different products, so the next time around on my running topics blog I will share with you what has been keeping me fueled for my runs and my running essentials! Until then, if you would like to follow my daily running posts, click the link in the side bar for my Instagram   

( www.instagram.com/jackieontherun ) account and you will be able to keep up with the miles I am logging! Thanks for reading! Comments below and SUBSCRIBE for more about running, loving, and dental hygiene!

Recap: Regional Convention 2014

What a spiritually upbuilding weekend we had last weekend at our Regional Convention of Jehovah's Witnesses themed "Keep Seeming First God's Kingdom" based on Matthew 6:33. It's so easy to get weighed down by the constant hustle and bustle of this old world, on top of financial stress, and health problems. No matter who we are, we all face some sort of trial! However, Jesus foretold in the scriptures that if we seek God's Kingdom and doing His Will FIRST in our lives, despite our trials and tribulations we can be ~HAPPY~! 

Along with all the bible-based talks we heard, great demonstrations, and moving personal experiences and interviews, we were able to associate with our friends who serve Jehovah God! Here are some photos from last weekend: 

It was truly a great weekend of encouragement and helped me redirect my focus on what is really important in life! Spiritual goals are in place now! Daily bible reading, regular time each week teaching people about God's great promises for the future, as well as better preparation for my weekly meetings! It's back to the basics I go!

What are some of your spiritual goals? Comment below! I would love to hear them! 

Sweat Pink!

 Hey all! I have been trying to get my blog up and running, but it has been a struggle! Not knowing much anything about web design, I have been doing a lot of research and trying to figure it out. I have switched platforms from having my own domain (website) to using Blogger, which I think will be a good platform to blog from since it's well-known, as well as the fact that it's more  "user-friendly"! Needless to say, my blog will be changing by the day till I get it *just right* ;)

I wanted to blog today about a new network I have become a part of within the last few weeks. It's called "Fit Approach"! The mission of Fit Approach is basically to accept our feminine qualities, but be able to work hard and SWEAT! Sweating PINK is their trademark. Convinced that you run faster with PINK shoe laces, women who are a part of this organization, encourage other to push themselves hard, sweating, and feeling the thrill of the endorphin flow! I did my first work out Sunday evening with my PINK shoe laces and I felt the power of the PINK! I love PINK so this was just a perfect fit for me :p

 

I am by no means a "fitness guru", but I desire to stay active in life and help others to find a way that works for them to do the same! I am now considered an "Ambassador" for Sweat PINK! How exciting is it that I get to be a part of this group of women who encourage and inspire others! Look for opportunities in your daily routine to strengthen those who you associate with! A success coach by the name of Rob Liano said: "Encouraging others can be the catalyst to unleashing their greatness." Don't you agree we should all have the opportunity to 'unleash our greatness' ?? So why not join the Fit Approach!? Comment below for your FREE pair of PINK SHOE LACES and join me in SWEATING PINK!  

Keep Smiling ~ Jackie