When I tell people I'm a dental laboratory technician, they usually don't know what I'm talking about. I tell them that I fabricate the caps that go into their mouths when they need to replace a tooth. We call them crowns, but we have to say caps for people to understand what we mean. I make people's fake teeth.
I started off being a musician, playing the drums -- I was really good with my hands. But I knew I couldn't make it as a rock star. My older brother turned me on to dental technology. He's a dentist. Coming out of high school, I went to visit him, and that's when I found out about dental laboratory work, being able to wax and carve and create.
In the dental field, most people see it like a science. But you have to know the art. The art is the contour, the shapes, the anatomy. It's like sculpting little fine china, you know. Like a little fine china doll. Sometimes it takes me hours, sometimes days to make one tooth. It depends.
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I still play the drums. I fantasize about jamming in a band. But I love what I do, restoring the quality of life to patients who are missing their teeth. It means a lot to people. Can you imagine chewing again after not being able to?
Most patients don't know we're there. Most patients don't realize a technician made their tooth. They think it's all the dentist. But a really good dentist will tell patients how hard it is to sculpt teeth. If you have a really good team, the dentist will explain how important the technician is. That's the good thing about working with my brother's practice. He lets people know I'm there.
-- Interview by Cathy Areu Jones
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