Student Essays

2 Responses to Student Essays

1. Lissette says:

   September 13, 2015 at 4:37 pm

   Lissette Onofre
   Smile Pinki Assignment
   1. What are the values and beliefs that your culture associates deformities/disabilities?
   I was born in the United states and raised here with my siblings, and we were taught to not stare at others if they seemed strange physically. I’ve heard people say i will never, or this will never happen to me but my mother has taught me not to say or think like that because your life can turn around in an instant, and she says this, never say never because it can always happen to you when you least expect it. In my personal experience culture and beliefs do play a role in disabilities or deformities. My parents are from mexico and they have certain beliefs that I am okay with and some that I have my own opinions about. My sister was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis early this year and doctors said this could be hereditary. But because no one in my family has been diagnosed with this and so my parents believe that it was a message from God(their belief). Before being diagnosed there was one time where we were going to church, which is a big part of our culture and my sister decided not to go, few days later my sister then starting to complain of having pain all over her body.There were times where my sister didn’t get up to eat because she was in so much pain. A month later she was diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and my parents believe that it was a punishment for my sister because she did not want to go to church that day. Thankfully she is getting treatment and seems to be working for her. Because of the little knowledge my parents had for the diagnosis they felt very close minded and didn’t really know what to think of it. Sometimes it is hard for parents to educate themselves about certain disabilities that their children seem to have because it is hard for them to accept it, or they have very little knowledge about it. Like the boy in the video his mother did not want to say yes to the surgeon because her husband had said it was dangerous. Yes parents get scared when they see no possibilities of bettering their child’s life either because they are not financially stable or because they they just don’t know much about it. But we have to educate ourselves and think positive.

   2.What are the values and beliefs that your culture associates with oral health and dentistry?
   My parents have always told us that brushing our teeth is part of our health and we have to take care of them. We have been fortunate to have health insurance and being able to have a dental cleaning every 6 months. In the video Pinki’s father was worried about being able to pay for the surgery but when he was told it was free he felt very fortunate and happy. He barely had anything to feed them. My parents come from a poor town in mexico, my dad usually has a story for us, but this one includes his oral hygiene that he had when he was a child. He has four other siblings which limited his parents financially, he says that he didn’t really have any cleanings and that toothpaste was used only when it was available, unlike us it is a must here in the united states or at least that is the way we were taught. He says that brushing your teeth wasn’t your priority at the beginning or the end of the day. If he had the time and a chance to do it then it was done but was not done on a daily basis. Now he has the advantage of brushing his teeth daily and having a visit to the dentist at least once a year.I believe that oral health is taken seriously here because there are resources, and insurance is available to everyone, people become more aware of treatments.

   3.Thinking about facial deformities and personal experiences what does it mean?
   Anyone with any type of deformity doesn’t mean they are any less it just means that they are different. I feel ungrateful sometimes because I look at others who live with mental illness and they live with such a positive attitude and sometimes there I am complaining about something small. There is a lady who has down syndrome and comes to my job and she has the most positive attitude towards life. The fist time i had seen her i was surprised not that I had not seen anyone with down syndrome but more with the interaction we had.Yes she acted different but it was part of her. No one should judge someone for an illness that you can’t control. Everyone should treat each other the way they want to be treated.

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2. Aliza Aminov says:

   September 13, 2015 at 10:28 pm

   I totally agree, never say or even think anything bad about someone else’s deformity. Many times people say things without thinking and then in return some sort of karma gets back at them. My aunt always tells a story of how when she was pregnant with her daughter she would see a chubby boy in the building and always thought to herself of her child was obese she would die, sadly her daughter whose now 19 is overweight. So always bite your tounge before saying something that might hurt you later.

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