at our most vulnerable

I’ve always admired and been fascinated by dental hygienists. They have one of the most loathsome jobs I can imagine in terms of customer emotional response. Kids are afraid of them and make it plain; adults are afraid of them and try to hide it. It’s their job to lay us on an uncomfortably horizontal table (in a very vulnerable position) and then, to increase the stress, require us to open our mouths, one of our most fragile and vulnerable body areas. And then they are required to poke and prod and scrape and pick at our most sensitive mouth tissues with metal instruments, all while attempting to make small talk and put us at ease, even though our situation as patients more or less prohibits our active involvement in the conversation.

They’re almost like doctors and psychologists rolled into one. They are aware of the pain and anxiety they cause, and have to actively work to quell those emotions in their patients. In my experience, this job is only filled by delightful people.