Opening Up

I'm a smiler. Or at least that's what people tell me. I love smiling and laughing and it shows. But this wasn't always the case. When I was a young child I had dental issues that made me less confident in lots of ways - everything from covering my mouth when I smiled to being hesitant in approaching new people. I had a huge overbite and jumbled, crooked teeth. When I became a teen I let my parents know that I wanted to wear braces - they agreed, thank goodness - and I learned to take care of my mouth and teeth. You would think that braces would give me yet another reason to be shy, but they didn't. Little by little, I began taking chances when it came to socializing and found that the only thing that was ever holding me back was my own lack of confidence. Going to college, finding new friends, and becoming more open gave me proof positive that I could be successful by "putting myself out there." It all started with loving myself enough to make a change in the first place and knowing that I didn't want to go through life as a fearful person. It's a lesson I'm passing on to my little one.

Thanks to Crest for sponsoring my participation in the LifeOpensUpProject.com and for giving me the chance to tell my personal story about having a confident mouth.

Your mouth is more than just teeth and gums, it's your most important feature when it comes to expressing yourself and engaging with the world. The Crest & Oral-B Life Opens Up Project will highlight individual stories that showcase how a healthy mouth has played a role in opening up to life and to the world. www.LifeOpensUpProject.com





Disclosure: Compensation was provided by Crest & Oral-B via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of Crest & Oral-B