When I was in kindergarten, we had a poster in our classroom with everyone’s names on it. When someone lost a tooth, they got to put a sticker by their name. By the end of the year, everyone had a sticker by their name except for me.

By first grade, my classmates had new smiles growing and I was still stuck with my baby teeth. Then, I lost my first tooth — but instead of a new one replacing it, nothing grew.

After a series of X-rays and a very passionate mother, we discovered I was missing several adult teeth.

At the time, it didn’t seem like a big deal because many kids had gaps in their smiles. However, classmates commented on how tiny some of my teeth were and I started to feel self-conscious about my smile.

In fifth grade, I was able to get a flipper tooth attached to my braces, and the feeling of not fitting in went away. Then, everyone got their braces off.

I grew jealous of my friends as they came to school with straight, bright teeth. When it came time for me to get my braces off, I knew I wouldn’t have the same experience. My reality was returning to school with two clunky retainers with slightly off-white fake teeth built in.

I hated how my friends could take their retainers off whenever they wanted without feeling self-conscious.

Since my situation was unusual for my age, my periodontist ended up shaving off my baby teeth. I’ll never forget the terror I felt as I watched particles of my teeth fly into the air. I left the office with a feeling that this wouldn’t be a quick fix.

As I became used to wearing my retainers, I began to forget I was even wearing them. That didn’t last long though; classmates asked questions about why some teeth were different colors and I became fixated on my teeth and everyone else’s.

When I entered high school, I realized my teeth were something unique to me, so I started talking about them. By doing so, I found out that I wasn’t alone. Whether it was a science teacher, my best friend’s mom or a classmate’s cousin, other people were in similar situations.

By sharing my quirk with others and understanding how it makes me unique, I have come to terms with my toothlessness.