Growing up in an environment with a parent who negatively commented on my appearance led to my inevitable self-doubt. My constant swirling thoughts told me that anything less than flawless is not to be tolerated. For most of my life, I struggled with my appearance — specifically my teeth. They had a mind of their own. Friends would attempt to make a discrete comment, saying things like: Why don’t you just get braces? What about Invisalign? And I would think to myself, what an odd thing to say to someone. Perhaps it was genuine curiosity, but it came across as an unnecessary comment that only fueled my anxiety. I began…