One change we continually see in 2020 is how people are breaking out of their pigeonholed life plans, instead of choosing multiple paths. No longer are people satisfied to be a professional singer or a vet; they are choosing to be both. Ashley Lerman has chosen to be a pediatric dentist and a swimwear and fashion model.
Born in Long Island, New York, to parents who are both dentists, Ashley Lerman followed her parent’s footsteps into dentistry. This career choice was driven by a love of sculpture, creating with her hands, and the desire to help children medically. “Dentistry,” Lerman says, “is like minor surgery combined with sculpture. Add preventative education of parents and children, and I have one of my passions: Paediatric dentistry.”
“On the other hand, I always had the idea that I would like to model,” smiles Lerman. “When at NYU, I did some shoots with friends. During the day, I had lots of time to research modeling. I took some digital pics, put them out to agencies, and built my portfolio.
Dreams Versus The Stereotype Goliath
One hiccup was that Lerman had an internal struggle of aligning being a doctor versus posing in a bikini and “looking unprofessional” according to society’s judgments. Coincidentally, an article came out precisely at the time of her internal wrangling. The article, published in The Journal of Vascular Surgery, was entitled ‘Prevalence of unprofessional social media content among young vascular surgeons.’ This was a focus piece about females in healthcare and their activities in their spare time.
A fake Instagram account had been opened, and female (only!) professionals were cyberstalked, and their activities were recorded. If they published pictures, such as drinks after work or themselves in their bikinis, they were filed under the inappropriate behavior category, and then this was published. It started the viral hashtag #medbikini.
Lerman shares, “The fact that this was published in a renowned, professional journal proves how outdated professional industries are with regards to gender equality. I felt that this emphasized such a perfect alignment of my values, so I thought, ‘I am just going to put it out there and make a statement about how I feel about it.’ And then I was reposted again and again, which was amazing to see!”
Female medical professionals do not stand alone. There are other professions, such as in law or science, that suffer from societal expectations and the need for females in that profession to be asexual, neutral, and to downplay their femininity.
Lerman effuses, “For Sports Illustrated to take a stand up against it is so important. There is nowhere that we signed that we would not wear a bikini or not drink a cocktail ever again. What we wear does not change our mission and our values! In the USA, society is generally very conservative. People’s minds are blown just by a mother breastfeeding in public, so a doctor posting in a bikini is so alien to them. It is entrenched in our society.
“This year I was really moved by the discussion surrounding the “#medbikini” uproar when a renowned medical journal published a study deeming it inappropriate for female health workers posting bikinis, Halloween costumes, and political stances on their social media profiles. I wanted to set out and show that females who wear bikinis during their off-time can still be professional at work.
“But in 2020, this is a year about speaking about the uncomfortable. If people are uncomfortable, that is one thing, but if we can discuss it, then we can move towards comfort. Then we are moving forward as a society.”
Filling The World With Smiles
“With my modeling career, I want to show young women that they can strive for more than just a job or career. Women can find creative outlets that lead to a more enriching and well-rounded life,” Lerman adds.
“I am working with Genetics Model Management at the moment, and I am excited to be balancing my dental career alongside my modeling career.” She looks forwards to the creative outlet that her future modeling career holds.
“Societal judgment is not what is holding me back. I am currently focusing on my fantastic new job at a group pediatric clinic in the Hudson Valley region, and it is very important to me. I want to get it running like a fine, well-oiled machine. In my spare time, I would like to pursue my modeling passion for now.”
The clinic is very efficient, with a massive outcome impact. “It gives me so much purpose. There are so many children in need that don’t get to see a dentist. People think that a kid’s teeth aren’t important because it’s just baby teeth, and they are going to fall out. These so-called baby teeth can last up until 12 or 13 years old. They can cause behavioral issues, eviscerating psycho-social impacts, and health issues! Understanding and practicing good oral health is fundamental to overall well-being.”
Conquering Fears
When asked what advice Lerman has for other women who would like to have a profession and do modeling, her answer is insightful, “I think the biggest struggle is internal as you will fear a backlash. You are going to have to overcome that internal battle and step out and do it. Be part of the female-empowerment conversation. You will be pleasantly surprised. I never thought the Sports Illustrated platform would be interested in what I had to say, but there you go, they did.”
Lerman believes that to conquer your fears, you require true self-exploration and reflection on what you ultimately want. She sees herself as multidimensional and more than defined by her career in dentistry. Lerman believes people are far too multi-faceted to have only one goal; people need to explore other outlets. They also need to set up a social support group to bounce ideas off of, a group of people who will give you an honest opinion and who will support you even if you ‘fail.’
When pushed to share a bit more about her dreams, Lerman confides, “I want to see all children have access to quality and affordable dental care. And the Sports Illustrated swim search campaign would be a great achievement, but it is so competitive to get into it.”
Fingers crossed, Lerman. We are cheering for you.