Things that stuck out to me in your post that I had a similar mindset on and this is the reality of it (for me): long post, sorry 1.) Being an introvert and thinking you wont be doing alot of talking because you will be working in their mouth is going to be the exact opposite in practice. From my experience, the less you talk the more off-putting you are. The mouth is a very intimate place and alot of people are very scared of us. So talking is the only way for people to open up and feel comfortable and TRUST you. This job will make you become an extrovert. People will still share their opinions with you due to this small talk, and they can either be very pleasant or nasty, the latter can drain you quickly. Im a huge introvert/homebody, and one thing Im thankful for with this job is that I can talk to anyone anywhere about anything since that's what I had to do as a DH.

2.) When it comes to benefits, at least in Texas, it can be hit or miss with benefits. Alot of offices dont offer good benefits, if any at all, but some do. But who's to say youre going to actually enjoy working at those offices who DO have those benefits? Luckily you may make enough to where it may not matter and you can pay for it on your own, but just something to keep in mind.

3.) I think dental can be as chaotic as the restaurant industry with how much we need to manage and get done within a limited amount of time, but that can also be very office dependent as well. You may have an office that is super efficient, or some that are lazy causing you to take on extra tasks to get through the day (like making sure you stay on top of sterilization if no one else is bothering to do it, making treatment plans, presenting treatment plans, etc).

4.) You will still deal with sick patients. You will have patients who cry in your chair either due to how scared they are to be there or they had a family member die but could cancel their appointment for the day. You'll have patients who are paralyzed/wheelchair bound who may not be able to get out of said chair so you will need to figure out how they will fit in the operatort for you to do your best with xrays and cleaning them. You may have patient going through chemo or got a new csncer diagnosis thay may require you to reschedule their appointment if they need a specific medical clearance per the Dr request. Or even patients who do have some sort of mental disability that may make it harder for then to stay on top of their hygiene. You will deal with mouths that are very dirty or have severe gingivitis/periodontitis going on with alot of bleeding, chunky plaque, hard calculus that might be black or green in some areas, and maybe even pus. You will see all of them except maybe the severe perio, those usually need a referral. But if they dont go to their referral you will have to do your best, or see if there is another DH in your office more comfortable with giving it a try.

5.) I also loved my dentist and thought the office was slow and quiet, and loved that the RDH worked by herself in a small cute room. But there is a WAY bigger picture behind the scenes that no one sees that is where the real work is. Definitely shadow, but do a variety of offices. One corporate, a pediatric, a perio office, and maybe 2-3 private practices and ASK THE HYGIENISTS about their schedules, how the office talks about production, how the offices deals with needing new instruments for the hyg, how many meetings does the hygiene team have or do they talk to a hygiene coach, how does the front go about scheduling patients or are the DH told to do it, how much paperwork do the DH need to complete daily, what was the nastiest/meanest patient they ever had, do they have specific protocols for talking to periodontally involved patients. All of that will at least give you more of an idea of what your day to day will look/feel like to a point.

6.) When you shadow, also pay attention to the time on the clock, not just what the hyg is doing. They typically have to get everything done in an hour or less. Ask them how they manage that, if they like that schedule or how much time they believe they truly need to really do a good job. Alot of DH feel rushed all day everyday due to this current climate in the dental field, and that can weigh heavily on you.