Your Child's First Visit
Your child’s first visit to the dentist can be exciting or scary, or a
combination of both. It can be such not only for the child, but
for the parent as well!! Your influence as a parent can help make
this crucial visit for your child easy and positive. We will give
you some hints that we have found helpful in preparing your little for
their first big visit to the dentist. We hope that you will find
the information helpful, and as always, you are welcome to call or stop
by the office if you have questions.
Some Do’s
Let your child know that you are going to take them to see the
dentist. If they don’t really know what that means, you can tell
them that we are going to clean their teeth and make them shiny and
bright, and that we will count their teeth and look to see if there are
any “cavity bugs” hiding inside their teeth. IF you use this
phraseology, you will find that your children will hear it again when
they come to the office. This familiarity will help them feel
more comfortable.
You can role play with your children at home by having them open wide
so you can count their teeth, and even practice brushing them. If
you have a small dental mirror that you can purchase at many stores in
the area, you can also use that to look inside their mouth, and let
them know that the dentist will do the same thing. Role playing
with your child is a very helpful method of preparing them for your
trip to the dentist.
Do speak in positive tones in front of the child. If you have
your own fears…do not let them out. Anything you say can and will
be used against me, so please remember the “Thumper” principle… “If you
can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.”
Some Don’ts
Building on the thought of what we say in front of our children, please
do not say things like, “Don’t worry, it won’t hurt”, or “They’ll have
to give you a little shot”, or “If you aren’t good, the doctor will
have to hold you down.” I know you may mean well with such
phrases, but they are very counterproductive and will hurt our new
relationship with your child. You can say things like, “The
doctor may have to give your tooth some sleepy juice so he can get the
cavity bugs out”, or “The more still you can be and the wider you hold
your mouth open, the better the doctor can see”, etc. We will not
lie to your child, and we will answer their questions honestly, but
will try to do things in a manner that is not threatening.
Please remember the power of your example and do your best not to speak
or act negatively about going to the dentist in front of your
child. Even if you have to put on your brave face and do a little
bit of acting, it will be worth it for your little one.
Our Goal
Our sincere desire is to give your child a positive dental experience
that they can build on throughout their lives. If we can give
them a good start, they will do well in the future. If they have
had a rough beginning already, we can usually win them over and help them
put it behind them. If we can work together, I believe things
will go as well as possible for you and your child. Please feel
free to contact us if you have any questions about your child’s first
visit, or if we can help you prepare them.
