3:10 Pick up from school, we drive home and he is already worried about his dentist appointment. He picks fights with me about things unrelated but I can see through to his anxiety.
3:30 We've arrived home and had a snack (muffin) and a drink (juice) and its time to take the medication. I explained that it will make the appointment easier and he won't be as afraid of the dentist this time.
4:00 We arrive for our 4:10 appointment. He sits in the only corner with only one chair so that no one else can sit next to him (this is normal) and we wait. He is acting goofy and a little hyper and I'm worried.
4:30 I'm super annoyed because they know sitting in the waiting room can increase his anxiety but at this point he has moved past the hyper and is staring at the TV (Phineas & Ferb, naturally) and tapping a Skylander icon on the iPad that makes a noise.
4:35 We go back and he gets a little anxious but he is a bit lethargic as well so he sits in the dentist chair without me asking!! The dentist comes in, this is our normal dentist and he is AMAZING with my 9 year old, they make a deal... Show & Tell before anything which is to show us what he is going to use and tell us what he is going to do with it and why.
In this appointment they brushed his teeth, counted and looked for any issues and polished his teeth with the toothbrush and the tooth polish (not the electric spin brush thing). We did not do a fluoride treatment, when the dentist said it Adam freaked so we skipped it. This is probably because a past dentist got really annoyed with us and Adam's refusal to let them put it on his teeth. He will never forget that.
5:05 We were outta there and on our way to get drive though for dinner, Adam's choice for being SUPER AWESOME!! (And necessary because my garbage disposal died last night and at last check The Hubs had the kitchen torn apart)
We're home now, dinner has been eaten and Adam is on his earned computer time to round out the evening. He is a little spacey still and will probably (hopefully!) sleep really well tonight.
Today is a good day.
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ReplyDeleteYeah, I hope you've had a swell day with your family, especially when it comes to dental treatment. Not often do people get out of that experience with a smile in their faces, or a glow all inside. So to extol these trips with that same verve of optimistic sureness is great indeed for dental hygiene and maintenance.
ReplyDeleteThomas DeFinnis @ Wynnewood Dental Arts
Uh-oh! I hope Adam didn't develop a slight trauma of fluoride treatments because of his bad experience with a past dentist. At any rate, it does seem like he was a complete trooper with the other dental procedures he underwent. Kudos to him for being a brave boy! Thanks for sharing that, Maggie! All the best! :)
ReplyDeleteRudy Spencer @ LBDP
Thank you for your post and the pictures of your son. I am in the same boat, and every minute we wait in the waiting room is torture. Luckily, I now call as we drive over, and I get a text when the coast is clear. We walk in the waiting room and go right to the chair without any issues.
ReplyDeleteJoanna @ Westheimer Dentist