Nothing Less Than Perfect

Our pediatrician in Arkansas always recommended that we start taking the kids to the dentist when they turn three years old. So long before Charley's third birthday, I started asking around about decent pediatric dentists, and two different people recommended one dentist in particular who just happens to work conveniently close to our area. About five weeks ago I called to make an appointment because this dentist only works at this particular office one or two days a week, and February 1st was scheduled as the big day. At that time, Brian was still scheduled to be in town and had requested Feb. 1 off so that one of us could take Zander and one could take Charley to her appointment. To my dismay, just a couple weeks ago Brian's schedule changed and he was now going to be in Guam on the fateful dentist day. However, after a bit of thought, I decided to just take my chances with the appointment since the dentist was sort of tough to get in with. I decided to take Charley to her first dentist appointment with Zander in tow.

Now let's be honest . . . I was nothing less than terrified. First of all, as you are all now aware, Charley is my super-cautious child who tends to get freaked out by anything new. Second, when she does get freaked out, everyone within five miles is aware of her state of mind thanks to her screaming, blue face (from lack of breathing), huge tears, and clawing towards the nearest parent. Third, Zander is a very busy seventeen-month old who certainly does not want to calmly sit in my lap for more than two minutes when there are machines, cupboards, and an abundant number of gadgets to explore. Lastly, the appointment was at 4:00 p.m., which as anyone with kids knows, is generally not the best time of day for little ones. I was really taking my chances.

Needless to say, I went to great lengths to prepare for this event. First, I started Charley on an electric toothbrush a couple months ago, just to get her used to that vibrating sensation in her mouth so that the dentist's equipment wouldn't freak her out (thanks Heather for that suggestion!). Second, several weeks ago I started talking to Charley about the dentist. I told her that he was a tooth doctor who wanted to check her teeth to make sure they were healthy and sparkly. I told her that he was VERY nice and would be so proud of her for taking such good care of her teeth. I told her it would not hurt and that if she was a good girl, he would probably give her a sticker. I told her that going to the dentist was going to be REALLY FUN (yeaaaaa dentist!!!!) and tried to pump her up about it as much as possible. I told her what to expect . . . sitting in a cool big chair of her own, where she would open her mouth and say "Ahhhh" so the dentist could look at her pretty teeth, and that he might even want to brush her teeth. And last, I'll be honest, I flat out bribed her. I told her if she was a good girl and didn't cry, I would give her a lollipop when she got home, which is a major treat in our house because we don't eat a lot of sweets. And then I just prayed and crossed my fingers.

Prior to the appointment today, I was cautiously optimistic because Charley seemed to be rather excited about going. When we walked in to the office, I was greeted by a mountain of paperwork, but thankfully the waiting area was filled with toys to keep the kids busy for awhile. As soon as I was done with the paperwork, they took us right back with no waiting around time, which would have inevitably made the kids impatient. Charley marched right up to the beautiful purple chair waiting for her, climbed up, and layed back to get a good view of the T.V. screen blaring cartoons right above the chair. A minute or so later, the dentist joined the party, and I was a bit nervous for about ten seconds because Charley would not even look at him, and she had that look on her face that suggested that maybe if she didn't look him in the eye, he might go away. But as soon as he asked her how old she was and what kind of bug she had on her pretty blue shirt, she was putty in his hands. He was so kind and gentle, and knew just how to talk to her. She opened her mouth, followed his instructions, and didn't even flinch as he poked, prodded, brushed, and even flossed. He was in and out in less than 15 minutes, and for her splendid behavior, Charley received a goody bag with a new toothbrush, toothpaste, a flosser, and best of all, a pony sticker. She was so proud of her goodies, and so polite to the dentist, I just wanted to hug her to death when it was all over. On top of all that, Zander was pretty stinkin' good too. Of course he wasn't super excited about sitting in my lap with all those COOL GADGETS inticing him to come touch, but I was able to keep him sufficiently distracted with my cell phone and Charley's procedure to make it through the appointment without too much pain. All in all, I could not have had a better experience. Thank you God for answering my prayers.

So, for all you out there who have small ones and have yet to visit a dentist, here is my oh-so-expert advice (based on my one experience of course) to prepare you for this event:
1. start with the electric toothbrush a couple months in advance
2. explain to your child who the dentist is and what he does
3. explain to your child what to expect at the appointment so that there are no surprises
4. make the whole experience sound like it's going to FUN and EXCITING and COOL
5. bribe
6. pray

On a slightly different note, I was completely shocked to find out from the dentist that the American Dentist's Association is now recommending that parents start taking their kids to the dentist at age one. Just how crazy is that? Oh Zander, the fun that is in store for you . . .