Item 13 - Take the 2-year-old to the dentist

This was a very exciting/scary/nerve-racking item on my list. I have been hearing conflicting reports from different sources as to when kids should go in for their first dental visit. A class I took when Katie was born brought in a pediatric dentist who said that kids are now supposed to be in for their first visit at 1 year. My family dentist who also sees children said that he didn't need to see until she was three, but kindly took a look at her during my visit when she was about a year old so I didn't have to bring her in for her own visit.

I decided to split the difference and try to take her in around two. That would also get her on the same visit cycle as me (summer and Christmas). I was terrified about taking her to the dentist. I wanted it to be a positive experience, or at least not a horribly negative experience. I looked for books at the library but didn't find anything helpful. All the books there were above her head and horribly outdated. We're talking 70's chairs and setups. It wouldn't look anything like what she was going to see at the dentist now. They did have the Berenstein Bears dentist book but she isn't into those books yet since the text is a bit long for her. I ended up buying Elmo Visits the Dentist and one other that was realistic pictures but also cute. I think they helped. The text was still over her head so I just narrated the pictures but her interest in Elmo helped. We also practiced saying "AHH" a lot beforehand. :)

All in all it went MUCH better than I ever imagined. The hygienist was FANTASTIC. Katie sat in the chair all by herself and got her teeth cleaned and scraped. She didn't like the light or the floss so we skipped those parts and, wisely, I think, didn't even attempt a fluoride treatment. She didn't scream or holler and only tried to get out of the chair a few times. It helps that our dentist has TVs attached to the chairs so she could watch Dragon Tales over the hygienist's shoulders while it was all happening. I believe that they are DVD capable so I could bring a DVD for her to watch as well. She only started to fall apart when the actual dentist came in, mostly because she had already done quite a bit and she was "all done Mommy!" She was a star, though, and all the folks at the dentist's office kept talking about how amazing it was that a two-year-old let them do so much and was so cooperative.

Amusingly, at the end she got to choose from the treasure chest and, instead of a slightly more age appropriate toy, she wanted the pencil and pad of paper. Overall, definitely a success.