I just scheduled Xander's (2 years) first dentist appointment!! I'm so nervous. Just trying to cut his hair, he totally FREAKS OUT.
What happened at your LO's first dentist appointment? How old were they?
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2 yrs old
counted teeth, looked for any abnormalities, then a quick brush and all done
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Pretty much the same as above. They had tv screens in the ceiling so he watched Elmo while the dental assistant and dentist did their thing.
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A little over 2 years old – they talked to LO about brushing and gave her a new toothbrush and asked her if she brushed yet. Then they counted her teeth and looked at the spacing between, etc. They also painted sealant on her back teeth with a little brush. They pretended to count my teeth first, and to paint my teeth first, and everyone acted all excited about how process, which got LO on board to do it “like mommy”.
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My LO went at 1 year because I was concerned about some staining on her front teeth from her iron drops. It was easy-peasy. She sat in my lap backwards and the dentist laid LO back onto her (the dentist's) lap. She did a quick exam, cleaned and polished her front two teeth and applied a fluoride treatment.
It was all very fast and the dentist played with LO enough to make her comfortable and open her mouth.
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@Mamaof2: @hilsy85: @yoursilverlining: @Anagram: Thanks ladies! That doesn't sound TOO bad. Did your LOs handle it okay? Xander's pretty decent about brushing his teeth (and letting me do it), so I'm HOPING it will go smoothly.
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@Adira: he actually did WAY better than I thought he would. I was shocked!
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@hilsy85: Yay! That's encouraging!!
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2 years; they counted teeth, put some fluoride on them, checked for cavities (since you can see clearly see them) she FREAKED out when we tried to put the fluoride stuff on but otherwise did okay. Her second one she showed them how she brushes & was more comfortable.
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@LuLu Mom: Thanks! When do you usually go back for the next appointment? 6 months like normal?
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First appointment with me at 2 years: watched my cleaning, then just counted her teeth and gave her a toothbrush and a prize.
Second and subsequent appointments (2 1/2 and 3): my cleaning first, she played and watched, then did her cleaning and she did great!
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Well she went at 3 or 4 months and they just checked her teeth. And then she went last week at almost a year and they blew some air in her mouth, checked her teeth, watched her brush and suction ed her mouth I think. She did well!
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So, our first appt was a total disaster, but the one we recently had actually went okay.
The most they want to do is count the teeth and then make sure there are no cavities. I know you scheduled the appointment, but the hygenist told me they schedule the kids appts first thing in the morning, so there is no waiting and they have the time to devote. Worked really well for us.
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@MamaCate: I was thinking that would be a good way to do it - have him at my cleaning and then do his, but my dentist office doesn't seem to do that. Which might be for the best since my teeth are crazy plaque builders and how long it takes to clean my teeth might scare him off, haha.
@anonysquire: Oh wow! I'm surprised you took her so early, but that's probably good because she'll be so used to it. Xander didn't even have teeth until 7 months!
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@looch: Ours is the same - they said they only do them in the morning! Although ours is at 11:00, so not THAT early, but I guess it's what they had available. We're used to having to wait at the pediatrician's office though, so having to wait at the dentist shouldn't be too big of a deal. I'm glad to hear that even though the first appointment for you was a disaster, it's gotten better!
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@Adira: well the tooth she was born with is missing enamel, so I had called her dentist and he told her to bring her in. And then we just are trying to do the every 6 months thing. I think it's good practice
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@Adira: E handled it better than I was expecting!! They suggested that she sit on my lap, which I think helped a lot too - as did them "performing" everything on me first. She goes back in a few weeks, we'll see if the check-up goes as smoothly!
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@anonysquire: Oh interesting! But that's great she's going and is used to it! Hopefully Xander does as well.
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@yoursilverlining: I'm HOPING that mine is similar and that they perform stuff on me first before him, BUT that doesn't always work at the pediatrician's office, so I don't really have high hopes, haha.
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We just had ours last week and it was great. They did a full on cleaning and he was perfect! I was totally freaking out about it.
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@matador84: Glad to hear it went well!!
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When DS was two they let him play in the chair, they tried to get him to sit but he started crying, so they took him into the dentist's business office where he counted teeth and did a quick look. He told me they don't even attempt cleanings until they are three. And this is a pediatric dental office.
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@KT326: Thanks for sharing your experience!
@Mamaof2: @hilsy85: @yoursilverlining: @LuLu Mom: @MamaCate: @matador84: @KT326: I should've asked earlier, but was there anything you did to help your LO prepare for their first time at the dentist? Do you think it helped?
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@Adira: 2 weeks leading up to appointment every time we brushed i said "this is so we have healthy teeth when we go see the dentist" or "the dentist likes when we reach the teeth all the way in the back." And then i talked about my dentist appointment with her, how nice she is and how she is so excited to meet her (we took her to my dentist, not a specific pediatric one) and i think that helped her not be so scared.
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@Adira: We've done more to prepare for his third appointment than we did previously. Since this year he is getting a cleaning I've shown him pictures of kids at the dentist. We've also talked a lot about how the dentist is going to brush his teeth and he gets to sit in a special chair. We even practice by having him lay on the couch and we brush his teeth. He loves that.
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@Adira: we go to a family dentist and i didn't know they did it that way. But when I asked about bringing her when LO was around 18 months, that is what they recommended. I think it helped a lot to see everything done to me first, and they let me come just me and her, which I was worried about. Maybe LO could go to your appointment with you and then have his shortly thereafter (a week or two) so it is familiar at least?
And to prepare, we just talked about going to the dentist to help make sure our teeth are clean, that she would get a new toothbrush and a prize from the prize box. We live close to our dentist so we drive by regularly, and we would talk about how we are going to go in January when we went by, so we sort of used natural opportunities to prep and reinforce.
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@Adira: If only my dental appointments are like that... lol
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I just booked our first one too! He's very used to doctors, but I don't know how he'll feel about having someone look in his mouth. Hoping it goes well!
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