In order to promote good oral hygiene and to keep their teeth healthy, taking children to the dentist in West Bloomfield is important. But for a kid, a dentist appointment can be downright scary—from lying on a chair in an unfamiliar place filled with unfamiliar objects and noises, all while someone you don’t know is poking metallic and cold instruments in your mouth. Here are some helpful tips to help your child feel more relaxed and comfortable.
Before the appointment, have a pretend dental visit with you as the dentist. All you need is a toothbrush. Count your child’s teeth starting with letter A or number 1. It’s best to avoid making noises like a drill or lining up instruments.
Try to avoid using P (pain), H (hurt) or S (shot) words. You can tell your child, though, that the dentist in West Bloomfield will be looking for “sugar bugs” to clean them off their teeth. Or you can say that the dentist is going to count their teeth and check their smile. Use positive statements like “healthy, clean, strong teeth” to make the appointment seem good and fun versus alarming and scary. You can also pick up helpful vocabulary at the dentist to help with future visits.
Try not to include too many details about the dentist in West Bloomfield. Otherwise, it could raise a lot of unnecessary questions. Also, after the first visit, if your child has to come back for another treatment for a filling, for instance, adding more information may cause unnecessary anxiety. The key is to keep it positive when talking about an upcoming appointment, yet without giving them false hope.
The words you tell your child about a dentist in West Bloomfield or anything in life will last well into his or her adulthood. Make sure they’re positive. For more information, take a look online for a dentist near you.
