The DO’s and DON’Ts Before your child’s dental appointment/treatment

As a parent, we understand that you are dedicated to your child and want what’s best for them. Sometimes, however, parents can be too honest with their children especially when it has to do with their dental treatment. In doing so, this can cause children to become fearful and anxious prior to their dental appointment at our office. We will discuss a few do’s and don’ts to help prepare both you and your child for their dental exam and treatment. The idea is to help your child stay calm and relaxed, so let’s talk about ways you can help prepare them for their big day at our office

Dental Exam
If your child is coming in as a new patient or a returning patient, you can explain the appointment as follows:

1. First, you are going to take pictures of your teeth. This is important because these pictures will help the dentist see if there are any bugs that live in and on your teeth.
2. After your pictures, you will be seated in a really comfortable chair and be able to watch the movie on the tv.
3. Next, you will have your teeth cleaned with a special toothbrush and some floss that can get all the yucky bugs off of your teeth.
4. Once they are done brushing your teeth, the dentist will come and count your teeth using both a “mirror” and a “tooth counter” to make sure that there are no more bugs on your teeth.
5. If you follow directions really well, you will be able to get a special prize when you are all done!

Dental Treatment
We highly recommend that you DO NOT use the word “NEEDLE” or “SHOT” when describing how dental work will be performed on your child. We like to use the phrase “SLEEPY JUICE,” which is less scary for a young child. This is especially true if your child has just received vaccinations while at their pediatrician’s office (as you can imagine, that was probably not a fun experience for them). Most children respond poorly during dental injections because of increased fear or anxiety brought about by the anticipation of receiving an injection. We understand that you want to be truthful with your child, but there are better ways to explain the process to help them stay calm.

Outlined below is a script that you can use to help explain how the dentist will perform your child’s dental treatment:

1. First, the dentist will put your chair back so you can enjoy watching the movie on the tv.
2. Next, the dentist will put a cool astronaut’s nose over your nose, which will help you enjoy the movie.
3. Next, the dentist will place some jelly around your teeth that have sugar bugs on them, which will help get them sleepy.
4. After the dentist waits about a minute for your teeth to get sleepy, he/she will put some sleepy juice around the jelly to make sure your teeth are extra sleepy. The dentist does this to make sure that the sugar bugs are asleep because if they wake up, they will jump onto your other teeth and make new holes in them.
5. Next, the dentist will place a tooth pillow inside your mouth to help you stay open and to get all the yucky taste out of your mouth since sugar bugs taste really yucky.
6. The dentist will then use an electric toothbrush that makes a lot of noise and sprays a lot of water to help brush all the sugar bugs off of your teeth. The dental assistant will use a small straw that will catch the bugs and get the yucky taste out of your mouth.
7. Once the bugs have been brushed off of your teeth, the dentist will put either a silver or white star (filling)/hat (crown) in or over your teeth to fill the hole left behind by the sugar bugs.
8. Once the holes are filled, you will be all done!
9. Remember, if you have a question or would like the dentist to stop for any reason, raise your left hand in the air.
10. When you are all done, you will be given a prize/toy. If you follow directions and are really brave, Dr. Baker will give you a special prize/toy.