A child’s life is full of important phases; some of them are the first step, first word, and first tooth checkup, which are some of the moments you will never forget. The concern is when should your child first see a dentist?
The professionals recommend taking them within 6 months of the first tooth coming in or by about 12 months at least. In this stage, the dentist provides you with the following information:
- Pacifier habit.
- Mouth cleaning.
- Baby bottle tooth decay.
- Finger sucking habit.
- Infant feeding practices.
- Teething.
The article will provide helpful tips to prepare your kids for their first dental visit.
Tips For Your Child’s First Dentist Appointment
As established before, taking your children to the dentist is extremely important for several reasons. However, we mostly overlook the need and feel confused when the child starts throwing tantrums before visiting the dentist.
Given below are some of the most important tips that you must follow when taking your child for their first dentist appointment—
1. Schedule The Appointment At The Right time
Morning is the best time to schedule an appointment with the dentist. This is because your child is in the best mood when they are fresh and full of energy.
However, avoid making appointments in the evening or near their nap time when the child can be cranky or groggy.
Thus, if your child requires special assistance, discuss it with the staff members and then schedule your appointment. In this situation, the dentist usually schedules the child’s time slot longer. You can also check out the dePacific dental clinic as the experts offer professional care and accordingly book your appointment.
2. Mentally Prepare Your Child
There are many tricks to assist the child in preparing for the first dental visit. In certain cases, we suggest informing the child about the appointment on the day itself. This is because it would give them less time to run their imagination and get stressed.
Neither surprise your child with the appointment, but this helps them get anxious before they can visit the clinic. Instead, you can also read them some books that address the topic of a child’s first visit to a dentist.
3. Play Some Games
Before your child makes their first visit to the dentist, you can allow them to take up the role of a dentist and play. Having them act as the dentist with the soft toys or dolls and talking to them about how a dentist cleans and checks a patient’s teeth will give them confidence.
You can talk to your child about what issue you are going through and wait for their response. This will give them a clear perspective of what a dentist does.
On the other hand, you can discuss oral hygiene with your child.
4. You Should Not Forget To Offer Your Child With Positive Reinforcement
If you see your child fearing the dentist and stressed about their appointment with the dentist, you should offer them plenty of positive reinforcement. You can do it by praising them and defeating their fears for being brave.
Instead of focusing on what went wrong, you can draw attention to everything that went well. This will help your child overcome their fears and willingly make their next visit.
5. Stay Calm
You must be patient with your child and take baby steps while inculcating good dental habits. If your child shows signs of resistance, do not force them. A stern attitude will increase their opposition in the long run.
However, if you find your child is not interested and does not prefer to follow the guidelines during the first visit, then just stay relaxed, as it might take three or four visits before the child is completely comfortable for their check-up.
Hence, this will avoid long-term negative results and assist the child in adopting a positive outlook towards dental visits.
Help Your Child Prepare For Visit Dental Visit
Taking a toddler for their first dental check-up is daunting for several parents. Hence, it is very important for you to prepare your child before they make their first dental visit.
Just like an adult, the parent must take their child every sixth or seventh month for a check-up. While few dentists recommend visiting every 3 or 4 months as it can help them build comfort and confidence in the child.
If there are more frequent visits, it will help to keep a close eye on any issue the child faces.