When the first time you begin building a routine, it takes a child to practice and understand to feel comfortable with the new structure, people, and events they’re about to experience.
For instance, they are waking up at the same time every day, going to school, and having a consistent bedtime. All this ensures that a child knows what to expect every day. These rigid structures allow children a feeling of safety while building good habits.
But, what happens when something new, such as a routine visit to the dentist, appears on a child’s day?
Dental Curve’s compassionate and kid-friendly dentists suggest the following tips to prepare your child for their dental visit:
Watch Videos
When planning for the first dental visit, along with the pictures, you can prepare your child by showing them educational videos about dentists. This will help them understand what a pediatric dentist will do as part of the dental care routine.
Choose a “happy” appointment time
Try to book your child’s first appointment at a time that suits them best. For example, when your child is usually in the happiest and most attentive mood. This tends to be in the mornings for younger children and older children, and sometimes early afternoon appointments may also work better. Try to avoid late appointments at the first visit as often children will be exhausted, which may impact their response, especially if they are anxious.
Bring along your kid’s favourite toy
Encourage children to bring their toys or doll as we can incorporate a dental check-up for them too! Explaining what we will do on their toy can help your munchkins understand what will happen at their appointment.
Stay Positive
It helps keep a happy and cheerful attitude when talking about the dentist. Be sure to treat the visit as happening, simple, and regular. This will help your children have a better attitude towards the dentist. As mentioned, you may also bring their favourite toy or a blanket to comfort them.
Prepare your child for a treatment
It is often more beneficial not to say much about the dental appointment, especially if parents are anxious about visiting the dentist. Children will pick up on any situation parents show, which can unnecessarily intensify their fears. At Dental Curve, our teams have the specialist training needed to identify any worries and allay any fears. We use easy phrases and terminology to explain everything to our patients to keep things clear and comfortable for them to understand.
Final Thoughts
Making dental visits a part of your child’s yearly routine can drive healthy mouth habits and lifelong oral health. These tips to prepare your child for their first dental visit can aid them to feel confident, comfortable and ready to hop up in the tooth doctor’s chair.
If you feel like your child needs a little more motivation or has questions, don’t hesitate to reach out, and we’ll be more than delighted to give you some more pointers.
If it’s time to schedule your child’s first dental visit http://www.dentalcurve.in/
