First dental cleaning
Jun. 21st, 2010 11:39 amPunk had her first official dental cleaning this morning at 9am. I actually had to wake her at 7:45, which is kind of like being in Bizarro World. She woke up once at 6 and I snuggled her back to sleep and then she just kept sleeping. Score!
Anyway, the dental excursion was a success. I'd been talking it up for about a week - how she was going to go to the dentist, would have to open her mouth wide and say, "Aaah," how they would be touching her teeth and brushing with a special spinning toothbrush that tickles, etc. I really wanted it all out there so she wouldn't wig out. Usually she's pretty excited about everything but you just never know.
So we get to the waiting room and they weren't ready for her yet and she was super duper antsy, all, "Is it time for my appointment yet?" Finally they called her in and the hygienist put on gloves and Punk opened her mouth and said, "Aaaah!" which was amusing because the hygienist wasn't even doing anything. Finally the dentist came who was very sweet, asked me if I had any concerns, and I let her know that I took Punk to a different dentist (that I wasn't jazzed about) at around 18 months because she has these white spots on her front teeth, but that they haven't gotten any worse. She said she would check.
First she looked at all of Punk's teeth and then she used the pick thing and told Punk she was just counting the teeth, which I thought was genius. She did a little scaling really quickly and then Punk had some buildup on the back of her bottom front teeth so she actually had to dig it out and Punk was pretty chill about it. Then they got to the tooth polishing part and Punk actually didn't like that, saying several times, "I don't like this, Mama!" but the dentist worked quickly and the hygienist and I helped hold her hands. They flossed quickly. Then they painted flouride on her teeth and did a quick rinse. And that was it! She got a toothbrush, 2 stickers, and got to pick a prize from the prize drawer (she of course picked a "fancy" ring).
The dentist said she didn't see any signs of cavities, and that the white spots looked like an enamel difference (rather than a problem) that might be genetic because I have some, too. She said she saw the tiniest overbite that is likely from pacifier use and I let her know that Punk is giving her pacifiers to her pediatrician on Wednesday at her 3-year check up. So that was a non-issue.
We have an appointment in six months and I can't believe my kid is old enough to go to the dentist! One thing that I thought was interesting was that there were three dental chairs all in one big room and three kids got their teeth done at the same time! It was good for peer pressure for Punk (they were bigger kids) but I imagine it could be complicated when there is a freaked-out kid freaking everyone out.
I am super proud of my big girl who sat in the dental chair for her first big girl cleaning!!
Anyway, the dental excursion was a success. I'd been talking it up for about a week - how she was going to go to the dentist, would have to open her mouth wide and say, "Aaah," how they would be touching her teeth and brushing with a special spinning toothbrush that tickles, etc. I really wanted it all out there so she wouldn't wig out. Usually she's pretty excited about everything but you just never know.
So we get to the waiting room and they weren't ready for her yet and she was super duper antsy, all, "Is it time for my appointment yet?" Finally they called her in and the hygienist put on gloves and Punk opened her mouth and said, "Aaaah!" which was amusing because the hygienist wasn't even doing anything. Finally the dentist came who was very sweet, asked me if I had any concerns, and I let her know that I took Punk to a different dentist (that I wasn't jazzed about) at around 18 months because she has these white spots on her front teeth, but that they haven't gotten any worse. She said she would check.
First she looked at all of Punk's teeth and then she used the pick thing and told Punk she was just counting the teeth, which I thought was genius. She did a little scaling really quickly and then Punk had some buildup on the back of her bottom front teeth so she actually had to dig it out and Punk was pretty chill about it. Then they got to the tooth polishing part and Punk actually didn't like that, saying several times, "I don't like this, Mama!" but the dentist worked quickly and the hygienist and I helped hold her hands. They flossed quickly. Then they painted flouride on her teeth and did a quick rinse. And that was it! She got a toothbrush, 2 stickers, and got to pick a prize from the prize drawer (she of course picked a "fancy" ring).
The dentist said she didn't see any signs of cavities, and that the white spots looked like an enamel difference (rather than a problem) that might be genetic because I have some, too. She said she saw the tiniest overbite that is likely from pacifier use and I let her know that Punk is giving her pacifiers to her pediatrician on Wednesday at her 3-year check up. So that was a non-issue.
We have an appointment in six months and I can't believe my kid is old enough to go to the dentist! One thing that I thought was interesting was that there were three dental chairs all in one big room and three kids got their teeth done at the same time! It was good for peer pressure for Punk (they were bigger kids) but I imagine it could be complicated when there is a freaked-out kid freaking everyone out.
I am super proud of my big girl who sat in the dental chair for her first big girl cleaning!!