First Trip To The Dentist!

I have to admit, I was dreading this day...After Owen's last visit to the doctor and how traumatic that was, I mentally prepared myself for a big fight and a lot of tears.  I hoped that Owen might do a little better since this is a different location and he actually loves toothbrushes and has a current obsession with toothpaste. I was careful to not use the "d" word (doctor) and told him we were going to go get a new toothbrush! He was all for it.

We made the long trek up to see Dr. Thoa at Pacific Dental Care in Issaquah. I really should find something closer to our house, but Steve and I have been going to this practice for years and we really like them. This was our first experience with the pediatric side of the practice and it was awesome!

There is a big sign with a cartoon little girl holding a gigantic toothbrush in the front of the office - when we walked in, Owen's eyes lit up. "See! Toothbrush, Bubba!" He was excited to go in and get one (especially if it was going to be that big!) He did fine in the waiting room with all the fun new toys. Rhonda, our assistant, called us back and showed us the exam room. The room was decorated in a jungle theme. There was a big butterfly on the wall and Owen was excited about that. To my surprise, he didn't run screaming out of the room back toward the toys - he kept asking for "toothbrush?"

I sat in the chair and Owen sat on my lap while Rhonda asked me a bunch of introductory questions. Owen was a little squirmy, he wanted to grab everything within reach. I had brought our portable DVD player in with me and that was super helpful during this part because pushing all the buttons he normally covets but doesn’t get, held his attention long enough for me to answer all the questions and actually be able to listen to what she was telling me.

After the question/answer session, Rhonda turned to Owen. He stayed on my lap while she introduced him to all her tools. First, she blew the air on his hands and then his face. He thought that was cool. Then she squirted some water in my mouth so he could see what it was. He let her squirt some in his mouth too (duh – it’s wawa!) Then she showed him her “straw” (suction.) She squirted a tiny drop of water into the palm of his hand and showed him how her “straw likes to eat the water” and sucked it up. Then she put the “straw” into my mouth and then into Owen’s. He thought that was awesome too. Then she brought out her toothbrush (polishing tool) and told him how it liked to tickle teeth. She revved it up and put it on his fingernails to show him how it tickled and he didn’t flinch at all…She let him hold the toothbrush and use it on his own hands.

After he had seen all the tools, it was time to look at his teeth. After a quick discussion about how tolerant I could be with crying (I said, “he can cry – that’s ok – just try to at least see if he has any cavities) it was time to lay him down on the table. I told her that we normally brush his teeth laying down, so that position shouldn’t freak him out necessarily, I just thought that once she put her mask on and started messing with his mouth it would be all over.  I braced myself for battle.

She put a pair of sunglasses on him and had me hold a mirror so he could look at himself. He tried to take those off a few times but not in a scared/mad way – he just doesn’t like wearing shades! But when she let him hold the “straw” he forgot about the glasses. She started by looking at all his teeth with the dental mirror and told me that his lower two year old molars are completely in, his right upper molar is halfway in, and the left upper molar is just starting to poke through. She looked at his gums and said he might end up with a space between his two front teeth when his permanents come in because of the way his gum sits in between them. Then she brought out the polishing tool. Owen let her polish every single tooth!!!! He held the “straw” and suctioned his mouth – he even let her spray water on his teeth to rinse them and he “kissed” the straw (closed his mouth) to rinse.

After the polishing, Owen let her FLOSS HIS TEETH. Ok, who is this kid in this chair?!?! And after flossing, Owen let her apply a fluoride treatment including more water spraying and more “straw” sucking. I was nearly in tears just because of how good he was being!!! I kept kissing him and I think Rhonda thought I was crazy.

Dr. Thoa came in at the end and took a look at his teeth and his bite. She said his front teeth might be slightly pushed forward because of the paci/bottles but she wasn’t too sure because he wasn’t cooperating completely. She said he looked perfect – no cavities – great teeth – great patient!

Owen got to choose a toy out of the treasure box and he chose a little car, but after the appointment I took him to the store to pick out something better. He was far too good and deserved a much better toy than a stupid plastic mini car. One tow truck later, we were headed home.

I’m so proud of Owen!!!

For those who are interested...the final recommendations from the doctor were:

• Try to limit the paci to the crib and the car (although, she was telling me this when she thought Owen was 3 years old - apparently, three is the recommended age to quit the paci.  They didn't believe me when I told them Owen just turned two.  Yes, he's tall!!!)
• They initally started counseling me on taking away the bottle, but when I told him about how he won't drink milk out of anything else - the doctor seemed to think that milk is better than no bottle.  The 3-year age limit is also for bottles.  Give him his bottle before bed but brush afterwards.
• Filtered water is better than tap water even though it filters out the fluoride.  Apparently there is some concern about the lead in the water supply in relation to fluoride.
• A rice sized amount of toothpaste is ok to swallow.  Start using that instead of the training toothpaste.
• Ok for mom and dad to brush at night only, but let him brush his own teeth in the morning when we brush ours.
• Limit raisins and any kind of sticky fruit snacks.