Your child’s first dental appointment should be before his/he first birthday, or you can also follow the general rule of taking your child to the dentist six months after the first tooth starts to show up.
Taking your child to the dentist at an early age ensures that your children will value dental hygiene and also reduces the risk of dental troubles later in life. Here are a few things you need to consider on your child’s first dental appointment:
Plan It Out
First, you need to know yourself what would happen on the first dental appointment, therefore before you finalize the date and time, ask your dentist what will happen the first time your child visits. Also consider preparing yourself for both your child’s reactions- cooperative or non-cooperative. Take your child to your dental appointment
Take Them To Your Appointments
The best way to make the first appointment easy on your child is by taking him/her to a few of your visits to the dentist. They will heave a sigh of relief if they see a loved one going through it first. Added to that, you can also instill reassurance which will later work to make the chair, noises, the antiseptic smell and all the shiny tools less scary.
Make It A Fun Game At Home
Weeks before your child’s visit to your family dentist in Germantown, spend some time preparing him/her for the physical reality of a dental appointment. Use a penlight and ask your child to open up his or her mouth while you examine their teeth; let your child do the same to you. Also consider brushing your teeth in front of your child, making it seem like a fun and enjoyable activity. You can also get dentist play sets to make it even more fun!
Arrive Early
Another thing you should consider doing is arriving early at the dentist’s office. This helps especially if your child is really anxious. Arriving at least 30 minutes before the appointment will give your child ample time to play around and adjust to the environment before it is finally time.
These are just a few things that can help ease the stress behind the first dental appointment for your child.
Contact us at Advanced Dental Center to make your child’s first dental visit fun and interesting!
