Toddlers: 24 Months+
meganandchase
member
Do you stay with LO at the dentist?
meganandchase
member
DS is just about to turn 3 and I am trying to set up his first dentist appointment. Two places I called clearly specified that I can go with him the first time, but after that, I have to stay in the waiting room. I asked two friends with young kids what they do, and they both said they go with their kid. My feeling is that if he were older, maybe 8 or so, I wouldn't mind letting him go by himself. But at three, I'm not so sure.
Do you stay with your child at the dentist? At what age do you think it's ok to let him go by himself.
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Re: Do you stay with LO at the dentist?
My DD is 3. We still go with her. Honestly, she sits on our laps on the chair because she (like a lot of 3 year olds and for that matter, people) hate the dentist. I would never go to any physician/dentist that required me to be away from my child.
Every single pediatric dentist in our city requires that the parent stay behind! It drives me nuts. I can understand that kids will behave better sometimes without their parent there. We picked one that has windows set up in front of all the chairs. All the dental chairs are in one big room, so that the kids and doctor are never alone and the kids can see other kids getting their teeth checked too. The parents are allowed to sit at the windows to watch. They said if you really, really have an issue with it or if your child seems overly nervous or scared, then you can come back with them and sit at the end of the dental chair. So, they do make exceptions at our place. We've only been once though and we went back for that. They ended up doing a lap exam anyhow because he was afraid of the big chair. While I think it's kind of strange and I'm not a fan of the policy, I can see why they do it. It's a lot like when parents visit in my classroom. For whatever reason, the second their mother walks into the room, they think they no longer need to follow classroom procedures and act like crazy people. You'd think it would be the opposite!
I understand why dentists choose to have parents stay in the waiting room.
However, my daughter is an introvert like her dad, and does not warm up to new people easily at all. (As in, it would take many, many days of regularly getting to visit with this person just for fun for her to be anything other than melting down at me leaving her alone.) They would have to forcibly restrain her (hard) to do anything with her if I left. So, I will not go to a dentist that requires me to wait behind.
What is your child like?
DD2 just had her second dentist appointment, and my DD1 is on the autism spectrum. Yes, I sit near them in a chair at the foot of the exam chair, and encourage them to behave. We go to a family dentist.
They're both troopers and fine with having their teeth scraped, polished and flossed, but I want them to be very familiar and comfortable before they do it without me.
DD1, 1/5/2008 ~~~ DD2, 3/17/2010