My Son Is Having a Medical Procedure...

Hi R.

I suggest bringing a lovey with you and telling your son you will be there holding his hand the whole time.

Do not talk about it hurting or about the procedure in detail, it will only scare him. I would talk about what you'll be doing after the trip.

If you have an I Pod, have him make songs for the procedure and let him listen to his play list too.

There is nothing you can do to change the reality, but you can make it easier by focusing on him and comforting him.

I'm sorry you and the little guy need to go through this, having medical procedures like this is tough being so young.

R. Magby

I don't personally believe in giving them a lot of info. too early. I think it gets them worked up unnecessarily.

Other moms can give you more advice.

It sounds like you did and said everything perfect. I was a big control freak when I was a kid and HATED the dentist. I wanted to do all the procedures myself. I would cry and beg for a hand mirror and the drill. I would also repeat this same act when I had to get my blood drawn. In my mind, doing it myself would hurt less than having someone else do it.

My mom did nearly the same thing as you, with the sedative medicine, but she called it the "no hurt juice". Once that was down I was pretty ok because I held in my mind that because I drank the juice nothing could hurt me so it didn't matter what they asked me to do, I'd be fine.

I felt the prick of the needle when they numbed the area though so after the procedure was over I just told my mother that I was able to feel the needle a little so next time I needed stronger juice.

Kids don't need the the absolute truth if you know it's going to make them spaz. Also, tell him he can bring whatever lovey he wants to and it can stay with him. I brought my blanket and they tucked it around me. lol

your doing it fine. hes not going to be any calmer for a pediatric dentist. my daughter is 3 and when she goes in for her routine appts i tell her what they will do and such and if she freaks she freaks i cant help it much.

He's five- it IS a big deal to him!
How scary to have to go through four fillings AFTER knowing the scariness of a hospital and being put under....
I'd cut him some slack and try to make it as easy on him as possible. He's not being a drama king- he's being a five year old who doesn't know whats going to happen and he's worried.

I'd say try and have the dentist do the less invasive cavities first and see how he does. If he totally freaks out you can always get the referral to the ped orthodontist. I think my 4 year old would have a hard time too since he barely let the dentist look in his mouth.

general anesthesia is really worse than any dental work. Complications, though quite rare, are usually serious, and many people get sick as a dog upon waking. I suggest keeping it to a minimum-what you said is fine, I'd leave it at that and be as nonchalant as possible. Let them give him the nitrous oxide, it wears off really quickly. Almost immediately. So quick, in fact, that we used to call it "hippie crack" waaay back in the days before kids and responsibilities. Good luck, I hope it turns out ok.