(ThyBlackMan.com) If you have kids then you can probably understand the nightmare which takes place whenever you need to take them to the dentist, something which I have struggled with for many years. There is a really great dental community here in San Diego, California and one program which they have is working with schools, to encourage better oral hygiene. I spoke with one of the dentists who run this program Dr. Kami Hoss, to get some tips on how to encourage the kids to be better when they go to the dentist, and his tips really helped. If you are going through similar thing with your kids, here are some tips which can help.
Change Dentist
Not every dentist is great with kids and I used to think that it was the kids that didn’t like the dentist, rather than the fact that the dentist could be better. After speaking to Dr. Hoss we decided to try out his dental practice in Los Angeles and they have some really fun and friendly dentists who are great with the kids. Heading from SD to LA for a dental appointment is well worth it if the kids are happier. This may be something which you consider for your kids if your existing dentist isn’t great with them.
Rewards
Kids love an incentive which is why I decided to start taking my kids to the cinema after a dentist appointment. The kids now really look forward to the dentist, because they know that if they go through a little bit of pain then at the end there is a treat which they are going to love. Parents rely on bribery very often and this is one bribe which has worked incredibly well.
Competition
Our new dentist is amazing and he gives the kids a mark out of ten for how good their teeth are when we go in for a checkup, something which I asked him to do. The reason for this is that I wanted to somehow get the kids excited about going to the dentist, and a competition seemed to be the best way of doing that. This hasn’t just helped the kids to get excited to find out what their score is, it has also encouraged them to take better care of their teeth. I hear the kids telling each other ‘I’m brushing my teeth better than you’ and things of that nature, which has helped them to take care of their oral hygiene much better than I could have hoped.
Timings
If you take the kids to the dentist in the afternoon then they are going to spend all day fixating on it and worrying about it. For this reason I like to try and make appointments first thing on a Saturday morning, the kids are already excited about the weekend and the fact that they go to the dentist first thing gives them far less time to worry about it.
Why not give these tips a try and see if your kids can get a little more excited about attending dental appointment?
Staff Writer; Karl Jacobs