Need to get terrified 4yr old DD to dentist

[SuperAmoo]

My DD1 just 4 refuses to open her mouth at the dentist. I have managed to get her to an appointment after months and months of placating and explaining but she then refused to open her mouth. She needs to see a dentist as I am worried about her yellow teeth (I have another thread about the fact that I suspect rice milk at night is damaging her teeth). Any suggestions?

Hypnosis - don't know if there are dentists that do child hypnosis but maybe?
Have you tried playing dentists at home?
If she's 4, I guess she could explain to you why she won't open her mouth? Then when you know the reason, (I don't him to touch my mouth with those gloves, I don't want instruments in my mouth, it will hurt) you can work on solutions to solve whichever fear is making her refuse to open her mouth.

Have you played dentists at home? get some latex gloves on and prod her mouth with a spoon. Let her do it to you for the first few times - in fact, refuse to be anything but the patient for about a week.

Yes and pop to dentists and ask if they can let you have a mouth mirror thing - they won't mind -they'll just give you one to play with at home. That made a big difference to my DD

Ok thanks will try this. Have played dentist many times but didin't think of putting the gloves on - we do have some in the cupboard somewhere and I think it may be the gloves that bother her among other things. It probably didn't help that I was crying all day long for a week in January with tooth ache and came home not being able to speak after all the injections. I keep telling her that it won't happen to her but she doesn't believe me. Plus our dentist has a funny shaped head and is rubbish with children and she says that he scares her!!

our dentist recommended ds had medised half an hour before appointment when he had to have some fillings
he just kind of drifted in with a peaceful smile on his face and said he really liked having the fillings done!!
obviously you would need advice from your dentist or doctor on this as medised is not routinely recommended for under 6s I don't think

Buy books/DVDs about going to the dentist. Isn't there a Charlie & Lola about the dentist? Anyway, go to any decent bookshop and they'll be able to help.

Can recommend Topsy & Tim go to the dentist. Dreadful book but worked a treat with ds1.

My dentist allowed ds1 to play with the chair (with me sitting in it) and press lots of buttons, which he liked. She also just checked him out sitting on my knee on an ordinary chair. He wouldn't open his mouth for ages, but she kept persevering with making him laugh and we got there in the end.

When DD was 4 and had her first dentist visit, I lay down in the dentist's chair with DD lying on top of me, and cuddled her - this worked very well.

DD1 is terrified of doctors and dentists so I have to resort to bribery.
At the dentists I buy a magazine at the shop next door and leave it on top of DD2's buggy so she can see it. Also a carton drink and a snack of her choosing.
Last time we had Ribena and a milky way. I was so at the dentist but she said whatever it takes is fine as long as we brush her teeth.
I also have a book about Fred bear at teh Dentist which is great, all photos of teddy bears at a real dentists, very cute.

That's not good OP if your dentist is not great with kids. Your DD has said he scares her so it were me and you're able to go elsewhere, I'd try to register at another surgery that has a dentist that is fab with kids. We've registered recently with a lovely guy who does cool hand shakes with the children and tells them about his son (7). He knows that he can have fun chatting to them but also has enough authority to discuss about how to clean teeth, not eating between meals ect, that the kids want to listen to him. My DD was petrified last time as she had to have some calcified plaque removed and we had put it off last time as he didn't want to stress her out. This time, she was fine and he was so gentle, her fear completely went.

I do agree with the others that you needa dentist who appreciates children get scared. Is there another dentist in teh practise? Ours has a 'policy' of the lovely girlie dentist seeing the children as she is in the nicest room. We all have to put up with the hunky male ones.

I agree about the importance of finding a child friendly dentist. I had an awful dentist as a child who hated children - made me really scared of dentists (and put me off men with beards for life ).

a child friendly dentist is a good idea.I worked at a dental practise and we tried to put the child at ease and often suggest that the child accompanys parents to see their check-up and show them what happens during a routine visit and that theres nothing to worry about,a few of these trips and they may be brave enough to sit in mum/dads lap and have aride on the chair and open the mouth so the dentist can shine their special light into their mouth.to be honest its all about building up their confidence so they don't get anxious about visiting.hope this helps.

Thank you. I will look into a different dentist because to be honest, he's a good dentist but he made no attempt to put DD at her ease and he DOES have a very strange shaped head! It's more that she's shy of a stranger than afraid perhaps. So someone to put her at her ease would be more helpful.