The Dentist.
Big day for Simon today at the dentist.
This was his second time being there while Chris and I alternated getting our teeth cleaned. We were there about 6 months ago and at that time he was really uncomfortable with the noises and the idea of even sitting in the chair.
Our plan was to just try it again.
The experience today was great. We did a little pre-trip planning: last night we talked about what was going to happen today (repeated again this morning a couple of times) - we were all going to go to the dentist together and we were all going to take turns sitting in the chair and having our teeth cleaned.
I picked him up from school (summer session just started on Tuesday), stopped at the pool for a quick swim, and then drove over to the dentist where Chris had already started getting his teeth cleaned. We walked in and said hi to Daddy, played a bit with the toys in the waiting room, walked back and forth a few times to see what was happening with Daddy, looked in Daddy's mouth, peeked at the dentist from behind the partitions, and talked about how it was going to be Simon's turn in the chair next. First Daddy, then Simon, then Mom.
He was giggly - which was a good sign.
The hero of the day turned out to be the hygienist, Nancy. She was a superstar. She spoke slowly and quietly - and moved fairly quickly from one thing to the next to keep his attention and not let him get sidetracked or panicky. She started out with him just standing next to the chair as she introduced him to her tools (calling them cute names and telling him that they were all friends and they all sat together along the side of the tray). Then she asked him if he was ready to sit in the chair and he was. She put on the "necklace" (he loved that) and showed him the "flashlight" (the big light above the chair) that she needed to use to see in his dark mouth.
One of the most important things she did was give him things to hold in his hands: a mirror so he could see what was happening (a sense of control) and the small vacuum or the cleaning paste (choices). She showed him how the vacuum worked by sucking up a bunch of water from a small cup and then having him help her spray water into the cup and suck it down again. Having a job for him and showing him how each thing was going to work seemed to make all the difference. She also gave him choices. She did not rush him or try to speed through anything and she was so super calm. She was able to place the vacuum in his mouth, as well as the water, and was even able to clean some of his teeth with the spinning brush.
One of my favorite moments was just seeing him sitting in the chair
like such a big kid and looking back up and over at me and Chris with a
very large grin. So cool.
She was really conscious of not wanting him to have a negative experience. She knew when to stop and when to keep going just a bit more. Chris and I pretty much just stood there in awe...and then we just felt so proud of him and thankful for her.
Another highlight was choosing his toothbrush (Elmo), paste , and some floss. Oh yea, and an orange bouncy ball.
The rumor from the front desk as we headed out of the office was that this particular hygienist has ten children. A complete pro.
And for Chris and me, an overall sense of relief that it was a good experience for Simon. The difference between our last visit and this one was night and day. Tonight we will be celebrating how cool and ok it is to go to the dentist, how brave Simon was (big kid), and how lucky we were to have Nancy as our hygienist.
SIMON is the MAN!!
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WOO HOO!!!! What a wonderful experience! Nancy rocks.
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Wouldn't it be nice if there were a lot more like Nancy in this world!?:)
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Woohooo that's awesome... Great job to Simon and hats off to Nancy!! We need more people like her!!
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Ali- Mercer Mayer has a book about going to the dentist. I would always read that to my boys a few days before their appt. to get them ready and it seemed to work. I just love the Mercer Mayer books! I'm glad he had a good experience.
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I can totally relate...I am on the verge of scheduling my daughter's first dentist appointment and was a little apprehensive about it. I will take some of you advice though and hopefully everything goes as well for my Kaitlin as it did for Simon!
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Yeah Simon. Such a big kid. And hurray for you and Chris for taking such baby steps with Simon on what can be a scarey experience even for a kid who doesn't have autism. And a super hurray for Nancy.
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what a great story!
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Wahoo Simon!! And Nancy!!
Thanks for reminding me that I need to schedule our dentist appointments too. :D
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What an angel you found!
I will hope for the same kind of superangels to
come into our lives for Ben::
Such a sweet story!
a
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That is SO amazing! I found a good dentist, but my sweet little Autist daughter had two abcessed teeth and I still had to have day surgery at the hospital to get it taken care of, which was a positive experience thanks to wonderful staff... I am now going to have to take my 4 year old son with more severe autism to the dentist because I can see a cavity and I am wondering how on earth they will manage him! Thanks for sharing this positive story, it gives me some hope!
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That is wonderful! I wish I had had Nancy when I was a kid. I used to get sick on the way to the dentists office. Just the thought of being there was terrible. And it's still not my favorite experience even though I haven't had anything done besides a cleaning for years! Hooray for Nancy and Simon!
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How cool! Hi five for Simon. Apeaking of cool, Ali I once came across a cool layout that you created using canvas already strectched, I remember it having orange paint. Do you have a "how-you-did-that" somewhere on your blog or website? I would really like to give it a shot.
Thanks.
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Hi Ali,
That is a totally awesome story. I'm a preschool teacher and we have a a mobile dentist come to our school and I really appreciate it when we have a dentist and hygenist who is used to working with young children. I teach in a PreK-8 school so we don't always get early childhood oriented dentists. I love the cute names the the dentist has for the instruments. Ours called the tooth polisher a "Tooth tickler" and the suction instrument "Mr. Thirsty". Anyway, it's great that the family trip to the dentist was a success!
Tammy
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Way to go Simon!!!!
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This is such a great story for me and my friends. Thank you Ali!
Simon, you rock!
Nancy, you should work at my dentist's office.
;)
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This is such a heartwarming story. I am glad you and Simon had a good time. You really should be proud of him.
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I was just at our new dentist today talking about how they would be introducing my 3 year old to a positive dental experience!
What a great job her and Simon did together!
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Yay, Simon! I believe having Nancy as the hygenist was a divine intervention. My dear friend's son (who is like my nephew) has autism, and it pains me to see him struggle with the world around him. It's especially hard because his older sister was classified as gifted when she was in kindergarten. Thank you for sharing Simon's triumphs with us and for making everyone aware of what it's like to live with autism.
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Isn't it wonderful when the universe makes sure the exact right person is there for our child when they need them? KUDOS to Nancy! And Simon!
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How cool is Simon?? and how very lucky you are to have had Nancy!!
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Hurray for Simon! (And for Nancy too...). I'm glad he had a good dentist experience!
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so excited that simon had a great experience. sounds like this hygienist is a winner!
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Hi Ali, I am so trilled for Simon! My son has autism and we also had to work out the dentist issues. Everything is great now and he looks forward to seeing the dentist. One thing that I did was scrap the experience for him: the process, how brave he was and the accomplishment. Before going again we would review the LOs and practice in the recliner.
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