Mean Nasty Dentist

[Melora]

I took my 3 year old to the dentist today. He has some dental issues that need to be resolved. Mostly involving his back molars. He had 2 temp fillings put in 6+ months ago and one of them has come out. I did NOT like the dentist that did the job (even though she was great before). She keeps pressing for IV sedation and both Jeff and I agree NO WAY. Its a dangerous procedure with many things that can go wrong and I am not going to put my son at risk like that for baby teeth. Besides, how do they propose getting him to sit still to have an IV put in?

Anyway, we got a recommendation for this dentist and took him in today. The nurse was great and I was feelign pretty good until the dentist got there and tried to just look in his mouth.

Jeffy started crying and instead of trying to calm him down he started to pry into his mouth even more vigorously, then he turned on the light which made him cry harder and instead of trying to *carefully* align the light into his mouth he moved it around quickly and pointed it right into his eyes. Of course now hes crying ever harder and suddenly Mr Dentist speaks to him very sharply, saying his name and to *hush*. That was it for me. This man is supposed to specialize in young kids. I said I don't think its going too well and he sadd "No its not and for this kid you had better just do the IV sedation or forget it. Your his parents, you better do whats best for him."

"Yeah well its not YOU" I felt like saying.

So now we are back to the drawing board. I need to find a dentist that will work on him with patience and without wanting to put him to sleep.

I had a dentist when my 8 year old was little and needed the same thing and she was great. She gave us "sleepy jiuce" which made him very sleepy and then put him in something called a cocoon (a snug fitting sleeping bag so he couldnt move too much) and did the whole filling in less than 10 minutes. He did scream but she was gentle and did not get mad. I found she specialized in special need kids who no one expected to sit still anyway.

I do not remember her name and I have to drive about 20 miles back towards where I used to live and see if I remember where she was.

Both of my younger boys have had their molars grow in with "soft spots" that began to disintegrate as soon as they grew in. Its not pleasant but the dentist said it shouldnt be an issue with their adult teeth. None of the older kids have any cavities.

Anyone else have very young kids who needed dental work? How did you handle it??

 

[gymnasticsmom68]

I sent you a PM.

 

[mommytotwo]

Dentists

 

[Serena]

My girls went to a pediatric dentist and she was wonderful. Good luck finding another dentist. I hope this next one will be a lot better.

 

[seashoreCM]

Six months for a temporary filling? That seems like too long. You should have been shopping around for a dentist much sooner.

Ask about fluoride treatments for the teeth, I think these treatments are done every six months.

At one time I felt that general anesthesia (often done with a breathing mask) was desirable for children in the dentist's chair since dentistry is a precision process that can be messed up if the child squirms. One of the examinations many dental schools use includes hand carving a small sculpture on a piece of blackboard chalk. If you have ever used a Dremel Moto-Tool (tm) for arts and crafts that what a dentist's drill is like.

In case of a bad experience of the kind you described, where I had to depart with the work undone and was fully prepared to "burn bridges" and go elsewhere, I would refuse to pay the bill and write a letter explaining why. Keep in mind that leaving with the work started but not completed is one of the worst things to do.

If you can't avoid all candy, at least avoid the sticky sweet stuff like Twizzlers, caramel, taffy, Cap;n Crunch, Ju-Jubes, also Crackerjack.

Disney hints:
http://members.aol.com/ajaynejr/disney.htm

I wish that Disney had a cadre of rudeness police who in addition confiscated any baby bottle containing soda pop.

 

[peg2001]

I'm so sorry you are going through this. The way your DS was treated is only going to make him more scared and upset the next time a dentist tries to examine.

I have a couple of suggestions. Ask around for a dentist that your friends children use. Meet the dentist FIRST without your DS and see if you have a good feeling about them. Your best choice MAY be a family dentist, not a pediatric one.

We did not like the pediatric dentist in our area and a friend recommended her family dentist. They don't have the cute little chairs like at the pediatric dentist but they are GREAT with little ones. The first time DD went in, they took plenty of time to go slow and explain everything they were doing and all the tools they were using: Mr. Thirsty, Mr. Scratcher, etc.

Peggy

 

[mom2boys]

When my DS had his a filling at age 5, the dentist gave him a liquid medication (sorry I don't remember what it was) that put him out for a couple of hours. He was to take it 1 hour before the appt. - We happened to be shopping & as the medication began to kick in, he appeared to a bit drunk (a happy drunk) when we got in the car he fell asleep. I carried him into the dentist's office, stayed with him during the procedure, carried him home and put him to bed. He was out for about 2 hours - no IV. He didn't even realize he'd been to the dentist. My son experienced no side effects from the medication - and he is the child who always has ever minor side effect that can be experienced with medication/vaccines.
Maybe you would be more comfortable with something like this for your son.

 

[Mishetta]

I'm so sorry to hear your baby was so traumatized like that! I have no advice since my DS didn't need any dental work until he was 8 & he had to have 4 teeth pulled in preparation for braces. At that time, he was given the IV sedation. Thankfully, all went well.

 

[rascalmom]

Yikes! DH is a dentist. I could make some suggestions if you like. PM me if you want.

 

[Jockaroo]

All my best to your son!

Please realize that it is possible for your son to be traumatized by experiences he has today. I have some really deep psychological dental issues caused by a pediatric dentist. This man was sadistic and terrorized his patients. And kids pick up on things adults say. How many people love going to the dentist? It is something many dread. If your son is like me, he may grow up thinking the cruelty is just a part of dental care. My parents asked why I didn't tell them what happened when they found out what this dentist did to me. He was my only dentist experience--how was I as a child to know this was wrong? I'm in my 30s and only recently gotten to the point I don't get physically ill when I walk into a dentist office. And I still have nightmares over my horrible childhood experiences.

Find someone kind. I asked for recommendations when I moved and found a wonderful dentist. I picked her because I had a friend talk about how good she was with his children. Use your gut feelings for this--no one loves your son like you do. No child needs to experience fear of the dentist.

-Jockaroo

 

[Serena]

The medicine the dentist had my girls take was called Vistril, or something like that. It's a decongestant, but the doc said it also makes them unaware of time as it passes by.

My dentist was so good the girls didn't know they used a needle for years. She uses some sort of ph cream thing that they never felt the needle used to numb them.

I had a very traumatic experience when I was a little kid too and I was very worried about making sure they didn't go through the same thing. I was very lucky to find this one.

 

[laurie31]

Oh gosh, I'm so sorry that your little one was treated so badly

My younger dd's 4 front teeth came in without enamel and had to be capped ASAP to prevent severe decay and also pain for her. We searched for the right dentist to do this. I visited a highly recommended pediatric dentist and he was good with my dd but I wasn't comfortable about how he planned to sedate her for the procedure (oral sedation in the office - too risky for infants under 12 months IMO) I found another pediatric dentist who agreed that oral sedation was too dangerous, but the alternative was general anesthesia in the hospital, and I didn't want that either. Finally the 3rd time was the charm. I found a wonderful pediatric dentist who believed if I was a fanatic about keeping her teeth clean we could wait a few months until chloral hydrate would be a safe option and of course, bringing her in at once if I noticed any changes or signs of pain or decay. (however, I have read recently, that children still need to be monitored closely with chloral hydrate, as some can experience a bit too much sleepiness and stop breathing regularly). Now that I scared you to death about oral sedation, I will say I did choose that route for my daughter and everything went wonderfully. She had all 4 teeth capped, using the chloral hydrate along with some nitrous oxide - laughing gas- and she was restrained on a papoose board, but she was mostly asleep and is not at all frightened of the dentist now. She has had to have several more crowns and fillings as more of her teeth have come in without enough enamel and has required only the nitrous for that. Our dentist is hopeful that her permanent teeth will be okay as they develop at a much later time in pregnancy. Most of her teeth are okay, it's just those 4 front ones and 3 or 4 others. It's a lot of dental work for a little kid though

Please get a 2nd - and maybe a 3rd and 4th - opinion. Our dentist had us bring our dd in once to just have her teeth brushed (not even a regular cleaning) so she would see that visiting the dentist can be fun. Maybe you could let prospective dentists do this for your son, allowing him to have a less-stressful dental experience, and letting you see how he/she interacts with your child.

Good luck and let us know how things turn out. Definitely don't go back to the dentist who was so impatient with your son. Why on earth would one become a pediatric dentist if you don't like kids??? And I would think long and hard before I agreed to IV sedation!

Laurie

 

[Pin Wizard]

That's a pediatric dentist? I would go back and take them to the one you were happy with. Sounds like it's worth the trip! I've had great luck with our dentists. DS went to a peds dentist when he was very small. Then I changed him to my dentist. My dentist is sooooooooooooooooooo sweet...and gentle! Even DS likes him!!!

 

[Kallison]

What a moron, can't believe he said that to you. I have a 13 year old that still flips out sometimes in the dental chair. We have a wonderful dentist, my youngest 9 DD actually made up a fake toothache once because she missed him. He came out of the office cracking up, gave her a bag full of toys and said no charge and honey, just call me if you miss me, I can squeeze you in.