The Dentist

Sara did great at the dentist yesterday!  Of course, its easy to be a good patient when you don't actually have your cavity filled.  Let me explain...

This was a new office we had never been to, and I was hoping it was good because the lady I took Sara to last week was unimpressive to say the least.  I walked out of there knowing I would never bring Sara back there again.  The only thing she did right was refer us to this guy to have Sara's cavity filled instead of trying to do it herself.  She never asked about any of the medical information I put on the form, like the meds Sara takes, what she's allergic to, or what type of kidney problems she had.  She forced Sara to comply instead of just explaining what she wanted to do, which is what Sara likes and what I told her to do.  Sara does just fine when you explain to her what you're going to do and how its going to feel, but this lady refused to change her style at all. 

And I cannot say enough about how much I love this new dentist!  He actually asked me about the medical history I put on the form...unlike the previous lady.  And since he was unfamiliar with NF, he asked about it so that he knew enough to make good decisions for Sara.  And after discussing it, he decided that even though our appointment was to have Sara's cavity filled he wasn't going to do it.  The reason?  He wants to consult with her urologist to make sure the drugs he wants to use aren't going to be too hard on her kidneys.  Brilliant!!

At that moment, I loved this guy because he really was concerned about what was best for my child.  And then instead of shooing us out the door once that was decided, he took the rest of the appointment to sit with Sara and talk with her and explain things around the office and make Sara comfortable around him.  Then when she was comfortable, she let him look at her teeth.  She opened her mouth willingly and he even got to poke around, clean her teeth, and take xrays!  I didn't have to hold her hands down so she couldn't cover her mouth, try to calm her, or leave the office with my child in tears.

This is definitely the dentist for Sara!  He also told me that to make sure her tooth doesn't have issues later he preferred that he put a crown on it just because of where the cavity is located on the tooth itself.  And he also told me he can save her front tooth, something the last lady said was not an option.  Sara face planted about 6 weeks ago, busted up her lip and ever since then one of her front teeth has been getting darker and darker gray.  I figured it was already dead, but he said he could save it.

So Sara is headed back to the dentist in a couple weeks.  She will have a crown put on her back tooth with the cavity and she will have a root canal done to save the front tooth.  My daughter will also have her first cosmetic procedure when he changes the color of the tooth with some resin so it isn't an ugly gray color any more.  I'll be glad when its done, but I'm not nearly as freaked out about it as I was today before meeting him.  Sara is going to do fine, and I know its all for the best.  This guy I trust, and Sara does too (that's what's really important).