5 Ways to Help Your Child Feel Relaxed at the Dentist

Does your child experience anxiety or misbehave at the dentist’s office? If so, the following tips can help!

Though many children react positively to dentists and other medical providers, some have issues with going to appointments. The most common results are anxiety, rebellion, and generally misbehaving. This behavior can be incredibly frustrating for parents. Fortunately, you can use various methods to manage your children’s behavior before and during dental appointments.

Excellent

The Dental Anesthesia Center: Sedation and Sleep Dentistry

Based on 109 reviews

See all reviews

review us on

kerubel G.

When we first visited The Dental Anesthesia Center, my child was experiencing severe tooth pain and multiple cavities. Dr. Sean M. Thoms and his team demonstrated excellent care, promptly assessing the situation and deciding to treat his teeth the next day. They came early in the morning, professionally addressing the cavities and placing a crown. They also followed up by phone to ensure my child was doing well. My baby is now pain-free,happy ,smiling, and sleeping soundly. This is truly a world-class dental center with an exceptional, caring team. Highly recommended.

Response from the owner:Thank you so much for your kind words and wonderful review! We’re truly grateful for your trust and so happy to hear your experience with our team was a positive one. It means a lot to know our care helped make things a little easier and brought smiles all around.

greg E.

Carrie and the Dental Anesthesia Center have always been very professional and welcoming when having work done.

Response from the owner:Thank you for your kind words! We’re so glad to hear you’ve had a positive experience with our team. We appreciate your trust and support!

Whitney S.

I cannot say enough wonderful things about The Dental Anesthesia Center and Dr. Thoms. My 7-year-old, who has autism, recently had dental work done here and the experience exceeded expectations. The staff was incredibly kind, patient, and understanding of his needs. They took the time to make him and us feel comfortable, never rushed, and explained everything. I am so grateful for this office and the team that made my son's dental care possible. I would recommend The Dental Anesthesia Center and Dr Thoms to any parent, especially those with children who have special needs. They truly go above and beyond. ❤️

Response from the owner:Thank you so much for your thoughtful review and kind words! We’re truly grateful for your trust in our team and Dr. Thoms. Knowing your visit was a positive and comfortable experience means the world to us — it’s exactly what we strive for with every patient and family. 💙

Joy H.

Very patient with elderly patients. Very good experience.

Response from the owner:Thank you for sharing your feedback! We’re pleased to know the visit was a positive experience.

Carla B.

My son has been a patient of Dr Michael Hoffman since he was 5 years old. He is now 21 years old. My son has diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder and therefore I am cautious of who I select as a treatment provider. Dr. Hoffman’s office is professional, kind and I know they have his best interest at heart. I highly recommend Dr. Hoffman and staff to anyone seeking dental care.

Response from the owner:Thank you for your kind words and recommendation! We truly appreciate your trust in our team over the years.

Realistic Expectations

The first method you can use is before you arrive at the dental office. It is creating realistic expectations for your children. This strategy reduces fear through education. The first way you can do so is through simple explanations about what a facility looks like and what might happen during an appointment. The second method is reading through a children’s book that tackles this issue for you.  

Modeling

Children tend to model their behavior on the people around them. You can use this effect to help them with dental fears. The best way to do so is to bring them to an appointment for you or one of their siblings. This experience should show them how a person is supposed to handle medical treatment.

Distractions

Now, let’s move on to management tips you can use at the appointment rather than before. One of them is providing distractions; the best way is through the dentist’s entertainment system. It allows you to focus your children’s attention on a television show or movie rather than the treatment they are getting. Not only are distractions helpful, but watching entertaining content might help you build a positive association between your child and the dentist.

Incentives

One of the most potent persuasion strategies you can use is offering incentives. To do so, think of one of the things your children love to do most. Whether that is a trip to the movies, the park, or a favorite restaurant, you can use that activity as a bargaining chip to help your children behave. Sharing the experience can be a wonderful bonding moment for you and them.

Positive Reinforcement

Lastly, a bit of positive reinforcement goes a long way regarding behavioral management. Telling your children that they are brave and giving other words of encouragement should make them behave at the dentist. As an added benefit, this method should become more and more effective as time passes because reinforcement tends to compound when used over long periods.

If you’re lucky, none of your children will have issues going to the dentist. What might happen, though, is that one or more of them misbehave or feel anxious when doing so. Your best bet at solving this problem is utilizing the tried and true behavioral management techniques on this list. One last factor you can’t discount is the quality and friendliness of your pediatric dentist. If you think it might be time to find a new pediatric dentist, find someone who puts your children at ease.