For what it’s worth

06Feb09

Yesterday at work I was speaking with a child life specialist about children’s development and how each age group copes with scary situations. We were initially discussing the kids in our ICU but the conversation sort of migrated to Caleb (typical mother that I am). I sort of bounced some things off of her so as to get her expert opinion on how Jeremy and I are doing in these situations and what we can do better. Here’s what I learned:
In situations that have the potential to be scary (such as going to the Dentist for the first time, going to the Doctor to get immunizations, etc.)

the VERY BEST thing you can do for your child is to prepare them.

For us, this is easily done with books. Caleb loves to read and I try to get books about going to the dentist and we pretend that our finger is the electric toothbrush that goes schoop! schoop! on your teeth to clean them. She says that in preparing your child for any situation, you are building their trust in you as parents. If they can’t trust you, who can they trust? She says the more “real” you can get with them, the better. Some of you would even think this is a little to graphic for your little ones but she says it actually builds confidence. The next time you are at your doctor’s office (or just ask me and I’ll get you one) ask for an empty syringe (no needle, of course). Role play with your child’s favorite stuffed animal. Give a “stick” on the leg for his medicine. Let your child do it too. Fill it with water and squirt each other. The more they play around with it, the more they feel comfortable. Probably half (or more) of their tears shed in these situations are from fear, not from pain. Trisha also says that as much as you can incorporate the 5 different senses in this preparation time, the better. See pictures in books, touch the items they will be seeing (if possible, or you can pretend buy using the handle of a spoon as a tongue depressor), hear what the electric toothbrush will sound like (schoop! schoop!), etc.
Stay tuned for more information on positioning your child for comfort.

Filed under: Life   |  1 Comment
Tags: development, Parenting