dental clinic

Today was Caelan's first trip to the dentist!  I meant to bring the camera with us to capture some pictures of the occasion but with the chaos that ensued after waking up to all that snow I forgot.  Our drive into CHEO took four times longer than usual and we were just over an hour late for our appointment.  What a way to start the day!

I’m happy to say that Caelan handled his first trip to the dentist much better than I thought he would.  Now, don’t get me wrong, he didn’t sit still with his mouth wide open all smiles for the dentist and in complete cooperation.  Far, FAR, from it… but he didn’t hold his breath to the point of passing out which is what really impressed me.

It really was a quick examination to basically confirm that all of Caelan’s baby teeth are in and that there is major tartar build up.  It is apparent that Caelan would never tolerate a routine dental visit with the amount of cleanup work that needs to be done.  Therefore, O.R. time has been booked for February 1^st, when Caelan will go under general anaesthetic to have x-rays of his teeth done, a good cleaning and anything else that they find that needs fixed, repaired.  After that we will have regular, frequent visits that will hopefully keep the tartar build up to a minimum and appointments short enough that Caelan will be able to tolerate it.

In the meantime, we have to brush his teeth.  Regardless of how much he fights or holds his breath.  Our plan of attack is to choose a song.  We’ve had great success with this method when changing Caelan’s trach ties.  Every night, we always sing “Wheels on the bus”.  By creating a routine, Caelan knows what to expect, he knows how long it’s going to last and maybe most importantly, that there is an end.  We’re hoping that in time Caelan will learn that brushing his teeth is not negotiable and not something to fear. 

Any suggestions for a song??

Oh and after that we went to pick up Caelan’s new glasses and they’d ordered the wrong colour!?!?  Three week wait! L