How do we get rid of the Paci? Without all of the crying & days of torment...
Parents of our patients are always looking for tips and
advice on how to handle dental concerns. We try our hardest to have a solution
and answer to every problem. Believe or
not, we don’t come up with all of these fantastic tips all by ourselves. We
learn many methods from real life experience through conversations with our
sweet patients and their parents.
One of my favorite
parts of my job is being able to interact with the sweet children and with
their parents and caregivers. I LOVE
people and I enjoy hearing about their days, their lives, and their
experiences!
If any of you have any children who have/had a pacifier then
you know that we parents need all the tips that we can get when it comes to
giving up the ‘paci’. Well… today, one
of our four year old patients taught us a fantastic way to give up the pacifier.
This sweet, four –year -old marched into our clinic for her
dental cleaning, proudly, holding a
brand new stuffed teddy bear from the “Build a Bear” store at the
Galleria. I mean this was no ordinary
teddy bear. This was one of the softest, most cuddly, most friendly looking big
stuffed teddy bears that I have seen in a while. It had Dark brown silky smooth fur, with
soft, kind eyes, you know the type of stuffed bear that I mean!
She promptly handed me her teddy bear and said, “Feel his tummy
and guess what’s inside”, while she was smiling and giggling all the while. I
anxiously grabbed he bear, I couldn't wait to find out... I did as she asked and I pushed on the bears
tummy and, guess what was inside?!? That’s
right! It was her pacifier, stuffed inside that teddy bear’s
tummy! Apparently the sweet folks at the Build-a-Bear
store sewed up this child’s very last pacifier safely inside this teddy bear’s
tummy in order to ‘help’ her give up her pacifier. This way, she could give up her oral habit,
but she could keep her pacifier nearby (and near her teddy bear’s heart). How comforting is this and how fantastic is
this idea-our patients are so awesome!
We have plenty of ideas around here about how to give up the
pacifier or other oral habits- methods ranging from thumb-buddy dolls and books
to reward or incentive programs. We love to talk about solutions for how to
stop the habits, sharing ideas and exchanging them with our patients and their
parents. This Build A Bear was one method that I had not heard yet.
And, when it comes to ideas on ways to give up those oral
habits, I believe that we need to find the best method to suit each individual
child. In other words, each child needs his or her own individual plan to make
this transition as comfortable as possible. We might have to try several
different routes in-between their 6 month checkups but, we will find one!
I am always looking for fun, nurturing new ideas on this
topic! What are some other ways that you
all have helped your children give up their pacifiers? PLEASE let us know! Your advice can help
other children that struggle with a hard to break oral habit just like your
child’s.
#buildabear #ditchthepaci #ARPD #kidsdentist #advice #ideas #pacifier #drrohner #habits
***Copyright 2014 Angelica Rohner Pediatric Dentistry
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