I Know You Think I’m the Worst Mom in the World

“I know you think I’m the worst mom in the world.”

 

“Have you ever seen cavities like this before?”

 

“I am so sorry, I knew this wasn’t going to go well.”

 

If you are reading any of these statements, and think I am speaking specifically about you because you said something like that at the office, I am not.  Believe it or not, we hear things like this all the time… from many of you!  So, I felt the need to address it. 

• You are not the worst mom in the world. Actually, we are glad you came. We aren’t judging you. We are happy that you want your child to improve his or her dental health.
• We see cavities every day. It goes with the job. And yes, we have seen more than one child with a cavity on every single tooth.   Just so you know, I didn’t think that the moms of the children with 20 cavities were the worst moms in the world either. 
• We love seeing kids who are happy to see us, and one of my favorite parts of my job is making going to the dentist fun. However, the reality of pediatrics is that not every child is excited to see us. Some come in with a negative previous experience, and it takes awhile to build trust. Some children are not old enough to cooperate and feel overwhelmed, so they cry. Some had to wake up early from a nap or missed a nap, and probably wouldn’t even be happy if they were going to the park or the zoo. Some kids are just having a bad day.  We see it all! So, if your child isn’t having the best day ever, we understand.  Our goal is to make going to the dentist a positive experience and sometimes that takes time.

So, give yourself a break, moms! Being a parent isn’t easy. We are here to help. J