Where to Begin?

My oldest son B has had a severe aversion to the dentist. I think it goes back to when he was small. He had a lot of cavities & we took him in to have them fixed. I thought that some laughing gas or something would be used. Unfortunately, it wasn't & he was given a shot of Novocaine - at age 3. He came out of the chair & refused to get back in. We ended up taking him to the hospital to have them all fixed. Since that point it has been extremely difficult to get his teeth cared for.

When we moved here I found a dentist & we began the long process of getting him used to them. Each time he would allow a little bit more to be done. The last time we went they were even able to do a 360 degree x-ray which showed that all was well inside. Phew!

Today we again headed in. N went first & did wonderful. He's in another post. :-) B sat in the waiting room waiting for his turn & really not happy about the whole situation. He did great for the first bit - counting & scraping. Then she took out the polisher - i.e. Mr. Tickle. Ben did NOT want this to be done & covered his mouth. He's 10 & weighs 80+ pounds. It's not like I'm going to be able to MAKE him do it & that's not want I want either. I want him to be able to face the fear & know that the build-up is far worse than the actual outsome.

I have to be careful how far we push. I don't want to build walls that never come down. He really hates the suction i.e. Mr. Thirsty the most. He wants to rinse with a cup but they don't do that anymore. The hygienist we have is awesome & struck a deal. Ben again asked to rinse. She said she would polish all his teeth first & then he could get up & rinse with a cup.

HE DID IT!!!!!!!!

I was so happy & proud of him for facing this fear & getting out on the other side that I almost cried. Yes, I even told him that. I was SO thankful that I remembered to bring my camera today.