Didn't Hurt a
Bit
by
Jeff Stimpson © 2008
Alex's previous dental appointments included the
doctor wrapping him in a papoose (a kind of zipped-up sleeping bag
for autistic kids who really can't take the exam), and, needless to
say, screaming. "Well," said that dentist, a sweet guy named Lee,
"at least when he screams it's easy to look in his mouth." I liked
Dr. Lee. He was the one who pointed out that we need to switch
toothpastes often because bacteria builds up immunity to one brand.
I did not know that.
There's a hitch at the door for this day's
appointment, which is with Dr. Lee's replacement who is also named
Dr. Lee. "Everyone's gone. She's not there anymore," the
receptionist tells Jill at 10 to five. Our appointment was for 4:30.
Would the new Dr. Lee like to know how many doctors have keep me
waiting a whole lot more than 20 minutes throughout Alex's lifetime?
"She said she called you," the receptionist
insists.
"She never did!" Jill replies.
We've brought Alex here today, Ned in tow, because
he's overdue for a checkup, and because he's been grinding his
teeth. Jill thinks Alex may be grinding his permanent molars down to
the gums. Jill thinks Alex may need caps. In those earlier
appointments of the papoose and the screaming, Alex was just getting
his teeth looked at. What's he going to do when they try to wriggle
caps onto his pulverized back molors? I should say here that Alex
has been a pretty cooperative tooth brusher since he saw that dental
segment of Elmo's; Elmo is the only person Alex really listens to.
Jill, undaunted, vanishes through the door that
leads to the dental clinic. I read to Ned, then Alex and I go to the
bathroom, leaving Ned to watch mom's bag and also watch the big
autistic teenager who's flapping his hands a lot, waiting for his
own clinic appointment, and whom Ned will later confirm is
"sensitive like Alex." I have no doubt Jill will come back out with
at least an appointment, and sure enough it's only a minute or two
after Alex has flung open the bathroom door before I was finished
peeing that Jill appears at the inner-sanctum door and waves us all
in.
The new Dr. Lee is a sweet and small woman who
calls what happened at the front desk a "miscommunication" as she
guides us all into one of the exam rooms. Alex flies right into the
chair like, well, Ned, who loves coming to all types of doctors
because Ned believes that then people will think he's sick and he
can watch The Cartoon Network.
"Good job!" the new Dr. Lee tells Alex in the
chair. I prefer "nicely done" over "good job," but otherwise this
dentist does a heck of a good job herself. She calms Alex, and even
gets him to open his mouth, showing first his bottom teeth and then
his tops, with only minor shows of anxious curiosity over the little
round mirror thing. "Can I see the upper teeth? Alex, can you go
like this?"
Ned is behind Alex; I'm standing by Alex's feet.
"Ned," I say, content with myself as a father when I can call Ned's
name not for a scolding, but to help him learn something cool. "Come
over here and you'll get a better look ..."
Alex's patience with the new Dr. Lee and with the
round mirror thing seems to dry up then, and he clamps his jaws
shut. Then he starts to giggle and look around. Dr. Lee seems
charmed, and says Alex might benefit from "behavior management,"
whereby he'd come to this office a few times a month, sit in the
chair, play with a toothbrush, giggle with the doctor, and learn
that the dentist isn't always the star of a papoosed nightmare.
The doctor says Alex hasn't ground his teeth
dangerously low. "All kids grind their teeth. He grinds his
teeth!" she says, pointing to Ned.
Ned smiles. "Ned," I ask, "how often does Alex
grind his teeth?"
"Sometimes when he's watching TV," Ned says. "When
can I go to the dentist?"
Dr. Lee gives Alex a toothbrush. We say goodbye,
and Jill is happy. Later, when I have a chance to think about it, so
am I. Finding a way through dental appointments is more than life
skill - it's a survival skill right up there with toilet-training.
The behavior management apparently starts soon after Alex gets home:
He goes to the bathroom and brings the toothpaste into the living
room, and shows his new toothbrush to Elmo.
Copyright 2007 Jeff Stimpson, all rights reserved
