Dentist Day!

Due to the fact that Alex has dealt with many sensory sensitivities, I have put off taking him to the dentist for too long. Today was the day, his first dentist visit! I chose a children's dentist where they allow parents to accompany their children during proceedures, and who specialize in working with children with special needs. (I was surprised at the amount of dentists around here that do NOT allow parents past the waiting room.) We were familiar with this dental office as my sister had worked there previously and the office staff are great and still remember us. Sarah has been previously a few times, but has never had a cleaning. So, today both of the kids got x-rays, an exam, and a cleaning. The staff had the kids laughing and made them feel so comfortable. Both of them did wonderful, but I was especially proud of Alex as this shows how much progress he's made dealing with his sensory problems.

If you're wondering what those sensory "problems" are that I am talking about, let me briefly explain. Many touches, sounds, and even things Alex would see, would affect him more extremely than would be expected to be normal. Such as, certain sounds would make him cover his ears. He would even cover his ears when he saw something he didn't like, and scream. He has been an extremely picky eater due to texture preference and also had a difficult time having his hands dirty and was obsessed with hand-washing. So, to imagine someone getting Alex to comfortably lie down, open his mouth and stick cleaning utensils inside of it, along with the minty paste and flouride used during the cleaning... we have PROGRESS here! He does have a strong gag-reflex and I had to warn the nurses, but he did great.

I am happy to report that BOTH kids had healthy teeth with NO CAVITIES! Alex also has two loose front bottom teeth which will be out any day now. He is so excited and can't wait to go to the dollar store and spend his 'tooth fairy' money!