All moms know why keeping your family healthy is so important, especially as the temperatures drop and there’s more chance of your kids catching colds or the flu. While you can treat them at home with cold medicine, a warm blanket, and plenty of rest, they might need to visit the doctor to understand the extent of their illness.
However, what can you do if your child is scared of the doctor? If they don’t feel comfortable going and are scared of any potential jabs or check-ups, here is some key advice to help your kids feel better about going to the doctor.
Give Them Choices
Although you can’t give your child the choice of whether to go to the doctor or not, you can give them choices when you get there or during well-child visits where the doctor comes to you.
Since most checkups involve several tests, your child can choose what happens first. They might not feel ready for the doctor to take a blood sample, but they should feel comfortable enough for the doctor to check their heartbeat. Taking small steps is an effective way to help your child feel comfortable and show them that there’s nothing to be scared of.
Explain What The Doctor Will Do
Your child will feel more comfortable before they even arrive if you explain what will happen during their checkup. Some tests can sound scary, but explaining that there’s nothing to be afraid of should reduce the fear of the unknown, which can affect many kids, especially during their first visits.
You can also speak with paediatric services or use their website to have them explain what will happen and even why they need to carry out these tests. Hearing this information from a professional can help your child understand and feel better about their experience.
Let Them Ask Questions
Kids are curious, so they will have plenty of questions to ask you and their doctor (as well as anyone else they see during their visit). Rather than tell them to keep quiet, you should let them ask these questions, especially because they might answer some of the questions you might want to ask, too.
The more questions they ask, the more comfortable and familiar they will become with the entire process. Furthermore, it helps them understand what a doctor’s visit is and why it’s so important, so they won’t feel too intimidated by the office.
Bring Them With You to Your Appointments
Parents can also prepare their children for their doctor’s visits by exposing them to the environment without them needing a checkup. Although it’s more convenient to get everyone checked up in one visit, the timings don’t always match up.
If you can bring your child to your appointments, they will feel more comfortable in the environment as they aren’t worried about getting jabs or checkups themselves. This can familiarise them with the process but don’t demand anything from them at the time.
Bring Something To Distract Your Kids
If your child still struggles to feel comfortable during their doctor visits, you can bring their favorite toys or comfort blanket along to distract them during the more invasive (and potentially painful) procedures.
This approach is ideal if your child is receiving their jabs because they may be too scared to face the jab without distractions. In many cases, these jabs don’t hurt much (although it varies depending on the size of the needle and your child’s pain threshold), and distracting them with a toy or a story can make them forget all about what’s going to happen. By the time the doctor is finished, your child may not even know it’s happened.
Help Their Doctor
Some kids will resist anything at the doctor’s, so being there to help them is essential. Your child acting up increases the risk of having a bad experience, especially during jabs and similar checkups, so you need to keep your child still and calm to prevent any problems.
It is also worth letting the doctor know beforehand whether your child is likely to act up if they have done so previously or if you know they are naturally inclined to be skittish around medical professionals. The more your doctor knows, the easier it will be to adopt a suitable approach to make the experience more enjoyable and successful.
Check Up
Checkups and doctor visits are essential for ensuring your child grows up healthy. They also need to feel more comfortable going to the doctor, especially since you won’t be able to hold their hand forever. These tips should give your child the confidence and comfort they need to feel better about visiting the doctor.
Mom on the go in Holy Toledo 