I went to the dentist yesterday.
I LOOOOOOVE the dentist. I love getting my teeth cleaned and the nice smooth feeling of shiny teeth afterwards. I love getting complimented on my excellent oral hygiene and my "nice" teeth. I love leaving the office and being able to say "No cavities, ma!"
Yesterday was the same as usual. All the same compliments and same smooth, shiny teeth afterwards. But I didn't leave feeling so positive this time. I left feeling like a jerk and a bad mom.
Cherry has six teeth now, and I started asking questions about her oral care. "How often do I need to brush her teeth?" "At what age should I start bringing her in to the dentist?" I knew all the answers, I just needed to double check.
But then the dentist started asking ME questions. Well, really, just one question. The big, bad, dreaded question: "Do you put her to bed with a bottle?"
SH!T!
"I don't really want to answer that question." I reply.
Then came the lecture. 10 minutes of the dentist telling me everything I already knew about bottle mouth and tooth decay and yadda yadda.
"But, but, but...." I argued. "Every time she's done drinking her milk, she just throws the bottle out of her bed and rolls over. It's not like the milk can 'pool' in her mouth."
"STILL BAD." the dentist and the hygienist gang up on me.
"But it's just so easy to put her to bed that way!"
"YOU'RE A BAD MOTHER." they chorus.
"I've been TRYING to wean her, I swear. I've been watering down the milk and trying to gradually just get her to water... but then camping threw that all off."
"YOUR KID IS GOING TO HAVE A GROSS ROTTING MOUTH AND SHE'S GOING TO ONLY HAVE YOU TO BLAME."
"But all she wants when she wakes up in the middle of the night is milk!"
"DO IT NOW, SUCK IT UP YOU WIMP."
"But what if she doesn't get enough milk? What if she doesn't eat enough during the day?"
"GEEZ, WE'VE GOT A REAL IDIOT HERE, DON'T WE?" the dentist looks at the hygienist. "DON'T GIVE HER ANY DRINKS BESIDES MILK DURING THE DAY UNTIL SHE GETS USED TO IT. THEN YOU CAN RE-INTRODUCE JUICE AND WATER. ONLY WATER AT NIGHT!"
Ok, so I'm sure that's not exactly how it went, but that's how I remember it. The dentist also said I should do it NOW so that the taking away of milk isn't directly tied into the arrival of new baby.
But, I mean, really, Cherry sleeps so well, and when a kid sleeps so well, and everything you're doing is working, why would you want to change it?!?
"YOU'RE A BAD MOTHER, YOU ARE ROTTING YOUR CHILD'S TEETH."
Sh!t!
So, when I got home from the dentist I told Armondo the new plan, and he's all "Yeah, I knew we shouldn't be doing that but you said it was ok."
"But, but... SHE THROWS THE BOTTLE OUT OF HER BED AND DOESN'T LET THE MILK POOL IN HER MOUTH!" Really, it seemed like a logical argument.
So, I gave her bottle after bottle of milk right up until the end of story time. Then I brushed her teeth, gave her a bottle of water and said goodnight. I then braced myself for hours of fussing and screaming. It never came. She didn't fuss any more than usual, except, because she had had SO MUCH MILK, her diaper got really wet really fast, and needed to be changed about an hour after I left her to go to sleep.
"Darn, that was easy!" I thought to myself. "But it won't be so easy when she wakes up in the night!"
Very early this morning, she woke up. I grabbed a diaper and a bottle of water and went into her room. I changed the diaper, handed her the bottle, and left, totally expecting the screaming to start as soon as she realized I handed her water and not milk.
Uhhh... the screaming never happened. She just sipped her water and went back to sleep.
Yeah, so, umm...
*grins sheepishly*
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4 comments:
It is amazing how something turn out fine when we worry so much about them:o)
How would she have rotten teeth by going to bed with milk? Will she not lose her baby teeth and get adults in?
My sister's youngest went to bed with a bottle until she was almost 2 years old and does not have any teeth problems. She would not wean for anything but milk.
I think your a good mom and sometimes you have to do what works for your peace of mind.
Just to scare you a little more...because I love ya like that. ;)
A friend of mine always sent his daughter to bed with a bottle, too, and never realized it was bad for the little teeth.
And, while, of course she'd lose the teeth eventually, it rotted her teeth down to where they had to put metal plates in her gums. It's sad because she's like 2 and looks like Jaws from James Bond fame.
Gee, I hate dentists. I had bad teeth as a kid (tetracycline when I was a baby damaged my enamel, and so I have TONS of cavities), and they always tell me that as though it's my fault. I'm sure Cherry will be fine, but I'm glad that weaning her off the milk bottle and onto the water wasn't a big deal. And you're not a bad mother, not at all.
Kim~I guess you can read Chase's comment for your answer.
Chase~I've seen that before, and it's nasty!
Maidink~Well, the dentist is a woman, and probably has children of her own, but besides that, who knows?
Erin~Too bad you have negative experiences with the dentist. So many people do, and it's unfortunate!
Mr.Fab~Quite possibly... Why? Have you been falling asleep sucking on bottles of rhum?
Debambam~Yup, kids are full of suprises!
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