Carly had her dentist appointment this morning. The one where she was to have her intruded tooth checked out. Remember, the tooth that jammed down into her gum after the fall off a bike at summer school? Today was the day.
Our morning didn't exactly start off smoothly. It was raining cats and dogs outside. Carly is scared to death of rain.(It's a long story, I'll tell you all about it some other time). I knew I was in for trouble due to that darn rain. I got her dressed. She freaked out hearing the rain hit the skylights in the house. We then put Hannah Montana on her boom box and blasted the house out! Only because I needed her to calm down so I could pre-medicate her before her dental appointment. I was hoping the loud music would put her in a better mood. It did for a few minutes. Until I discovered...I had forgotten to do her hair. She HATES having her hair done almost as bad as she hates the rain. I decided I had better get her med in her first. Then battle her with her hair. She ended up in tears, as usual with the brushing of her hair. Ever since she lost her hair due to chemo., she absolutely hates anyone touching/brushing/combing her hair. I've been told that some people have tender scalps after chemo...maybe so, but this is unreal. She's been off chemo since November '06. Although, before chemo., she would sit with no problem while I did her hair. Maybe there is a coloration there.
Finally, we headed out the door. I had to carry her with an umbrella over our heads to the car. She worried herself sick all the way to the Dentist all because of the stupid rain.
Once at the Dentist, she went right in and made herself at home. Scary how comfortable she is in a medical environment. I talked with the hygienist first. Then they came and took Carly to the exam room. They told me they would rather I not go back with her. Carly wouldn't let go of me. I had to pry her off me and put her hand into the hygienists hand. I was a bit uncomfortable with that. No dentist has ever told me to wait in the waiting room while one of my kids goes in for a checkup.
The dentist had me come into his office. We talked a bit. And then. BOOM! He started going on and on and on and on and on...about "special needs kids". How some are so combative and how they need to restrain them. I nearly fainted. I couldn't believe what this guy was telling me. He hadn't even met Carly at this point. How did he know
anything about her? What he knew was, Down syndrome. I wrote it on her registration form. Of course, he had to jump the gun and assume the absolute worse in my daughter. I snapped back at him and told him, "Carly is NOT combative whatsoever". Finally, he caught my drift and shut his mouth.
The appointment went well. They cleaned her teeth. Did x-rays and an oral exam. No cavities!!
Which surprised me a little. Carly is not too good at brushing her own teeth, but insists on doing it herself. And, she has never been to a dentist before. Bad of me I know. Honestly, our plate was just a tad bit full the last few years. Anyway, for preventive measures and to monitor her injured teeth, she will be going in every 3 months for cleanings and an oral exam. Fine by me. I would rather make sure her teeth are getting good cleanings. We will of course have to pay for a few appointments out of pocket, but it's only $60. to have a cleaning. Money well spent in my opinion.
As far as her damaged tooth/teeth. Well, we have to sit back and hope they continue to do well. This dentist thinks they will be okay. He did discover today that her top two front teeth were also damaged during her fall off the bike. The ER didn't x-ray her top teeth. So, we now have 5 teeth to be on the lookout for. The three on the bottom and two on the top.
Ugh! We have to watch for abscess teeth and rotting teeth. Nice huh? Oh, the dentist today also said that if she were to fall and bump her mouth again, it could be disastrous for her teeth. Just what a mom wants to hear. NOT! They are all permanent by the way.
They did end up putting her in a papoose. I'm not sure how I really feel about that. I mean, I want her safe for sure, but not sure she truly needed to be strapped down for crying out loud. They said she kept reaching up and messing with her mouth. It makes me wonder if that were the honest truth. She is so shy around people, I doubt she moved one single muscle during the entire 30 minutes or so. Course, I will never know because they refused to allow me in the room with her. I mean, Carly is a kid who goes in for lab work/blood draws and climbs up in the chair all by herself. She sits perfectly still while they poke her. She doesn't hardly bat an eye.
I think it all boils down to Carly having the label of Down syndrome. They think they need to strap our kids down. I beg to differ. Our kids, or should I say, my kid is not a difficult kid. She is just like every other kid out there. Sure, she may look a bit different. She may learn a bit slower, but she isn't a freak show for goodness sake. Treat her like every other kid. Not like an animal.
As we were checking out. The lady at the desk was oh so snotty. She told me that because Carly is a "special needs kid" she has to be seen early in the mornings. I said, "WHAT. Are you serious"? I could not believe what I just heard. She then went on to say, "That's what the doc said. Give her an 8:30 appointment". That didn't sit well with me at all. I told this gal that it was just too bad what the doctor says. That time will not work for us. I went on to tell her that Carly needs to be pre-medicated an hour before she is seen. So you want me to pull her out of bed and jam a syringe in her mouth and then head out the door to this place? She responded with, "yes, that's what doc said". I told her quite frankly, "too bad what the doc said. We need a time that is convenient for us". About that time, the hygienist came in and asked what the problem was. I told her before this old snot of a woman could get a word out. Finally, after the hygienist gave the snot woman a dirty look, we got a 9:30 am appointment. As we were leaving the old snot said, "we have to give the special needs kids early appoints. They tend to act up more in the afternoon". Lucky for her, I grabbed Carly's hand and headed out the door. On the tip of my tongue, was a not so nice comment that would have likely gotten me thrown out on my butt. What was it you ask? This is what I wanted to say.... "my daughter may have been born with Down syndrome and you all may look down on her for that...but at least she wasn't born with a big case of ugly like you were".
Glad that appointment is over. I'm also glad that Carly had no cavities.
Shew!
