Managing hospital appointments

Dear Readers,

Happy Easter!

As a young child, I always felt uncomfortable when going to a place I was unfamiliar with. I particularly struggled with hospital or dentist appointments, to the point where I would sometimes refuse to go.

My parents came up with an idea to make me feel more comfortable. The next time I had a check-up, my mum brought a camera with her, and took photographs at each step of our appointment, from arriving at the hospital to finding the waiting room. Then another photo during the check-up and a final photo of me enjoying a drink at the café, singnalling the end of the appointment.

When we got back home, my mum printed the photos and turned them into a photo album. So the next time I had an appointment she could show me the photos beforehand and turn them into a story, so I knew exactly what was about to happen.

Another great trick was to set small goals for each visit. The first time I went to the dentist I didn’t want to get in the chair. So the dentist let me stand up while she counted my teeth. The next time we went, the dentist asked to put a mirror in my mouth. It took some time but we built my confidence on each visit, Now I feel able to have a normal dental examination.

It is also a good idea to give rewards of the same treat each time. This helped me to understand that the unfamiliar situation was over, and I could now go back to my normal routine.

I struggled with getting injections for a long time. This was harder for me to overcome. I often had to get them done at school, so I didn’t have my parents there to support me. But when I went to receive my COVID vaccine, my parents decided to book a private appointment instead of letting the school do it. My parents told me just 10 minutes before leaving the house, meaning there was less time  to feel nervous. When we got to the medical center, we asked for help and I was allowed to jump the queues and go straight in to see the nurse, who had been told we were coming. She already had my vaccination ready, ran through my medical history as quickly as possible, and gave me my vaccination in a matter of seconds. We had planned that I would play a game on my phone to distract my attention. I was shocked when I was told I had already been given my injections as I couldn’t tell they had done it!

In each situation, we have found ways to help me get over my fears and build my confidence bit by bit over time. I am now in a place where I can handle most of these experiences comfortably. One thing I’ve learned is that it takes time to get used to these types of procedures. But by using the techniques I have talked about today, I am able to attend normal dentist and doctor’s appointments, and maybe over time I’ll even have a normal vaccine appointment too!

Before I go, I’m curious about how you handle these types of situations. How do you prepare your child for hospital or dentist appointments? What works best for you?

I hope you enjoyed this blog post, and I can’t wait to see you back next week!