6 Tips for Preparing Your Child for Their Doctors Visit

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Whether you’re taking your child in for a routine annual checkup, something serious, or even introducing them to a new doctor, just understand that this can be very frightening for them.  Since they’re most likely going to be scared, this isn’t going to make it any better for the parent either.  Thankfully, there are ways to make this experience less stressful for you and your child. It’s all about doing some preparation and considering things a bit ahead of time.

 It’s important to encourage a healthy doctor-patient relationship with your children. It’s also important that they understand that doctors are there to help them, not to scare them. These are some tips to properly prepare your children for visiting the doctor.

Don’t be anxious

If your child sees that you’re anxious, it’s only going to get them anxious as well. Children are surprisingly good at reading emotions and feeding off the energy. It’s important to just stay calm, think positive, and stay mindful as well. You want to be positive so this will project positivity towards your children. Just don’t be afraid of how the appointment is going to go, it will be fine as long as you’re in a good mood.

Play doctor

Playing pretend with your child is something that a lot of parents get a lot of enjoyment out of. It gives you the chance to enjoy some quality time with your child, and it also gives you the opportunity to help them. But role-playing, you’re warming up the idea to your child about visiting the doctor. Maybe even look into getting them a set of toy tools to practice on you or their stuffed animals.

Let them watch doctor-related cartoons

Doc McStuffins is a children’s show that’s an excellent example. It’s about a little girl who loves to play doctor. Getting your kid to watch that or any other cartoon about a doctor will get them excited about meeting a real doctor.

Talk about the different types of doctors and their roles

Let them know about the different types of doctors there are medical professionals and their roles. You can tell them about the different types of nurses there are a variety of doctors such as optometrists, and even other types of medical professionals that help people find treatment. Broadening their horizons about the medical field will allow your child to get interested. This may help them get excited whenever they need to visit a doctor.  

Take your child to the doctor with you

If you have an appointment, let your child go with you. They’ll see how calm you are and how easy the appointment was. Sure, it may be a bit boring for them, but it does give them the idea that doctor visits don’t need to be scary.

Reward them

Giving your child a small reward after the visit will help them out. You don’t want to make this some type of negotiation tool or even an incentive. Instead, this should be nothing more than just positive reinforcement.