dentist #2

Monday we had our appointment with a dentist who had been recommended by a friend. She told me that he doesn't use sedation, and at first I couldn't decide if that sounded better or worse. We're not wanting Evalana to have a horrible traumatic experience, either. But Joshua and I knew we really didn't like the idea of giving her valium or anesthesia (as had been recommended by the first dentist) unless it was really necessary. I was glad to at least be able to learn more about another option. Monday's appointment was just a consultation to find out what his recommendation would be. They went over basic dental information, and then the dentist came in to take a look in Evalana's mouth. They had her sit on my lap, facing me, and then lay down with her head in his lap. She was very comfortable like that and let him look in her mouth for quite awhile. They commented on her being the most laid-back and easiest to work with two year old they'd seen, so hopefully that's a good sign for how things will go with future appointments, too. He also said her bite is perfect, so it's good to hear good news too. He saw three cavities on her front teeth and one area on a back tooth that's not yet a cavity but that we need to be extra careful to brush well. Then he told me about the cavity-filling procedure. He said it'd need to be done in the next few months to avoid a possible root canal in the future. Because of where the cavities are (in the front of her mouth), the Novocaine shots can be pretty painful, so he's wanting to hopefully avoid those as well. He's planning to scrape out the decay and probably not get deep enough to hit the nerve. We'll just have to see how that goes at the time. If it does end up getting too bad, we'll just have to try again with the shots. Then he'll fill the tooth. He said because of the way the front teeth are shaped and the way toddlers use their teeth for chewing on so much, a normal filling would fall out quickly, so it has to be wrapped around the sides of the teeth as well. He thought the whole procedure would take less than 15 minutes. I asked what would happen if she got scared or in pain and got really upset, and he said they'd just stop and try again later. But she did great with just letting him look in her mouth, so hopefully things will go well. We went ahead and scheduled to have the cavities filled at the beginning of November. I'm really hoping this goes okay, but Joshua and I are at least feeling more comfortable with this option than with the choices the first dentist gave us. Thank you for your concern and prayers for Evalana's teeth situation. I'd still love to hear any suggestions or thoughts on this dental stuff.