We went pretty early, right around my daughter's first birthday... and honestly, I was super anxious about it too. It felt kinda weird because she barely had teeth! But looking back, it was actually helpful. The dentist mostly just checked things out quickly and gave us some tips on brushing and avoiding cavities later. It made dental visits feel normal for her early on, so now at three, she's surprisingly chill about appointments. I thought it was overkill at first, but I'm glad we went.
We waited until closer to two, and honestly, it didn't seem to make much difference. Our dentist said as long as you're brushing regularly and keeping an eye on things, there's no rush to get in super early. I get the idea of normalizing visits, but kids adapt pretty quickly anyway. My niece didn't go until she was almost three, and she's totally fine with appointments now. Seems like it might depend more on the kid than the timing...
We took our little guy around 18 months, mostly because I was super anxious about cavities (I had a rough time with dentists as a kid, so I was probably overthinking it...). Honestly, the first visit was more for me than him—just to ease my nerves and get some reassurance. The dentist basically just peeked in his mouth, counted teeth, and gave us some brushing tips. It was quick and painless, but I'm not sure it made a huge difference in how comfortable he is now.
I do think you're onto something about it depending on the kid. My friend's daughter went at around three and had zero issues adjusting. Meanwhile, my son still gets nervous even though we started early. Maybe it's more about personality than timing? Either way, regular brushing and keeping an eye out for anything unusual seems like the most important thing.
We took our daughter around two, mostly because I was worried about cavities too—I had a ton of dental issues growing up, so I totally get your anxiety. Honestly, the first visit was pretty similar to yours: quick peek, counting teeth, some brushing advice. It felt more like a reassurance session for me than anything else.
But you know, even though it didn't magically make her love the dentist, I think it helped me feel calmer about the whole thing. Kids definitely pick up on our stress, so maybe indirectly it did help her a bit? Who knows. Like you said, personality probably plays a bigger role than timing anyway. My nephew didn't go until he was almost four and he handled it like a champ from day one—meanwhile my daughter still gets jittery at every checkup.
Either way, sounds like you're doing all the right things with regular brushing and keeping an eye out. That's really what matters most in the long run.
Haha, totally relate to the reassurance session thing. We took ours around 18 months—mostly because my mom kept nagging me about it (thanks, Mom 🙄). Honestly, I think the dentist was more stressed than my kid was... ever seen a grown adult try to count teeth on a squirmy toddler? Pure comedy.
