The Pediatrician’s Office, part 2
So, as I wrote in part 1, despite the long wait, the kids had actually done really well with Joshua’s four-month well-baby check to this point. We had read stories, played games in the exam room, and had had one of our more successful visits. Nathan even came out of his hiding place under the chair to see a real stethoscope in action. Smooth sailing and out the door, right?
Wrong! The last stop before you checkout and leave is the Shot Room, aka my children’s least favorite place ever. Nathan *hates* getting shots. When Emily got her finger pricked for her iron check, Nathan shook and visibly turned white. He wasn’t even the one getting the prick, and he was still that upset.
At our last visit, Nathan and Emily had received their first round of the flu shot, and to say that it didn’t go well would be an understatement. Both of them screamed and cried at the top of their quite powerful lungs all the way out to the car after getting their shots. The. Entire. Way. It was awesome. And it was only five weeks ago, so everyone remembered how awesome it was.
This time around, Nathan was getting his booster flu shot, Emily was getting her booster in addition to three other shots, and Joshua was getting two shots and one immunization orally. They really need to work on getting more immunizations in oral form.
Emily went first, and she was so scared and sad. As I had to physically pin her down for the nurse to administer the shots (four total!?!), she kept looking up at me with this look that said, Mommy? How could you let them do this to me? She did better than last time, settling down fairly quickly, given the number of shots she received. A good Mommo Snuggle can make almost anything better in her world.
Nathan went second. He was so scared that he got mad. He kept trying to run out of the room until I could get him pinned down. He was inconsolable afterwards, not wanting me since I had been the one pinning him down. Until someone mentioned stickers, and he immediately stopped crying to ask for his favorite character.
Joshua went last, and he was the champ of the bunch. He had no idea what was going on, and his memory is so short that as soon as the immediate pain had gone away, he had forgotten the whole thing ever happened and was fine. He was the first to stop crying, despite being the third to go.
Thankfully, everyone is now up to date (for now) on all of their shots. Thank heavens. I’m not sure I could do that again any time soon and still have my kids speak to me.
How do your kids tolerate getting their shots? Any tips to make it less awful for all involved?
Ug, my 11-year old stepdaughter still cries over shots, but I think it more out of habit than anything else. I hate to say it, but I bribe her with ice cream afterward, good luck!
Hey maybe Joshua will teach the others by example with his laid back baby attitude, haha
We’ve definitely been known to Chick-fil-A for lunch post-shots. There’s nothing wrong with a little bribery, especially after something as traumatic as shots