As we are trying to get ready for the school year, whatever it might be, we are attempting to behave as normal as possible, and that would be the annual pediatrician checkup before the Fall. Normally, this has never been an issue for the kid. To a degree, she sort of liked going to see the doctor. Both of the kid’s grandmas were nurses, and on my wife’s side of the family, there is a long history of working in the medical field. For that reason, the kid has grown up around lots of nurses and doctors.
I made the appointment to the pediatrician, and let the kid know that it was something we would be doing, but she got very concerned.
“Will I get a shot?” she asked me.
I told her it was possible, and did the routine of “It will only hurt of a second,” and “I’ll be with you the whole time.”
That didn’t work.
For over a week I fielded questions about shots, medicine, and sharpe instruments that the doctor might use.
I could feel the kid’s anxiety growing, and no matter how hard I tried, there didn’t seem to be anything I could say or do to make her feel better. It made me feel powerless, and insufficient as her father.
All I can do is be with her, and encourage her to be strong.
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