Helping My Child Overcome Her Fear of Doctors

My daughter doesn't feel comfortable around her pediatrician esp. if it's already injection time. She usually cries while struggling to to hold me tight everytime the doctor starts the examination. I know such reaction from children is common. They mostly suffer from fear of doctors. They are afraid of needles or things unknown to them.



Aşkim, her pink syringe and the Hello Kitty nurse kit.

For the hope of my daughter being able to overcome her fear, I bought this Hello Kitty Nurse Kit from Toy Kingdom a month ago. I don't want to always force her to take syrup or immunization whenever needed. I believe doing the same thing over and again may become traumatic to her. Instead, I want her to slowly learn that taking medication is normal for a sick person and doctors are friendly people.

When I was a kid, I also suffered from fear of injections. I remember hiding under my chair when the nurse visited our classroom in 1st grade. Before recess, she was able to vaccinate all of my classmates, both boys and girls, except me. Anyway, I was able to manage my fear when I became sickly from 4th grade to high school, so at this age, I already have a high tolerance for pain.

Going back to my daughter, I purchased the Hello Kitty toy, thinking of playing nurse with her and hoping it will make her feel comfortable around medical practitioners. At home, she started pretending to be checking on Baba and I, giving us syrup and injection. She sometimes even practice playing nurse on her dolls alone.






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