What Luke Did Next...: Kids

Visiting the Dentist - Tips for nervous children

I have had a few problems with my teeth over the past couple of years which were caused by me being born slightly early and the enamel not hardening as much as it should and this has meant I have had to have very regular dentist appointments and some treatments on my baby teeth.

It used to make me really nervous when I had to go to the dentist but I don't mind it so much now- although recently I had to visit the dental hospital and have x-rays done as I will need one of my baby teeth extracted and I was really worried about that. It actually wasn't that bad except the x-ray which I really didn't like.

These are my tips for any children having to do the same and feeling a bit anxious about it.

1. Take someone with you- even if you are old enough to go in by yourself, if you are feeling nervous you will be happier if you have someone you know there and they can listen to what is being said if you start finding it hard to concentrate.

2. Tell the dentist or dental nurse you are a bit worried- all the ones I have seen have been really nice but if they know you are worried they will try and take your mind off it.

3. Ask questions- everything seems worse when you don't know what is happening

4. Find something to focus on in the room rather than looking at the dentist or staring at the light and getting worried. If all else fails, close your eyes, take a deep breath and imagine your favourite place.

5. If you have to have an x-ray it isn't very nice but if you open your mouth REALLY wide to get the film in and then sit really still it does genuinely only take seconds. It does feel like you might be sick but you won't and the dental nurses are used to people feeling a bit yucky about it all.

Good Luck!

Mini Mudder - A New Obsession!

I haven't written recently as I have been really busy but I thought it was time to share my day out at the Fruitshoot Mini Mudder with you as that has kick-started a new obsession for both me and my Dad!

We have been going running together a lot since because I have decided I want to do it again and Dad has decided he really wanted to do the adult course next year- it has inspired me to do a family fun run to raise money for charity and we have also been marshals at a charity event over the weekend, I think we will be doing lots more running from now on!

So what was it about the Fruit Shoot Mini Mudder that has made me so keen on running? It was AWESOME! We arrived early in the morning at the beautiful Belvoir Castle in Grantham. I didn't know what to expect but we were greeted, given our Adventure Squad T-shirts and taken over to the right area where we got to meet explorer Ed Stafford who is their ambassador- we had some fab photos with him and he was really good at hanging off the obstacles when all of the children's arms started to ache and we ended up dropping down!

Soon it was time to get warmed up , say our pledge and then we were off. To start with I was a bit worried about falling over and hurting myself but I soon got used to it and ended up having a great time ploughing through the mud! We went round the course four times and some of it was just good fun and other obstacles were a real challenge. I liked the tunnels and swapped between going through head first and feet first, the bars were good too but my absolute nemesis was the ramp we had to run up and climb over-I found it really slippery and difficult but it was great and I loved the feeling when I finally managed to do it!

At the ended we were awarded a celebratory Fruit Shoot and got given our sweat bands. I found out that the adults collect these and get different colours depending on how many courses they have done and I have decided I want to do the same so am planning on trying to do lots of these. It was really good- my friend and I had an amazing time and really enjoyed it- even the showers were funny- we had to go and hose ourselves down before we were allowed to get in the car!