The Berenstain Bears Go to the Doctor: Bibliotherapy With a Side of Peer Pressure

I introduced my Berenstain Bears review marathon with a story about grabbing "Go to the Doctor" off the bookshelf for my son, who was more than just a little afraid of shots. There is a good reason I chose that example. "The Berenstain Bears Go to the Doctor" is the quintessential SEL style book designed all around a specific life event.

This book comes off the shelf more often than just the 2 times per year for each kid's annual checkup though. I might be overthinking it, but reading a book that involves shots can be most enjoyable for the kids when they aren't necessarily worrying about getting a shot the next day. So it also shows up on random Tuesdays in our rotation, when the nearest appointment is months away and a shot is just a thing that happens to bears in a book.

The checkup, start to finish

The book opens with Mama and Papa Bear telling the cubs that they will be going to the doctor the next day. Despite presumably having gone to the doctor before, both cubs have some basic questions, and Mama and Papa brush them off in a dismissive fashion that would be incredibly recognizable to any parent who's ever done this just to prevent any bedtime issues.

On their way to the doctor Papa Bear starts exhibiting some signs that he may be getting sick despite "never getting sick," and anybody who knows Papa Bear knows this is in character and predictable about what's going to happen. They arrive at the office waiting room, which is filled with other cubs waiting for their appointment, and I'm immediately a bit anxious because I'm sure half those cubs have some contagious illness and are probably coughing over everything they are touching.

Dr. Gert Grizzly calls the cubs in and goes through the motions of their checkup, intentionally saving the shots for last. In what I can only imagine is probably some serious privacy violation, Dr. Grizzly invites the smaller cubs into the room with Sister and Brother to watch the getting of shots. It's honestly a brilliant move because we all know how peer pressure and looking brave in front of those younger than us is a strong motivator. Both Sister and Brother get their shots without so much as a fuss, and it closes out with Dr. Grizzly catching Papa being sick and sending him home with some medicine (which I'm sure she'll bill insurance for).

Formula-wise this one is a little unusual for the series, because nobody actually causes a problem that needs fixing. Papa is the closest thing to a plot complication and his entire arc is sneezing.

As a read aloud it moves along fine. Nothing clunky, nothing you'll dread on the fifth time through. The one thing I really play up is Papa's sneezes. Every single one gets the full treatment, a loud "Achooooo!!!!!!!!" and then, very quietly, "...never get sick."

No magic words

On its surface this is a straightforward lesson. Going to the doctor isn't that scary, and while there are some unpleasant parts of it like having to get a shot, it's not THAT bad, and it's all to help keep you from getting even worse illnesses. It's not pretending like there are some magic words that could be said from parents to their kids that will get them not to be nervous about a shot. It's actually refreshingly honest to hear Papa brush Sister off with the "Now, now. You just settle down. There's absolutely nothing to worry about."

Young kids can't rationalize the concept of current pain for future benefits, and the other alternative you could do is to lie and say it won't hurt at all, in which case you'll lose all credibility when they do feel that poke. So you just have to take that middle ground of deferring until later.

I also appreciate the preventative message throughout. Going to the doctor isn't just about getting healthy, it's about trying to stay healthy. In contrast, we see Papa, who "never goes to the doctor," being the one who gets sick. Which is honestly pretty funny. Going to the doctor for an annual checkup definitely doesn't mean you get to skip a cold, but here we are with Papa Bear getting his comeuppins for being too arrogant about his health. Might I suggest to Papa Bear that he should probably get a colonoscopy at some point or at the least get his cholesterol checked.

Sister does all the emoting

Sister is the star when it comes to the illustrations. We're seeing the full range of emotions played out on her face. From nervous and anxious, to disinterested, to whatever face it is she makes when the nervous little cub comes up to her. Wonderment and surprise when she's actually getting her exam, and then extreme pride after having gotten her shot.

This book might also set a record for the number of sideways glances Papa gets from Mama. Every single sneeze is accompanied by that classic "all knowing" look that Mama gives off. Is it a bit patronizing? I'll let you be the judge of that.

Outside of this it's one of the least memorable books when it comes to the images. We don't actually get an "action" shot of the shot, and no super memorable scene that will stick in a kid's mind (although I will say I'm super curious what type of gooey medicine that is that they gave Papa for what appears to be just a common cold). The longest I spent on a picture was reading the names written on the leg cast of the one bear that Brother and Sister were signing, to see if I recognized any of the names. The answer to that is "No," but it is a funny reminder about how the cubs' actual names really are "Brother" and "Sister," which is so funny when you actually think about it.

My one real problem

I do have one major issue with the book though. It's Dr. Grizzly inviting the littler cubs into the checkup room to watch Sister and Brother get their shots. It's set up so that this is the primary motivator for Sister being OK with getting the shot. What if Dr. Grizzly didn't do this? Would Sister be screaming and crying trying to avoid it? This part isn't really that realistic, and my daughter once said something along the lines of "I don't want other kids watching me get a shot!" which almost caused me more problems than the idea of the shot itself. Oh, and did I mention that Brother and Sister are just wearing their underwear at this point? I get why they did it, though. It's a way for kids reading it to feel as if they can get a shot that makes them brave and a "big boy" or "big girl." It's also a bit more interesting than just saying "Sister hugged Mama Bear and looked away while Dr. Grizzly gave her the shot."