185. Traumatize

From, “Preschoolers in Surgery for a Mouthful of Cavities,” by Catherine Saint Louis, 3/6/12, The New York Times:

And because some toddlers dislike tooth-brushing, some parents do not enforce it. “Let’s say a child is 1 ½, and the child screams when they get their teeth cleaned,” said Dr. Jed Best, a pediatric dentist in Manhattan. “Some parents say, ‘I don’t want my little darling to be traumatized.’ The metaphor I give them is, ‘I’d much rather have a kid cry with a soft toothbrush than when I have to drill a cavity.’ ”

Traumatize: To wound or injure (a tissue), as in a surgical operation; to subject to psychological trauma