Dental Anxiety and You – How We Can Help

The noise of the dental drill, the fear of pain and a masked stranger poking around the mouth are just a few reasons why many people hate visiting the dentist! But at Chesterfield, we don’t take it personally because we know that for those with a dental phobia – technically known as dentophobia or odontophobia – visiting the dentist is possibly the worst experience in the world. Whether you’re a nervous patient or not, we’ll always do our best to make sure that your visit is as pleasant and relaxing as possible. For our patients suffering with dental anxiety, treatment can be provided using dental sedation at Chesterfield to help calm your nerves. If you struggle with dental anxiety, take a look at our tips on how to stay as cool as a cucumber during your next visit!

Top tips on how to manage a dental phobia

1. Talk to us – let us know how you’re feeling. We’re here to make sure that your dental experience is as stress-free and comfortable as possible. Some patients prefer that we talk them through each step of their treatment whereas others would rather be distracted and have us chat about anything but dentistry.
2. Have a stop signal – it helps many patients to feel more in control if they know that treatment can be instantly stopped at just the raise of a hand.
3. Bring a close friend – sometimes it can help to have someone familiar with you that you trust. This can help you to stay calm when you feel a little over-whelmed.
4. Have something to hold – while kids may like to cuddle a teddy bear, adults might choose to have a hand to grip ora stress ball to squeeze.
5. Imagine yourself elsewhere – it might sound obvious, but distracting yourself by picturing being on a warm beach somewhere watching the waves really works and can help to calm your nerves.
6. Listen to music – it’s well known that listening to our favourite tunes can help us feel more calm and relaxed. So bring along your headphones and occupy your mind!

How can we help?

Sometimes a dental phobia is severe and more is needed than the above tips. If that’s the case, we have two options for our patients suffering with extreme dental anxiety. Treatment can be provided using dental sedation at Chesterfield with either:

• NOS (Nitrous Oxide) – a slight sedative combined of nitrous oxide (commonly known as laughing gas) and pure oxygen, which is inhaled through the nose.
• Oral medications – typically administered via a pill that’s part of the Valium family. It should be taken 1 hour before treatment begins. This sedative stays in your system for a few hours afterward, so please make sure you’re accompanied by another person for your visit and have them drive you home.

We want to help you manage your dental phobia and make sure you enjoy your next visit to our dental office. Remember, keeping up with regular check-ups is important, not just for your smile but for your overall health and well-being. So let us know if you’re nervous or suffering from dental anxiety, treatment doesn’t have to be scary! To find out more about dental sedation at Chesterfield call (314) 469 6429..