Dental Fears: Easing Dental Anxiety in Adults
Does the thought of the dentist cause you anxiety? Dorset Dental Implant Clinic understands the feelings of fear this may cause.
Dentophobia, or Odontophobia, is the name for the extremely common fear of dentists.
We are here and have dedicated services to make sure your appointment is as comfortable as possible.
Call 01202 973300.
The Negative Oral Impacts
Many people suffer from fear of dental treatment or dental examinations to such an extent that they avoid visiting the dentist whatsoever.
This can have terrible health consequences; dental problems if left untreated can have serious implications for the health of the whole body, not to mention the physical appearance.
Many dental issues require only minor treatment if identified early.
Some can be prevented entirely, but even procedures that need treating can be made to be virtually pain-free, certainly stress-free, using modern sedation techniques and when handled by skilled and experienced dentists such as those at the Dorset Dental Implant Clinic.
Afraid of The Dentist?
This being the case, if you suffer from a fear of dentists, it is a good idea to understand exactly what you are experiencing and why.
Fear of the dentist is usually experienced via worry and anxiety – we may experience troubling thoughts about going to the dentist, all the things that go wrong, and how stressful it will be. We may become avoidant, and not want to think about it at all.
Patients may experience denial, where you might pretend to yourself that you don’t need a check-up or even prevent treatment for an issue that is causing you problems.
In some cases, the fear may progress to physical symptoms, sweating, shaking, nausea, shortness of breath, when you might approach the issue of visiting the dentist.
All of this is relatively common, and understandable.
The Causes of Dental Phobia
The dentist’s surgery is a medical environment and may evoke associations to unpleasant experiences in childhood.
Some of the most common phobias include fear of doctors, iatrophobia, fear of needles, trypanophobia, hemophobia, fear of blood and algophobia, the fear of pain.
A highly anxious person might imagine that a visit to the dentist will involve all of these! In reality, this is rarely the case.
Perhaps more realistically, for many patients, a dental treatment might trigger a fear of the loss of control, as we may imagine we will have to surrender a very intimate part of the body for close inspection by a stranger.
Furthermore, a dental examination might lead to unwanted bad news that we would rather not know.
However, dental problems are always best treated sooner rather than later.
Tips for Overcoming a Fear of the Dentist
It is important to remember that a dentist is a highly trained professional with only our best interests in mind, and if we might feel embarrassed about our dental problems, we needn’t – a good dentist has seen it all before.
Attempting to understand the root causes of our fears, then challenging the thought patterns they create with more rational ideas is a highly effective method of overcoming fears.
In some cases, a patient’s fear and anxiety may be too much for them.
Rather than risking avoiding treatment, Dorset Dental Implant Clinic offers plenty of options, in the form of dental sedation.
This is the highly refined practice of reducing a patient’s sense of perception for the duration of treatment.
In some cases, such as larger procedures like dental implants, sedation is recommended.
Implantation mini-guide:
In any case, treatment will be tailored to your needs, so there is no need to worry; at Dorset Dental Implant Clinic, you are in good hands.
If you are a nervous patient, let us know and we will take care of you.
