Beating Your Fear Of The Dentist

Our Epsom dental team offers tips to help you keep your appointments

Most of us have probably experienced at least some discomfort and anxiety as our dental appointment approaches. Some of us might be worried as we have a treatment scheduled, but even going for a checkup, whilst painless, can raise the ‘what if they find something wrong’ feel of dread.

If this sounds familiar to you, it is probably because it is experienced so widely. Despite knowing that all dentists in the UK are highly trained and qualified, a visit to the dentist seems to raise more concerns than seeing a GP, for example.

There are many possible reasons for this. A bad experience in the past won’t help of course, but there is also a school of thought which claims that our dental phobia is largely due to the treatment taking place so close to our senses .. i.e. sight, sound, smell etc.  Whatever the reason though, dental phobia can be a real problem and whilst, for some it simply means a slightly unpleasant experience; for others it may mean a missed appointment which can lead to more problems later on.

Tackling the fear……

Most of you will probably have heard of the book ‘feel the fear and do it anyway’. This encourages us to acknowledge our fear but then do whatever it is that is making us anxious. Naturally, some people will allow their fear to prevent them from doing things. Where this is, for example, a fear of flying, it means missing out on a holiday. Where there is a fear of dental treatment, it can result in some serious oral health issues, especially if you continue to miss appointments.

And here is the ‘catch 22’. If you go to the dentist, then yes, there is a chance that you may need to have a tooth filled or extracted. Our Clocktower Dental, Implant & Facial Centre team will always make sure that we do all we can to make you as comfortable as possible, but there is no getting away from the fact that very few people would describe an invasive procedure as enjoyable. The flipside of this is that if you decide not to keep your appointment, especially when treatment is needed, the problem won’t go away and in nearly all cases, may quickly deteriorate.

What might have been a small filling that required a straightforward and quick procedure, can  quickly become a larger cavity, quite possibly causing a very painful toothache. The infection could also spread to the roots of the tooth, leaving you needing a root canal treatment. Worse still, the tooth, now in a weakened state, could simply break and the prognosis be so poor that it needs to be extracted. The reality is that if you decline early stage treatment, you are very likely to suffer much more later on.

This is a fact that you should bear in mind and simply ignoring the issue doesn’t mean that you have escaped your fear. Unfortunately it is very likely that this will intensify and the treatment you eventually need will be more significant. It really does pay to get any problems sorted out early on.

Easing anxiety

Having determined that early treatment is essential, how can you make it easier for yourself? There are a number of methods and techniques that seem to work for a number of our Epsom patients. These include:

Breathing/relaxation exercises – There is no one method that will suit everyone but there are a wide range of resources online that should help. Most of these will revolve around relaxing the muscles whilst lying down or sitting, and slowing down the breathing in a relaxed manner. This can certainly help and you can also put it into practice when you come to our clinic.

Don’t come alone – Even having someone with you in the waiting room can sometimes help to distract you from your imminent appointment. Whilst they will not be allowed in the treatment room, it can be reassuring to have a friend with you when you come.

Time your arrival – This is a slightly tricky one as arriving too late can leave you feeling hot, sweaty and in a bit of a panic which is not good for your anxiety. On the other hand, arriving too early and sitting in the waiting room too long probably won’t help either. Try to arrive in sufficient time to fill in any forms etc but not so that you have time to sit around worrying about your visit.

Medication – In extreme cases, your GP may be happy to prescribe you with a short course of medication to reduce your anxiety to an acceptable level so that you can have work carried out on your teeth. This shouldn’t be taken lightly though and is an avenue to be explored only when your anxiety levels are very high.

Can we help?

The answer to this is ‘yes we can’. Our friendly dental team has no desire to make your visit uncomfortable and we do all that we can to help you relax. The environment is designed to help put you at ease and our calm and friendly dentists are happy to talk you through any treatment you might need.

We also have a range of technology at our clinic which can help, including ‘The Wand’. This allows us to provide you with a local anaesthetic without the use of the standard needle. We know that this is a significant trigger for quite a few people and The Wand has been a big help to them. We can also offer sedation in some cases and if you think you would benefit from this, please discuss it with us prior to your appointment.

We will always do all that we can to help our more anxious patients. If you would like to discuss this with us, or to make an appointment, please call the Clocktower Dental, Implant & Facial Centre on 01372 720136.