Seven Ways to Cure Your Dental Phobia

Seven Ways to Cure Your Dental Phobia
The dentist’s office can be pretty intimidating sometimes.  Even though it looks and feels similar to other doctor’s offices, the thought of going there can bring about sever feelings of anxiety and nervousness.  It doesn’t have to be that way.  Often times, even the simplest ideas can cure major issues with dental phobia and general nervousness
Why Does Dental Phobia Happen
Dental Phobia is a term that’s used pretty regularly to describe any anxiety related to visiting the dentist, but that might not be the best way of describing it.  The phrase “phobia” is defined by Webster’s Dictionary as “an exaggerated usually inexplicable and illogical fear of a particular object, class of objects, or situation”.  In some ways, that’s simply false.  Anxiety related to the dentist is almost never “illogical” and is usually grounded very much in reality.  
The truth is that often times we fear something because of past experiences.  Whether it’s obvious or not, there’s a very good chance that a previous visit to the dentist gave you some level of discomfort that still exists today.  Studies have shown that past experiences often times lead to an elevated anxiety and fear with regards to the dentist office. 
Other issues can affect your concerns around visits as well.  In general, the mass media only reports bad and harmful incidents that happen at the dentist’s office.  This can easily paint a grim and dismal picture of oral health when in reality, the vast majority of dental visits are very successful. 
Finally, the lack of control you experience at the dentist can make even the most confident person feel a bit constricted.  Being unable to get up and move around, talk freely and even communicate with your dental care professional can be a difficult experience to handle.
Anxiety Solutions
Now that we know some of the causes of your fear for the dentist, how do we fix it?  Below we’ve listed seven solutions to your concerns about visits to the dentist.
1. Breaks
Sitting in the same chair for long periods of time can result in increased stress levels, even if we don’t fully realize it.  Before your next visit, try to reach out to your dental care professional and discuss the possibility of simply getting up and walking around between different parts of your visit.  Being able to regain control will often times lower the amount of stress you’re feeling
2. Music
As long as your ear buds don’t get in the way and you can still hear the hygienist or dentist, there’s really nothing wrong with listening to music while you’re getting an exam or cleaning.  There’s plenty of data to show that listening to calming or interesting music will significantly reduce anxiety along with distracting you from the situation at hand.
3. Establish a Signal
We established earlier that lack of control is a major contributor to stress levels.  This is exacerbated by the fact that often times you’re not even able to communicate with the care professional that’s examining or cleaning your mouth.  This can be easily fixed by establishing a distress signal.  Something as simple as a tap or a grunt can easily notify the person working on your mouth that you’re not feeling great.  Whether you use the signal or not, having the peace of mind that if things do get a bit uncomfortable you have a way out will help to reassure you and make your next visit a lot easier.
4. Controlled Breathing There’s a fair bit of data showing that controlled breathing will help relax us.  You don’t need to go into a deep meditative state with months of practice to feel the effects either.  Simply counting your breathing time for as little as two minutes can lower your heart rate and help you feel calmer.  Try practicing the breathing exercise below a few times before your next visit:
* Breath in for four counts
* Hold your breath for four counts
* Exhale for four counts
* Wait for four counts before inhaling again
5. Controlled Relaxation
Many people who have issues sleeping are instructed to try controlled and organized relaxation of their muscles.  This helps to calm them down, lower their heart rate and help them fall asleep.  The same principles apply during stressful situations.  Try to focus for 30 to 45 seconds on each major muscle group and relax them entirely.  You’ll often times find that certain areas of your body (usually your thighs, arms, neck and shoulders) have significant amounts of tension in them that you didn’t realize.  Working to relax these muscle groups and remove that tension can be very helpful towards removing stress.
6. Bring a Friend
While dentist offices are generally pretty small, there’s almost always room in the corner for a friend or loved one to sit.  Knowing that there’s somebody nearby to help you if you’re uncomfortable or start to feel anxious can have a major effect on how we feel during stressful situations.  Before your next visit, check with your dentist if they have room for you to bring a buddy along.
7. Sedatives
Finally, talk to your dentist about the possibility of using some sort of sedative.  Oral sedation techniques such as laughing gas are completely healthy and can make the experience significantly less stressful.  In most cases these sedatives won’t put you to sleep so you’ll still be awake and somewhat coherent through the exam, cleaning or operation.  The effect will make you calm and comfortable, but still allow you to be awake and aware.
Dental Anxiety Cured There’s only so much you can do for your oral health at home.  While brushing your teeth, flossing, teeth whitening and rinsing with mouthwash can have a major effect on your oral health, you’re still opening yourself up to major risk by not going to the dentist.  If the reason you’re not going is due to fear, anxiety and nervousness we encourage you to try some of the aforementioned techniques.  If none of these seem to have a great effect, the best thing you can do is talk with your dentist about it.  Most dentists are more than interested in making their patients’ experiences as comfortable as possible.  Whether it’s an explanation of the exams, working through past exams or requesting a specific dental hygienist, there’s a lot that can be done by simply talking about the problem.  Whatever your issues are with the dentist, there’s a way to fix them.
Special thanks for our guest contributor this month Jeffrey Williams at Oradyne.