If you break into a sweat when your dental check-up reminder comes through on your phone, you can be assured you are not alone.
Studies have found that as many as 1 in 4 people are nervous about attending dental appointments, so you are certainly in good company with your worries!
Regardless of whether you had a bad experience as a child while in the dental chair, or if you simply dislike the sound of the drill, many dental surgeries are now equipped and trained in how to help the most phobic of patients and can offer an array of different techniques and medical interventions to help you while you are in the dental chair.
If you have concerns about how the dental team will perceive you, rest assured that it is now commonplace for dental staff to offer a more sympathetic and compassionate approach to their patients; so you won’t need to worry about getting any criticism from your dentist Wagga Wagga!
So, how could a dentist in Wagga Wagga help to make you feel less stressed during a routine check-up?
Non-medical options
There are many ways in which your dentist in Wagga can lower your anxieties using non-medical interventions.
Many surgeries may be able to offer you a non-clinical meeting, to allow you to become familiar with your dental team before the check-up occurs. Similarly, some teams may be able to offer longer appointments, to allow you to take breaks as and when they are required.
Also, it is now commonplace for dental teams to allow patients to listen to music or audiobooks with headphones while undertaking treatment, so it is always worth asking which options your surgery will be happy to accommodate.
Oral sedation
If you need something a bit more than breathing exercises and music, then your dental team may be able to offer you oral sedation.
Usually a single tablet, this will allow you to feel sedated during the procedure, but you will be able to respond to your dental team’s instructions throughout. It is important to tell your dental surgery about any other medications you may be taking if they suggest this as an option to control your anxiety.
Nitrous oxide
Inhaled through a mask, nitrous oxide or laughing gas will allow you to relax in the dental chair without being fully sedated. It numbs you to any discomfort you may feel during the treatment, but makes you feel happy and relaxed (hence the nickname laughing gas).
One benefit nitrous oxide has over oral sedation is that after the treatment is completed, you will not feel lethargic or sleepy, allowing you to go about your day as normal.
Anaesthetic
If your dental phobia is more intense, then your surgery may be able to offer you an anaesthetic. This will render you partially unconscious, relaxed and in an induced sleep phase for the entire procedure, but will require some downtime afterwards, so this may not be the best option if you have work after the appointment!
DISCLAIMER
Any surgical or invasive procedure carries risks. Before proceeding you should seek a second opinion from an appropriately qualified health practitioner.
