Visiting your dentist at routine intervals is utmost important to maintain strong, healthy and disease-free teeth and the gums. But unfortunately a lot of people suffer from dental anxiety or phobia that bars them from going for regular oral health check-ups. As a result, they miss the much needed care and treatment at the time when they need it the most. Dental phobia or anxiety has been researched upon. Attempts are being made to understand the reason behind this phobia so that those patients can be provided with the precise care and treatment at the right nick of time.
According to research that has been done so far dental phobia or anxiety is nothing but a response to stress. The stress arises from acute discomfort that one feels or gets subjected to in a dental setting. Nearly 4 out of every 10 patients all over the world are known to suffer from this stress. Despite the stress or dental anxiety, these days going for a dental check-up or undergoing a treatment in a dentist’s office is unbelievably comfortable. In fact, it was never ever so comfortable ever before and this has been possible mostly because of the evolution of ground-breaking technologies in the world of dentistry.
Thanks to the massive research that has already undergone now it is also possible to overcome the anxiety to a large extent. A number of tried and tested tips are there to help you out. Let us discuss few such tips in the following sections. Remember the key is to ease your mind before visiting your dentist every time. If your mind is at ease, then unnecessary fear as well as impractical thoughts will not be able to bother you.
Tips to overcome dental phobia or anxiety
- Speak up your worries and concerns – at the Smile Clinic London, we have skilled, caring and experienced dentists to take care of your diseased teeth and the gums. They can also take excellent care of patients who suffer from dental anxiety. Our dentists have mastered the skills of putting your anxious, worried, scared and concerned mind to rest so that your treatment may progress smooth and unhindered. But you also have certain responsibility in this regard. Speak up all your worries and concerns that are there in your mind with your dentist or dental nurse before the treatment starts. Shoot questions about the treatment procedure; ask about the tools that will be used. You can also categorically ask what you should expect before, during and after the procedure. When you are armed with factual and categorical information about your upcoming treatment, much of your concern, worry and anxiety get resolved.
- Bring a friend to give you company – when you come for a treatment procedure all alone your anxiety is at all-time high. This is because you have no one by your side to share your concerns with. Therefore, it is a good idea to bring a friend with you, someone who cares about you. Presence of a close soul works wonders in calming the mind when you are stressed with dental phobia. Even if you are not in a condition to talk but the very presence of the person is bound help you a lot overcoming your psychological fear.
- Rely on your earphones – listening to your favorite music or streaming that marvelous series can be a powerful distracter to keep your anxiety away as the dentist and his or her team keeps working on your problem. Thus it is important to carry your earphone with you while going to your dentist’s office. The sound from the earphone will also drown the surrounding noise and vibrations from dental gadgets and hand pieces. This way you can keep much of your anxiety at bay.
- Focus on breathing deeply – do you know deep abdominal breathing has the ability to lower the heart rate as well as decrease the production of cortisol? In other words, it is an excellent procedure to keep your stress and anxiety under control. You can – or rather should – start deep abdominal breathing once you have reached the waiting room of your dentist’s office.
Conclusion
Dentists handling cases of dental smile in London suggest the tips discussed above help you overcome dental anxiety easily. Follow these tips to make the most out of those. If you have any further query or confusion, do contact us at the Smile Clinic London. We are located at the West End Lane.