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Afraid Of The Dentist?
Are you afraid of the dentist?

Do you have a dental phobia?

We see many patients that have severe anxiety, fear or even a phobia of the dentist and we thought a blog post on the subject would help the local people of Bristol and Portishead.

With any form of dental phobia it is important to know that this is a learned behaviour, and that you were not born with this dental fear. Accepting this is the first stage in overcoming your fear of the dentist. If you are clever enough to learn a new behaviour (such as being afraid of the dentist) you are all so clever enough to either unlearn this behaviour, or learn a new behaviour which is more beneficial to you… Such as relaxing at the dentist!

Being afraid of the dentist is not something that you should be embarrassed about. Many dentists are aware of these fears that so many people have, and will be accommodating to. To help with your dental fears, here are a few dental phobia top tips.

1. Book an appointment early in the morning, this means you will not be worrying all day.
2. Do not drink alcohol prior to an appointment.
3. Come to practice with a friend, and agree a relaxing subject that you will talk about at the dentist, such as your holiday plans for the year. This will help to take your mind off things.
4. Call your dentist, and tell them of your dental fear of failure. They can then discuss this with you in advance, never go to the dentist without telling them that you were afraid.

If you are afraid of the dentist, simply having a relaxing chat to the dentist is a great way to start. Often it is then possible to arrange a visit to the dental practice, after hours, when no other people are there. You can then have a gentle tour of the facility, and even sit in the dentist’s chair, just to prove to yourself that you can do it.

Once you know that you can sit in the dentist’s chair, you might then consider booking an appointment for a dental health check. This is then a simple way in to the practice with minimal chance of anything happening to you that you don’t like.

Many dental practices also offer dental sedation, this is a way to help you relax at the dentist even further.

Evolve dentistry in Portishead, Bristol have written a free guide to helping patients overcome their dental fear. It is a free seven day course which will help you to overcome your dental phobia in a simple way, by sending you a helpful e-mail each day, with some practical steps to take to overcome your dental anxiety. You can download your guide to overcoming your dental fear here.