Are you afraid of the dentist?
If so, you’re not alone. Research reveals that 83% of Australians share this fear.
Dentophobia poses a real risk to oral health as it prevents people from getting cleanings and other important dental work done. Fortunately, sedation dentistry offers a solution!
Keep reading to learn more about sedation dentistry, Perth Australia, can help keep you healthy and what to expect!
Dentophobia Explained
Understanding what drives your fears helps you overcome them in a healthier way. Your genetics may make you more prone to phobias.
Add on top of that any additional anxiety, and it may make the dentist seem frightening. Past trauma at the dentist or history of abuse will only add insult to injury, making a simple cleaning feel almost deadly.
This fear not only prevents you from scheduling appointments. It may also cause you physical distress, like stomach aches, chest pain, shortness of breath, and full-blown panic attacks.
This may interfere with your social life and prevent you from going to work as the fear manifests into physical symptoms. The fear of the fear itself you may experience mostly prevents people from seeing the dentist.
Why You Need a Solution
When this fear prevents you from visiting your dentist, it can lead to serious problems. Avoiding regular cleanings can cause poor hygiene.
Discoloured teeth and stinky breath are only at the tip of the iceberg. The plaque buildup can cause cavities and receding gumlines.
When you let a cavity go, the rotting of the tooth will spread. Eventually, this can turn into a serious infection and/or gum disease.
When you let oral issues go further, it can actually lead to serious heart problems. All of this results in seeing a dentist for much more invasive work.
Sedation Dentistry Is Your Solution
Sedation dentistry offers you a fantastic solution! It allows you to get into the chair without feeling the intense fear during your dental work.
The dentist will safely and effectively relax you for your visit. Understanding exactly how it works will help you book your appointment and take care of your oral health.
Types of Sedation Dentistry
Sedation can mean many things. While it always relaxes a person to some degree, that degree varies.
Dr Vicky will choose your level of sedation based on the procedure you need, your degree of fear, your health, and your comfort level. Each type involves a different medication, procedure, and/or method.
NuCalm
Whether you struggle with addiction or simply prefer the most natural approach, NuCalm offers a fantastic sedation option. It combines a number of methods to bring you into a state of tranquillity.
NuCalm works by taking nutritional supplements that naturally counteract the effects of adrenaline. This means you activate the rest and digest function of your parasympathetic nervous system.
The dentist then places patches that send gentle electrical currents behind the ear. The frequency interferes with pain signals and further relaxes you. It will not cause you any discomfort.
They will then cut off all sound and light from entering your senses. This immerses you into a state of calm without keeping you sedated after the procedure.
This method of conscious sedation takes away the need for using nitrous oxide. You do not wear any type of mask or breathe in anything aside from normal room air.
Oral Sedation
For oral sedation, the dentist will prescribe you medication to take prior to coming into the office. This may include something for pain, anxiety, and or other relaxants.
You may or may not fall asleep during the procedure. It addresses your needs, whether you simply feel anxious or fear the prospect of pain. This type of sedation will make you sleepy for a long period of time after your appointment.
Full Sedation
For extreme phobias and painful procedures, you may opt for IV sedation. For this method, an anesthesiologist stays present throughout your procedure to keep you deeply sedated.
You will remain completely under until the dentist finishes. Moving forward, you will bring no memory of the procedure.
It requires an iv for medication administration. You will need to stay at the office longer and take most of the day to rest.
Risks
As with anything, sedation does pose a minor risk. Less sedation decreases the risk, making NuCalm the safest method.
Medications carry the potential for an allergic reaction, though this rarely happens. Deep sedation can sometimes cause breathing difficulties.
Sedation can more commonly make people feel groggy after the procedure. You may experience dizziness or some disorientation from the medication. Under physicians care, sedation works safely and effectively for most people.
Benefits of Sedation Dentistry
Sedation dentistry offers a number of important benefits. First and foremost, it allows you to take care of your oral health so that you do not end up with cavities, gingivitis, or other health issues.
Sometimes people go to the dentist despite their fear and then fight against the dentist. Sedation prevents this from happening so that they can quickly and properly finish your work.
Knowing that you will undergo sedation can help reduce your anxiety leading up to the event. Often that lingering fear of hearing strange noises, seeing scary equipment, or feeling pain, causes more distress than the procedure itself. Knowing that you will experience none of it will give you peace of mind prior to your appointment.
Sedation not only keeps you calm. It also helps you to not experience pain. Keeping you comfortable in turn reduces any anxiety even further and increases the calming effect all around.
By opting for sedation, you can safely, comfortably, and effectively face your fear. Facing phobias actually helps heal your mind of them.
Sedation Dentistry, Perth Australia
Do not suffer through fear as you visit the dentist. And definitely don’t risk your oral health by staying away from dental visits. Ask if sedation dentistry is right for you!
Your smile is important to us, and people don’t smile when they feel afraid. Contact us to set up your appointment in a way that works best for you.
