Understanding Dental Sedation: How to Overcome Anxiety and Enjoy a Stress-Free Visit

Whatever your reason for being anxious about your visit, the important thing to remember is that you aren’t alone and there is help available.

By addressing your dental anxiety with the help of your dentist, you can overcome this phobia and make your oral health a priority again. If you have to face a longer procedure and you’re worried about how you will handle this, we can advise you on whether dental sedation could be an option for you.

Read on to learn more about dental anxiety and how we can help you to overcome this all too common issue.

How common is dental anxiety?

Dental anxiety is a lot more common than you might think. Around 40% of UK adults report experiencing some anxiety around trips to the dentist. This can range from feeling a little bit apprehensive around longer procedures, to being too afraid to even book an appointment.

If this sounds like you, we’re here to help you overcome your phobia. We can help you to address your dental phobia so that you can visit the dentist without drama and without fear.

If you have children, it is especially important that you address your own dental phobia. Children will pick up on your emotions around dental visits, and they could develop their own fears about the dentist based on your emotions during these visits. This is why it is doubly important that you address your dental phobia before you pass this on to your children.

Steps to overcoming dental anxiety

The first step in overcoming your dental anxiety is to accept that it is present and accept that it is normal. Adding shame about your dental phobia into the equation will make it even more difficult for you to handle your feelings.

Next, you should get in touch with your dentist to let them know you would like to tackle your dental phobia. Speak to our reception team and book a routine dental checkup to start the healing process.

If a dental checkup sounds too daunting, you could try booking an appointment with a dental hygienist. This is often less intimidating than a dental checkup and can help to get your oral health back on track.

If you require any dental treatments, talk them through with your dentist and decide the best way to handle your phobia. You might want to agree on a hand signal that means you need to take a break. Or you might want to distract yourself with music until the procedure is over.

When to consider dental sedation

If you have to face a longer procedure and you are worried about how you might handle this, then dental sedation could be an option for you. The most common type of dental sedation is known as oral conscious sedation.

This is taken as a pill before your appointment and it will help you to relax without putting you to sleep. You’ll still be completely conscious and able to speak to your dentist, but you will be much more relaxed. Some patients find that they lose track of time and their worries simply melt away.

If you choose oral conscious sedation, you’ll need someone to bring you to your appointment and then take you home afterwards. You won’t be able to drive. After your appointment, you might feel very sleepy and you will likely want to go home and sleep it off. Most patients don’t remember the details of their appointment.

You’ll still be given anaesthetic and won’t feel anything during your appointment. The only difference is that you will be very relaxed and in a kind of twilight state.

Taking the stress out of your dental visits

If you find dental visits very stressful, we can offer some advice to help reduce your anxiety.

First, try scheduling your appointment first thing in the morning. This will give you less time to get worked up and worry about the appointment. It will be over quickly and you can get on with your day.

Next, arrive with plenty of time to spare so you don’t feel rushed. You might want to arrive with enough time to brush your teeth before your appointment so you feel extra fresh.

Finally, speak to our team if you are worried. We’re all trained to help nervous patients to overcome their worries, and we might have some helpful suggestions to support you. The more knowledge we have about the source of your worries the better we can assist you. Don’t be afraid to talk to your dentist or the reception team about your concerns.