Many people have a fear of the dentist – it is the most common reason why people fail to attend appointments and put off treatment for years. This can be for a variety of reasons.
However, help is at hand and we at Shandon Dental will aim to help you through each appointment with as little fuss as possible.
Make appointment early in the morning
The longer you put the appointment off the worse it gets. Make the appointment for first thing and it won’t be on your mind all day and won’t give yourself the time to get worked up about it. The more you think about it the more opportunity you give yourself to cancel your appointment or talk yourself out of it.
Bring someone with you
Bring a family member or friend with you to your appointment. This will give you extra support to get through the appointment.
Listen to music
Feel free to bring a music device with headphones to each appointment. This will help in drowning out the everyday noise of the dental surgery and will help in relaxing you.
Communication
Don’t be afraid to express your fears and concerns to the dentist and the staff. We regularly and routinely discuss all treatment options and what’s involved with each procedure. This will aid in your overall understanding and reassure you as to what’s being done. We summarise this as tell, show and do.
You’re the boss
You can stop a procedure at any time especially if feeling pain or feel like you don’t understand what’s going on. You’re in charge and we will aim to make each appointment better than the last. Mid procedure you can stop at any time by lifting your right hand
It’s never too late
Putting off treatment for long periods can make a situation worse. The sooner you treat the easier it is and there are always options in giving you the smile that you want in a pain-free and easy manner.
Fear of needles (Trypanophobia)
A recent study in UK found that 8% of adults were very afraid of needles/getting shots and 16% were a little afraid. Read more here .
This is a common fear among patients and its always important to remember.
Feel like its time to get over the phobia?
Contact us on 0214305569 email info(at)shandondental.ie or via
https://www.shandondental.ie/contact-us/