What Options Are Available For People With Severe Dental Phobia? If you have an extreme phobia of visiting the dentist then you’re not alone. Many people avoid visiting their dentist and as a result they suffer from problems such as dental pain, abscesses and damaged teeth. For people such as this, there is a solution in the form of dental oral sedation. By using one of the many drugs available to help patients deal with anxiety, dentists can do their work whilst the patient is completely relaxed. A common reason for the use of oral sedation is for people who are adverse to needles. Because the medications are administered orally, there’s no need for injection. However many patients find that once they have taken the medication, they’re much less anxious and therefore are no long afraid of receiving a local anaesthetic. When you are tense and anxious, particularly when you’re anticipating pain, it puts your body in “fight or flight” mode and therefore makes you very sensitive to every sensation and noise. This is a very common experience for people who have a phobia of dentists. Using oral sedation can help you to completely relax and make the experience much more tolerable. Is it safe? If you’re consideration oral sedation then it’s important to inform your dentist of anything about your medical history that you think is relevant, including
Any medications you’re currently taking Any existing medical conditions you have Any herbal supplements you’re talking. You may think that herbal treatments such as St John’s Wort are not worth mentioning but they can interact with oral sedatives so it’s vital that you inform your dentist. Smoking and alcohol consumption. Both can influence how effective sedative medications are.
Once this information has been provided, your dentist can then decide on the best type of sedative to use for your treatment. Planning for an appointment In order to plan for a visit to the dentist where oral sedation will be used, there are certain things you must do. These include –