Nervous about your next trip to the dentist? Keep cool in the dental chair during your next visit by heeding the following advice:
Now, if you are one of those people that have developed a fear of the dentist (officially known as “odontophobia”), you definitely need to have a dentist that you are comfortable with in the first place. Your dentist should have a good bedside manor and make you at ease as much as possible, and if you fear the dentist more than most, you should communicate with them about this issue. Alternatively, if you do not like your dentist’s style and way of treating patients, then find another dentist! I know that this may seem obvious, but you would be surprised by how many people don’t take matters into their own hands when it comes to this.
An additional fact to keep in mind is that much of our fear of the dentist probably springs from the past, from times before the existence of the high-tech, vastly more advanced methods for dental procedures and of pain relief that thankfully exist today. Relax, we’ve come a long way from Doc Holiday with his nasty pliers and only his bottle of Jack Daniels to help you get through the dental experience! You can take comfort in the fact that dentists use the latest technology to make dental work as safe and as efficient for the patient as possible.
Finally, an important aspect of overcoming fear of the dentist is the power of realistic, positive thinking. After all: you are actually going to the dentist to AVOID pain, because if dental problems go undiagnosed and untreated, the person afflicted will almost certainly suffer as a result. The dentist is there to fix your teeth so that they are pain-free, as well as to make them more beautiful to both the world and, most importantly, to you. In fact, skipping dental appointments is what should scare us!
-DC
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