Sedation Dentistry Can Ease Your Anxiety
You wake up from your nap, and you think that today has been a pretty good day.
You visited Sunrise Dental for your treatment, and now you are home resting. You may even go see that movie you’ve been wanting to watch this evening.
A few years ago, this may not have been possible. Your dental anxiety had kept you away from the dentist for … you don’t remember how long, but it was longer than it should have been.
You are so grateful that you learned about sedation dentistry. It’s made it so much easier for you to get the dental care that you need.
And going for your regular checkups has prevented you from having more serious oral health problems. The staff at Sunrise Dental identified early stage gum disease during your first visit with them, and they helped you treat it before it turned into something worse.
That’s just one reason you recommend Sunrise Dental to all your friends who live or near the Research Triangle.
Understanding Your Dental Anxiety
The first thing we want you to know is that it’s OK if you are anxious about going to the dentist. Millions of people feel the same way.
We also know that you aren’t alone because we treat many patients who share your dental anxiety.
It’s important to us to understand you and your needs as an individual. Accepting your dental anxiety is a good first step, but it’s also important that you share the reasons for that anxiety.
Your reasons for feeling anxious may be very different from another patient. We will give you some examples.
Patient A is afraid that the dentist will use the drill. He had a bad experience with a dentist using a drill to treat a filling when he was younger, and he has been hesitant to go to the dentist ever since that day.
Patient B hates needles. She has always been bothered by them, and she’s even more bothered if she sees one heading toward her mouth. Knowing this, we can use other techniques to prevent her from feeling pain.
Patient C is bothered because he feels like he didn’t understand what his old dentist was doing. Our staff is happy to answer any questions that he has about the procedure and why we are doing what we are doing.
Patient D would rather not know anything about her dental treatment. She knows she needs to visit us regularly to get the care that she needs, but she is happy not knowing any of the specifics.
We can’t go through every possible reason you might have dental anxiety, but we do welcome and encourage you to discuss what makes you feel anxious. This will help us help you.
Sedation And Other Options
Dental sedation is an effective way to address many of the causes of dental anxiety.
We offer both nitrous oxide and oral sedation in our practice. Both offer analgesic benefits, so you won’t feel any pain, and the sedation allows you to remain calm and relaxed throughout your treatment.
For people who prefer to not be aware of what is happening during their dental treatment, sedation can help with that as well.
Before you decide if or what kind of sedation you may receive, we encourage you to visit with your dentist first. Sometimes by talking about the reason for your anxiety we can find a solution that does not require any sedation.
If you do elect to receive sedation, here is a short overview of each.
Oral conscious sedation involves taking a medication. You will swallow a pill before your treatment. By the time you sit down in a dental chair, you will likely be feeling groggy. You may fall asleep.
Either way, your dentist or hygienist will be able to clean and examine your teeth to keep your mouth as healthy as it can be.
The oral sedation will last for a few hours so you must have a family member or friend take you home, where you may want to take a nap.
With nitrous oxide, you will feel the effects within minutes of breathing in the gas. This will help you remain calm and prevent you from feeling any pain during your cleaning or other procedure.
At the end, we will turn off the gas, and you will exhale what remains in your system. In a matter of minutes, you will feel like your normal self, and you will be able to go on about your day.
Talk To Us
Before you make your first appointment, we welcome you to call or stop by any of our dentist offices in Chapel Hill, Durham, Raleigh, or Cary. We want you to understand our approach to dental care, and we want to understand what we can do to help you receive it.
You can contact us by filling out an online form or by calling the office closest to you.
