Tips to Relax During Your Next Dental Procedure

Does anxiety keep you from receiving the oral healthcare you need and deserve? Perhaps your anxiety is so powerful that you have trouble keeping your dental appointments for checkups and cleanings. You aren’t alone in your struggle. Millions of people suffer from anxiety disorders and dental phobias are actually one of the most common phobia-based anxiety disorders.

If you have trouble relaxing during oral healthcare treatments – especially those surgical in nature, you might want to discuss sedation dentistry with our oral surgeon. Sedation dentistry can be used in procedures like tooth extractions, dental implants placement, and corrective jaw surgery. Following are some tips for calming your nerves.

Practice Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a concept that involves focusing on what is stimulating our senses to calm our nerves and overcome emotions. One way that you can practice mindfulness is to take in your surroundings. Ask yourself what you can see, hear, and smell. For example, making a mental list of everything you can see can help you overcome negative or fearful thoughts.

Take Deep Breaths

While the phrase “take deep breaths” might seem cliché to many, it does work. Deep breathing has a calming effect on the body. Moreover, we tend to breathe very shallow during times of emotional duress. Taking deep breaths during difficult times helps saturate our bodies with oxygen and ground us emotionally. Try inhaling for three seconds and exhaling for three seconds.

Ask Questions

Sometimes combatting nerves can be as simple as asking a question. Rather than wonder about what is going on around us (and letting our overactive brains create harrowing scenarios), ask about what’s happening. Our team will be happy to clarify and answer your questions.

Request a Break

If during your procedure you feel overwhelmed, ask our oral surgeon or a member of our staff to take a small break so that you can regroup. A little break can help you focus on your breathing so that you can ease your anxiety.

When it comes to oral surgeries that are invasive, our practice might recommend sedation dentistry, which can help patients with anxiety disorders as well as help those in treatment maintain their level of comfort. Sedation dentistry helps patients rest comfortably during treatment.

For additional tips or to learn more about sedation dentistry, call us today to reserve a visit.