Are you afraid of the dentist?

If you answered "yes", you are not alone. Many of you reading this article most likely fear dentists or know someone who does. For those who have put off the dentist visit for years and years eventually end up seeing me, your new best friend, the denturist. The fear of dentists is very common. Almost all patients who are fearful think they are the only ones who fear going to the dentist. It is estimated that as many as 50% of the U.S. population does not get regular dental care, most of which is due to fear. A fair number of my patients fall into exactly this category.

Recently, I asked a very fearful patient of mine what she thought was the main reason for the fear. And she could not give me a definite answer. She was not afraid of the needles or drills; it was just an unexplainable, irrational fear. However another patient of mine specifically couldn't stand the sound of the drill and was happy that we do all of our drilling in the other room.

This left me wondering and looking more deeply into this phobia that affects so many of us. For most people it is because of something traumatic that happened at the dentist as a child, or for others it may be a story that they heard and now are deathly afraid that the same thing will happen to them.

Even as little as 10 years ago, dentistry has changed in leaps and bounds. The profession as a whole was very different than it is today. In fact, my wife's grandmother lost all her teeth at 27 and has had full dentures since then.

We didn't even know she had dentures until I became a denturist. When my father-in-law had his wisdom teeth extracted when he was in his twenties, the dentist actually put his knee on his chest to get leverage to pull them out! This would be unheard of today.

There are many levels of dental fear, and for some the mere thought of reading this article can make your heart race and put you in a cold sweat, but no matter what your level of fear is, (brace yourself here…)you will eventually need to see the dentist and/or a denturist. The longer you avoid this fear the more you are compromising your health and overall well being. We have a few dentists who we work with on a regular basis and so far, all of our fearful patients have said that they are so happy with the end result and are also glad they got it over with.

They can now smile with confidence, eat food that were formerly "off limits" and feel confident in the fact that they have made a huge leap towards better health.

Personally, I have a huge fear for having impressions made. This is where they make a mould of your mouth and which we were required to do when I was in school. I have a horrible gag reflex and I felt I needed someone put me out if they wanted an impression done. But I knew that this is what I needed to do to get my certification, so through gagging, coughing, and tears streaming down my face I somehow managed the dreaded impression… whew.

This experience also allowed me to understand and appreciate those patients that also suffer from the same problem. This is why I use a material that sets faster and is not as runny. The patient only needs to have the impression in his mouth for a mere 20 seconds rather than 2 minutes.

My wife has a fear of the freezing needle, but one dentist we work with now has something called the "comfort wand", which looks like a pen and slowly puts the freezing into the area.

So no more big scary needles and lips that are numb for the rest of the day.

One dentist that we work with does not even do conventional x-rays but rather digital x-rays. This xray uses 90% less radiation than the standard x-rays and the image pops up directly onto the screen. If you know that you need dentures and are one of those people who are very much afraid of the dentist, if may be helpful to come and see me, or a local denturist first to help explain the process and put you into a new frame of mind.

You do not need a referral from a dentist to see a denturist and this may help you make the first step towards good oral health and filling in those gaps in your smile. When you visit a dentist or denturist, you should feel comfortable with your dental provider and you should be made aware of all your options.

In most cases, there is more than one option available when it comes to dentures. If a denturist or dentist only gives one option, it should raise a red flag. It doesn't hurt just talk with a denturist and come in for a consultation, which is free in most denture clinics.

If you would like to make that first step towards good oral health, or if you have and questions or comments, you can call us at the Innisfil Denture Clinic at (705)436-1886 and make an appointment.

Located at 958 Innisfil Beach Rd (across from the Lakeshore Library) in Alcona.