Many people suffer from a fear of the dentist. This can make them avoid regular dentist visits, leading to more severe dental problems down the road. Dr. William Huckin, a dentist in Dallas, TX discusses how our office helps ease dental fear and the benefits of offering sedation dentistry for dental anxiety.
What is Dental Anxiety?
Dental anxiety and fear of the dentist are often interchangeable terms. Dental fear can be mild nervousness or debilitating enough that it can be diagnosed as a phobia. It can stem from the general environment of the dentist’s office, the sound of the drill, or needles and tools used in dental treatments.
Easing Dental Fear
At our office, we do our best to make sure every patient is comfortable, relaxed, and knows that this is a safe environment. Dr. Huckin believes in patient education so that nothing comes as a surprise. For any procedure he’s doing, he can explain it to you in detail so that you know what to expect. He’ll also create a personalized treatment plan for you so that you know what procedures will be coming in the future.
If you’re unsure about scheduling an appointment right away, Dr. Huckin can do a consultation. We can bring you into the office to meet the dentist and rest of the staff. We’ll give you a tour of the office so you can see the facility and answer any questions you may have about the office or procedures. Our mission is to give compassionate care to all of our patients, and it’s important that our patients know that.
Oral Sedation Dentistry
Sometimes, compassion and education aren’t enough to calm down a patient with severe dental anxiety. That’s why we offer sedation dentistry at our Dallas, Texas dentist office. Sedation can help the patient stay relaxed throughout the entire procedure. It also allows the dentist to do multiple procedures in one session, limiting the number of times the patient has to come into the office.
We offer oral sedation dentistry to help our dental anxiety patients relax. It comes in the form of a prescribed pill that we recommend you take about an hour before you come in for treatment. This sedation can take a long time to wear off, so you’ll be required to have someone drive you to and from your appointment.
Dr. Huckin will go over the sedation and its effects before prescribing you the sedative, as everyone reacts differently. Oral sedatives are designed to keep the patient alert while keeping them relaxed. You may fall asleep during treatment or not be able to remember the treatment afterward. These are common side effects of the sedative.
In addition, Dr. Huckin will use local anesthetic for your procedure so you can be at ease. You’ll have to plan your treatment accordingly, as the effects of both the local and oral treatments can last for a few hours. We want to be sure you’ll be able to spend the rest of your day safely.
Sedation Dentistry at Your Dallas, Texas Dentist
Our main goal is to make sure our patients can get the treatment they need as comfortably as possible. Call us or schedule an appointment online!