When thinking about going to the dentist, many people are fine, others get anxious or uncomfortable, and some people are terrified. While apprehension is normal, you might be surprised that extreme anxiety or dental phobia is not uncommon.
Research has identified that up to 15% of people live with dental phobia. Where does this fear come from and how can patients who suffer cope?
Phobia, an intense and unreasonable fear, can be the dread of a particular activity, situation, animal or object. In many instances, the fear is so consuming that it leads to constant worry, inability to function, and can make a person’s life miserable. In the case of a dental phobia, patients may do anything – including live with a dental infection or tooth pain – to avoid an appointment with the dentist.
Dental phobia is not something patients are born with, which means it is something that has been learned.
Somewhere in life, a person who suffers from a dental phobia has been taught that the dentist and dental treatment are something to fear. The result of this influence is quite physical and can cause a patient’s heart to beat quickly, start sweating, feeling nauseous, or losing all strength. Irrational fear is planted into a patient’s thinking about the dentist and is reinforced every time the thought occurs.
In addition to understanding that dental phobia is learned, it’s also important to acknowledge areas that can cause someone to be open to this influence. Visiting the dentist can cause some people to feel helpless or out of control. Other patients feel embarrassed about being examined so closely. If a patient has personally experienced discomfort or pain and is unaware of advancements in pain-free dentistry, this can be enough to reinforce or start a reaction to dread a dental situation.
Remembering that phobia is defined as an unreasonable fear, it’s important to recognize it is also something that can be overcome!
Whether you have a true dental phobia, or simply ‘dread going to the dentist every six months,’ it’s important to talk to your dentist and share your fears and concerns. Good dentists (and dental hygienists) will do all they can to listen to your worries and your experiences and help develop a plan to overcome these issues during your regular dental exams.
