• Orthodontist London | Orthodontics in Central London
• Orthodontic treatment in London
• Nervous patients

Nervous patients

Going to the dentist is a difficult and scary thing for many, but dental phobia can make this experience even harder than usual. At Forest & Ray, we believe that everyone has a right to healthy and beautiful teeth, so we take extra care to make sure that we give our patients suffering from anxiety the most comfortable and friendliest dental care possible by discussing their fears, needs and preferences and plan the treatment accordingly.

You are not alone with your fear

You do not need to be embarrassed if you have dental anxiety; this problem is not extreme, many patients suffer from it, and it can be handled with professional care. The first step is realising and admitting the phobia and tell your dentist about your fears and anxieties. Dental phobia often develops because of bad memories of dental treatments from one’s childhood, but it can also appear without having experienced anything like that. Whichever might be the case, the following methods can help you feel safer and less anxious during your dental appointments.

Specifying the phobia

Finding out which part of a dental treatment scares you the most might help a lot. May it be a procedure, a tool, a process, doctors, or the dentistry in general, it is better to focus on the core of the problem and try to limit your fear to the certain thing, making sure that the experience in general is as comfortable as possible.

Being in control

It is important to feel in control throughout the entire treatment. You will be provided with every information you need and want, our dentist will make sure you feel free to ask any questions at any point of the procedure. It might be useful to agree on a sign you can give any minute, which makes the dentist stop the work and talk to you about your anxiety and discomfort.

Stay focused on something else

If you draw your attention away from your feelings of fear, you will feel more comfortable during the treatment. Ways to keep one’s attention away from these bad thoughts might vary from person to person; you can ask the dentist or the nurse to talk to you, you can choose soundtracks you like and listen to them - preferably not with headphones, as it might make you feel separated, therefore it is better to tell the dentist what kind of music you prefer and listen to it together.

Appointments in the morning

To our anxious patients we always recommend to book an appointment for early in the morning, as having the treatment as the first thing you do that day will prevent you being stressed beforehand, during your working hours or other activities you need to focus on. This way your treatment will be over by the time you get to your workplace and you can spend the day relieved and relaxed!

One step at a time

Sometimes it is better to book multiple appointments, so that you can get used to the dentistry and get to know your dentist. This can make patients feel safer and more comfortable during a more serious treatment. We recommend you to book a smaller treatment before bigger ones, for example a scaling before oral surgery. Visiting the dentistry for completely painless treatments will make you feel more comfortable afterwards.