How to Find a Dentist for Fearful Patients

Many people are scared of the dentist and suffer from dental anxiety. But some people take the D-word seriously. Does the thought of seeing the dentist make you sick or your heart start racing? You may be suffering from dental fear or phobia. While some dentists consider themselves as simply tooth mechanics, many dentists nowadays have been professionally trained to deal with fearful patients.

Instructions

• 1

  Ask around, says Dr. Paul Glassman, and dentist and professor of dental practice at the University of the Pacific, Arthur A. Dugoni School of Dentistry, San Francisco, who has been running a program for fearful dental patients for many years. Ask your friends, neighbors, relatives, work colleagues or family doctor if they recommend any good dentist with great people skills.

• 2

  Check your local dental association or organization to see if they have a list of dentists for fearful patients. Some dentists are specialized in treating nervous patients.

• 3

  Read dentist reviews and recommendations for phobic-friendly dentists in your area.

• 4

  Contact the dental office and ask about how they feel about working with a fearful patient, suggests Dr. Glassman.

• 5

  Visit the dental office first before making an appointment. Talk to the receptionists. Do they look friendly and happy to help? Do you like the atmosphere of the dental office? Do the dentists use distraction techniques by playing relaxing music or keeping a fish tank to soothe your nerves?

• 6

  Make a consultation appointment to talk through your concerns. Make sure the dentist won't do any treatment at this meeting, even though you will be expected to pay the consultation fee. Tell the dentist that you are a nervous patient. Don't get embarrassed, as you are not alone in suffering from dental anxiety. If you don't reveal your fears, the dentist cannot help you. Does the dentist look caring and show genuine interest in you? "If the dentist seems genuinely interested in your fear and seems to want to work with you to help you get over it and get dental care, then that is a good start," says Dr Glassman. "If the dentist seems annoyed by your fear, or seems disinterested in working with you, then keep looking."

  Dr. Jack Bynes also states that dental offices that treat dental phobias exclusively don't look like dental offices. "Note if the doctor has taken the trouble to avoid a clinical look in the office," Dr. Bynes writes on his website, dentalfear.com. "Do the doctor and his staff look like operating room personnel or are they dressed in a non-threatening manner? Most importantly, are you being treated in a warm, caring manner or do you feel like an emergency room patient?"