Dental fear is often something that many people have. About
30% of the population does avoid going to the dentist because of fear. They’ll
not get the proper dental care though, and often, it can compromise their
health and wellness of both their body, and their smile. You don’t have to join
in on that, because you can get sedation dentistry to help with this, and you
can talk to your Kennewick dentist about this as well.
Now sedation dentistry is a process that will help to reduce
the anxiety that you feel at the dentist through the use of sedatives.
Sedatives are what will help to relax and reduce the pain in the body, and it
can actually make it super relaxing for yourself. There are a few ways, such as
laughing gas, mild sedation using medication you take before, or even IV
sedation that’s used through an injection. Whatever you use, you should
definitely consider each of these if you’re going to be sedated at the dentist.
The first, is nitrous oxide. That is laughing gas, and one
of the most common ways to calm a person down and to reduce anxiety when you’re
at the dentist. It is often combined with the other two. You breathe through a
face mask, so you’re not getting any needles or a gag reflex. It doesn’t have a
smell or irritate you, and within a few minutes, you’ll feel euphoria and no
pain. Instead you feel almost tipsy and very peaceful.
Then there are anti-anxiety medications that are prescribed
to you at the dentist. You take it before you go to the appointment, but you
shouldn’t drive because often, these can make you super sleepy. What each of
these pills do is they bind to the receptors in the brain that are responsible
for fear and then it lowers it which will diminish the pain, sounds, and even
the smells. It feels calming, drowsy, and you might even feel tingling and
amnesia.
Finally, there is IV sedation. This is an injection that is
put directly into the bloodstream by the anesthesiologist. This is an instant
process, and it is great for shorter visits and even extractions as well. You
actually might even remain conscious and respond to requests from the dentists
at some points but the time will go very fast. You might feel very foggy and
drunk afterwards, so you won’t want to drive. You might also notice that your
memory is often a bit foggy as well.
Now, with IV sedation, this often requires a lot more
preparing, so it might be saved for the procedures and such that do involve a
bit more. You might not be allowed to eat before the appointment, only having
food before midnight the night before. You can’t drink water either, so you
might feel very dehydrated as well, but often this is to protect the patient
because it can actually hurt them otherwise. You should follow all of the
recommendations of the dentist and the anesthesiologist before you begin, for
it can save your life.
Why should you choose this though? Why should you consider
this? Well, you shouldn’t be in fear because you’re going to the dentist. The
dentist isn’t fun, but if you’re fearful of it, it can lead to other oral
health problems and the like if you’re not careful. If you don’t want future
dental work, it’s advised that you do consider this form of dentistry, since
it’ll help to create a comfortable experience where time seemingly flies. You
might not even remember the appointment at all. Often, these procedures make it
feel like you’ve only been there for a few minutes versus a few hours, and it
will help to make complex appointments a lot faster, and the appointments much
shorter for yourself as well. If you’re going to get some big procedures, you
should talk to your Kennewick dentist about this, for they can help you ease
into this, allowing you to not only have the best dental experience that you
can, but also a sedation dentistry experience that will be helpful for yourself,
and for your oral health as well.
