Tips From a Sleep Dentist On How To Ease Anxiety at Your Dental Appointment

If you have dental anxiety, also known as dental phobia, you should only see a sleep dentist. When you have dental anxiety, you know it is more than just a childlike fear of visiting the dentist. It is an intense, unreasonable, and unhealthy fear that can lead you to take any measures possible to avoid visiting the dentist. When your anxiety comes to this level, we, as a sleep dentist, can provide you with a calming environment where you won’t feel as apprehensive. Avoiding the dentist for any prolonged period of time is harmful to your teeth and your overall health. It could result in painful cavities, gum disease, tooth loss, and even the need for oral surgery. Instead of taking the risk of skipping the dentist altogether, you can try these tips in addition to visiting our office for dental sedation.
When you prepared for a dentist appointment in the past, you may have noticed that your nerves were on edge, you felt irritable or depressed, and you felt like you could not muster enough courage to step out the door. However, this time, it will be a little easier because you will know you are headed to see a sleep dentist. A sleep dentist, also known as a sedation dentist, features a relaxing environment during appointments and procedures by providing you with varying levels of sedatives. Although they are called sleep dentistry practices, they actually typically do not put you all the way to sleep. The differing levels of sedation that may be considered are:

• Minimal sedation.  You are in a relaxed stage, but you are also aware of your surroundings.
• Moderate sedation.  You feel heavy and sleepy and may slur when you talk, but you can still follow verbal orders from the dentist. In this stage, you may or may not remember your entire appointment.
• Deep sedation.  You are barely on the edge of consciousness, but you can be woken up if needed.
• General anesthesia.  You are completely unresponsive and asleep. This form of sedation is typically reserved for oral surgeries.

As your dentist, we will talk to you about your concerns and assess your level of dental anxiety to determine what scale of sedation is best for you.
In the meantime, you can prepare for your appointment by:

• Making a list of all the things you are anxious about to share with your dentist.
• Setting your appointment early in the morning so you are not required to wait. This will limit how long you agonize over the appointment.
• Bringing a friend or loved one to calm you.
• Bringing along your favorite reading materials or music to distract yourself while you wait to be sedated.
• Requesting oral sedatives that can be taken before your appointment and arrange for a driver to bring you in.

In addition to these tips, it is best to get to know our office and staff before your appointment so you will know you are with people you can trust and relax around. As a sleep dentist, we will help you conquer your fears and provide you with an environment you won’t be scared to come back to.

Options Available from an Implant Dentist

For an implant dentist, it is easy to understand how dental implants have made such a huge impact on all different forms and techniques of replacing teeth. In the modern world of dentistry, we use dental implants to support a variety of other techniques, including dentures. Dental implants have literally changed the way we look at replacing teeth, vastly improving the stability and security of devices like dentures and dental crowns.

Dentures Have Limitations 

Dentures have been around for a very long time; however, they have severe limitations. Dentures are placed on top of the gums, where the fake teeth have to be secured with the help of wires or messy adhesives. As a result, unsecured dentures tend to fall out very easily or don't feel secure when you are chewing harder substances. All these limitations have been addressed by the invention of implant-supported dentures.

Dental Implants Behave Like Natural Teeth

As your implant dentist, we will tell you that dental implants are so effective because they mimic, virtually perfectly, the natural order that teeth are supposed to exist in your mouth. The dentures, or the dental crowns, act as your teeth that you see above the gum line. The dental implant acts as the root securing the tooth to the jawbone and also providing the jawbone with necessary stimulation.

Implant-Supported Dentures

There are two distinct types of dentures that typically use dental implants. The first is a ball-retained denture, also known as a stud-attachment denture, where each of the implants placed by your implant dentist has a metal attachment that fits into another attachment on the denture itself. Attachments on the implants are typically ball-shaped, known as male attachments, and they fit into sockets, known as female attachments, on the denture itself. The second kind of dentures that can be placed with the help of dental implants are bar-retained dentures. In the case of bar-retained dentures, a thin metal bar, designed to follow the curve of your jaw, will be attached to between two and five dental implants that have been pre-planted by your implant dentist into your jawbone. The bar is attached to the denture with a series of clips. The denture fits snugly over the bar for additional stability, while also hiding the bar for better aesthetics.
Regardless of the type of dental implant-supported dentures you will be getting, the one thing you can rest easy knowing is that the dentures fitted on the implants placed by your implant dentist will be far more secure than traditional dentures. With the help of your implant dentist, you will have the ability to smile easily, chew on any food you want, and have the safety and security of having teeth that are fully attached, just as nature intended them to be.

Traditional Dental Implants

As an implant dentist, we can also replace your teeth on an individual basis by implanting a small titanium post under your gums in each position where your missing teeth once were.  Once the process of osseointegration has taken place, we will secure a new tooth to the abutment attached to your implant.  This completes the process and is the most natural and durable way to replace missing teeth because we will have effectively replaced your roots and teeth.
To learn more about your options, call our office and schedule an appointment with an implant dentist.