Dentophobia manifests itself in a panicky fear of the dentist, and everything associated with him. Almost half of the Polish population, feels more or less fear of the dentist. This applies to both adults and children. It often has to do with unpleasant experiences during visits to the dentist in childhood years. Sometimes the fear is so strong that people who suffer from this ailment abandon visits to the dentist altogether, neglecting their health.
Find out what dentophobia manifests itself, what are its causes and, above all, how to deal with it?
Dentophobia – what is it?
Dentophobia or odontophobia is manifested by a panicky fear of the dentist, the dental office, and the treatment of teeth. A person with this phobia often fears even the smell of the dental office, or the sound of the equipment that is in it. Odontophobia affects people of all ages, and regardless of gender, and is an increasingly common phenomenon, despite significant advances in medicine and dentistry. It most often stems from bad experiences at the dental office, especially in childhood. Patients often associate the dental office only with pain and discomfort. A disturbing fact, is the very high rate of dental caries in Poland, which is probably a consequence of this nuisance phobia. It is determined that as many as 46% of Poles suffer from dentophobia more or less severe. In modern dentistry, emphasis has begun to be placed on adaptive visits for children to prevent traumatic experiences, which are most often the basis of the phobia. Dentophobia should not be confused with the usual stress before a visit to the dentist that most people feel.
Causes of dentophobia
Most often dentophobia has its origin in unpleasant, negative, events and memories from the past. Extremely often it is the memory of the pain that accompanied the procedures performed in the dental chair. Often it also stems, from the dentist’s inappropriate approach to the patient. Sometimes stories told by family or friends can intensify, the fear of the dentist. Also, the negative attitude of loved ones towards dentistry, can exacerbate dentophobia. The lack of positive results of long-term treatment, which is a common occurrence in dentistry, can also be a source of dentophobia. Sometimes a patient fears a visit to the dentist due to the embarrassment of having bad teeth. This causes a vicious cycle and leads to the development of conditions that are difficult to treat. Often, the fear stems from the fact that the treatment may fail. There is always the option that the diseased tooth will not be salvageable, and the awareness of this fact increases nerves.
The sound of dental tools, the sight of them, and the peculiar smell in the office can also cause stress. Some people have a predisposition to dentophobia. Sometimes people, have a fixed image of the old, backward, underdeveloped dentistry. Today’s dentistry is not only modern equipment, and painless treatment methods, but also empathetic doctors taught how to deal with such difficulties. Some people are stressed by the mere fact of sitting in the dental chair with their mouth open, they perceive it as a violation of an intimate area. The sheer uncertainty of how the visit will go intensifies anxiety for many.
Symptoms of dentophobia
There are many different symptoms of dentophobia, they can occur with greater or lesser severity and depend on how developed the phobia is. The type of symptoms can vary from person to person, as each body reacts individually to stress. The symptoms, usually intensify when a dental appointment is approaching, and directly at the dentist’s office. If the phobia is strong, it also happens that the very thought of the dentist triggers strong reactions from the body.
The most common symptoms are:
- Postponing visits to the dentist.
- Anxiety, fear, dread of visiting the dentist.
- Nausea, vomiting.
- Diarrhea.
- Lack of appetite.
- Increase in body temperature.
- Increase in blood pressure, and heart rate.
- Problems with sleep.
- Headaches.
- Neuropathic pain.
- Syncope.
- Hand tremors, tics.
- Increased sweating.
- Abdominal pain and indigestion.
- Nervousness.
- Chest pain, a stabbing sensation in the heart.
Dentophobia in children – how to deal with it?
The child’s first visit to the dentist should be an adaptation visit, where the child gets acquainted with the office and the dentist. This will help establish a relationship between the child and the dentist, and the dental office will not be something unfamiliar and scary. It is often the case that parents unconsciously pass on their fear of the dentist to their children. Children are good observers, if they notice that parents are stressed by a visit to the dentist, they too will be afraid. Sometimes parents lie to their children that nothing will hurt, it will be nice and pleasant, which is not the right approach. A child who is lied to that a visit to the dentist will be a completely positive event will lose trust in both the parents and the dentist. Parents often use words such as drills, injections and pulling when telling their child about the dentist. The child remembers these words, which further create stress for the child, because to him they have a negative connotation. If the child runs away from the dentist’s chair, cries and screams, the visit should be stopped immediately, not forced or held by force. Holding the child back will likely result in trauma for the rest of his life. It’s a good idea to offer to visit the zoo or a toy store with the child after the dental visit – it’s all about something that gives the child pleasure. It is worth choosing a clinic that uses laughing gas for anesthesia – which is excellent for children and completely safe. Also important will be, the right choice of the time of the visit. The visit should take place at a time when the child is usually awake and inclined to play, otherwise he will be irritable and the visit will end with an escape from the dentist’s chair. The child should be taught to go regularly to check-ups – avoiding visits will exacerbate problems. During the visit itself, it’s a good idea to take breaks and teach the child to signal that he or she needs a break during dental procedures. It is important that when going for a visit with your child, you use a pediatric dentistry specialist who will have the right attitude towards children.
Harmful consequences of dentophobia
It’s no secret that avoiding regular dental appointments will result in the deterioration of teeth. The dentist will not have the opportunity to catch conditions that are just developing. Consequently, this phobia risks the development of advanced decay, cavities, periodontal and gum disease, and ultimately tooth loss. This can lead to the need for not only dental, but also prosthetic and orthodontic treatment. This will result in high costs of therapy, which will be long and hard. Odontophobia sufferers often struggle with bad breath (halitosis), causing them to lose confidence and avoid social contacts. It is worth knowing that bacteria from the mouth, can enter the bloodstream and cause devastating effects throughout the body. Poor dental health negatively affects mental health, causing constant anxiety which has to do with worrying about the consequences of bad teeth. All of this contributes to a reduced quality of life and problems with self-esteem.
Dentophobia – how to deal with the fear of the dentist?
There is no single effective way to combat this type of phobia – especially without outside help. In most cases, it will be necessary to seek the help of a psychotherapist. However, there are ways to make a visit to the dentist less stressful. Here are the most important of them:
- Finding the right dentist who knows what odontophobia is and can use modern methods of pain and stress management during the visit. It is worth opting for an experienced dentist who will know how to provide the right atmosphere during the visit, without causing the patient additional stress. The dentist, should have the ability to perform procedures under general anesthesia (and not just local anesthesia), laughing gas that relaxes the patient, and should be able to administer local anesthesia in a painless manner.
- Establish a precise treatment plan with the dentist. What will be done by the dentist at each visit, at what intervals the visits will take place, and what methods he will use.
- Relaxation techniques, deep breathing, meditation, listening to music, or even squeezing an anti-stress ball, can help relieve tension before and during the visit.
- Using, in the form of premedication, tranquilizers individually selected and prescribed by a psychiatrist.
- It can also be helpful to go to the dentist in the company of a loved one, who will provide support by their very presence. It is not only children in this situation who need support. Going to the dentist with a companion is perfectly normal and advisable. Companionship will help reduce the tension of waiting in front of the office.
- Take the help of a psychotherapist – cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy has shown great effectiveness in the fight against dentophobia.
- Familiarizing yourself with exactly what the procedures the dentist performs are, and how the tools he uses work. As we all know, ignorance can amplify fear.
Dentophobia – how to treat fear of the dentist?
The best way to treat dentophobia, is to use psychotherapy individually selected by a specialist. There is no effective method that will quickly, overnight, help get rid of this type of phobia. Most often, a psychotherapist in the case of odontophobia chooses cognitive-behavioral therapy, which is shown to be most effective in this case. However, in terms of therapy, it is necessary to be patient, and to focus on working together with the therapist and following his recommendations. The positive outcome of therapy, does not depend solely on the therapist, but also on the degree of mobilization and determination of the person with dentophobia. Modern methods of dentophobia treatment also turn out to be hypnosis, or psychological acupuncture. In the case of somatic symptoms of anxiety, depending on what it manifests itself with, it is worth taking remedies to prevent diarrhea, or pain pills. Immediately before the visit, you can use sedatives, but only after consultation with a psychiatrist, and a dentist. It is important not to postpone the treatment of dentophobia, because the longer this phobia develops, the more difficult the fight against it will be for both the therapist and the patient.
Cognitive-behavioral therapy in the treatment of dentophobia
Cognitive-behavioral therapy is particularly recommended for dentophobia. The therapist will help the dentophobia sufferer identify the beliefs and thoughts that lead to anxiety. This will allow, to make positive behavioral changes. During this therapy, the therapist will work with the patient to learn and understand what is really causing their fears and anxieties about the dentist. Once the cause is known, this will allow the appropriate strategy to be chosen to combat the phobia. Therapy can consist of various types of relaxation and breathing techniques, successive exposure of the patient to situations that may involve an encounter with the dentist, and visualization.
Exposure in the treatment of dentophobia
Exposure is one of the therapeutic methods in cognitive-behavioral therapy. It involves gradually and controlled exposure of the patient to situations associated with a dental visit, with the aim of reducing anxiety and increasing tolerance to these situations.
What does the exposure process look like in treating dentophobia?
- Initial assessment. The therapist conducts a detailed interview with the patient to understand the source and severity of the anxiety.
- Gradual exposure. The process is gradual and progressive. Initially, the patient may be exposed to the least stressful elements associated with a dental visit, such as looking at pictures of the dental office or listening to sounds associated with dental procedures.
- Progression to more stressful situations. As therapy progresses, the patient gradually confronts more stressful situations, such as visiting the dentist’s office, talking to the dentist, or sitting in the dental chair without performing procedures.
- Regular exposure to these situations allows the patient to gradually reduce his anxiety and feel more in control of his reactions.
- Therapeutic support. The entire process is overseen by a therapist, who provides the patient with support, relaxation techniques and tools for dealing with anxiety.
Summary
Fear of the dentist is not something to be ashamed of. Stress is felt by most people, and in a significant number it is so strong that it becomes a kind of phobia. Neglecting the condition of the teeth, can result in serious health consequences. Problems with teeth, can affect the entire body, and the mental state of a person. Therefore, it is worthwhile to use all possible methods to combat dentophobia, and most importantly, to take the help of a psychotherapist.
Bibliography:
- Uram P. Social determinants of the phenomenon of dentophobia -problem of children and adults. Polish Academy of Sciences. march 2018
- Czerzynska M., Orlov P., Milewska A. J., Choromanska M. Dentophobia. Borgis – New Dentistry 1/2017, pp. 13-22
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4233415/
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