I am very grateful to a dentist friend of mine, Richard Charon (http://www.the-ra-coach.co.uk/ ) who pointed to the very high number of people who are scared of the dentist amongst the UK population in a report which can be downloaded here

I know the report is a bit dated now, however I cannot imagine that the percentages will have changed much over the last few years.

For example it says that over a third (36%) were classified as having moderate dental anxiety and 12%of adults are extremely scared of the dentist. Amongst the other details was the statistic that there were even higher levels of fear among younger adults. 15% of adults aged between 16 and 34 had extreme dental anxiety. This compares with 9 per cent of adults over 85.

Another interesting statistic that emerged is that women (17%) are more prone to being extremely scared of the dentist than men (8%). There is also an analysis of when people feel most worried and frightened, e.g. when thinking about going to the dentist, sitting in the waiting room, anticipating a filling etc.

And remember that these figures are based only on those who actually attend the dentist. A significant proportion of the population never go and some of those are likely to have some form of dental phobia which stops them going at all.

Over the years Richard and I have used our particular skills and techniques to try to help people overcome their fears and anxieties and get the teeth and smiles they want.

In his practice which was designed to cater for the fearful as well as those for whom a visit to the dentist poses no concerns, Richard and now Charl and the team at Newbury Smile Studio have used Relative Analgesia to enable them to work very effectively with patients who are relaxed.

I am no expert, however I do know from personal experience that the relaxed atmosphere of their surgery and the Relative Analgesia (RA) makes their practice one of the most successful in the area, particularly for helping those who are very anxious about the whole dental experience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For those with very extreme anxiety, a very strong gag reflex, needle phobia and of course those who avoid the dentist out of fear, RA may not provide the complete answer. This of course is where hypnotherapy comes in.

Hypnotherapy has a long history of utilisation in dentistry. The ability of hypnotic subjects to be anaesthetised has meant that there is an alternative to chemically induced pain relief if necessary or appropriate, for example for a tooth extraction. It is also possible for the subconscious mind to control automatic bodily responses under hypnotism so a person can be asked, for example, to reduce or stop the blood flow to a cavity to aid treatment.

These days however it is more common for hypnotherapy to be used to alleviate fear of the dentist, dental or needle phobia or reduce the gagging response. This works by changing the unhelpful inner programmes that people run and which restrict their lives, into helpful ones by associating the problem areas with positive and beneficial images and feelings.

The beauty of hypnotherapy is that it can also help younger people to feel more comfortable, relaxed and positive about going to the dentist meaning that they can look forward to a lifetime of healthy teeth and an attractive smile.

What’s stopping you from going to the dentist?