Fear Dentist Essay

Freedom from fear and stress, evidence by patients’ fear to be transfer to the dental chair.

Hook: Odontophobia is the fear of the dentist, shockingly, many have a fear of this, and even teeth themselves. The thought of some stranger taking drills and shiny metal tools to your mouth is enough to understand the fear itself. Odontophobia is the reason I didn’t choose the occupation of a dentist; I chose the work of a dental hygienist. A dental hygienist will: remove stains, and plaque from teeth, apply fluorides to help protect teeth, take and develop dental x-rays, assess the patients’ oral health and report findings to dentists, document patient care and treatment plans, and educate patients about oral hygiene techniques.

It is important for every dentist and dental hygienist to be knowledgeable of the prevention, diagnosis and management of a medical emergency in a dental office. Being well prepared for any occurrence can make a difference in the outcome for the patient. It is essential to know what tools are available, how to use them and what the warning signs are. Some emergencies are very common in a dental setting considering the stress it can cause, anxiety and lengthy appointments. Communication with your patient is key to a smooth appointment. Many hints can come from simply doing an overall appraisal and talking with your patient. Being aware of patient’s fears and medical history can positively impact the outcome of the appointment and help you be prepared for any medical emergency.

When I was about 5-years-old, I was the only one in my Kindergarten class that was not frightened of the dentist. I was the only child for as long as I can remember who absolutely adored going to see my dentist; I thought it was better than going to the Science Center, which was a big deal for a child in my generation. Growing up, I watched people’s faces twitch with (terror, panic, dismay) as I explained that it was my ultimate dream to become a dental hygienist. “What if a child bites you?” “The human mouth is disgusting! Do you not realize the horror of this occupation?” Listening to people question and insult my dreams only enhanced my dedication to this occupation even more. I was determined to prove them wrong; to prove that this was

Dentistry has always been on my mind ever since I watched the Pixar film, “Finding Nemo.” Finding Nemo was the first time I ever witnessed a dentist in action, and although it was quite traumatizing because of how the patient was screaming in the chair and how Pixar decided to use a little girl, who wore an intimidating style of braces and hurt fishes on her free time, as one of the antagonists in the film, I was curious to know what was happening in that chair that the director did not want the audience to see. Despite this, the combination of these negative portrayals in Finding Nemo did not make a dental office my most favourite place in the world; however, my opinion soon changed when I met my first dentist, Dr. Le.

This process can be applied in a health practice such as the dentist. For instance, it is said that children can sometimes be terrified to go to the dentist. This is because the child has associated the dentist to pain and have been classically conditioned to respond with fear to the stimulus of going to visit the dentist.

Health care has been an issue for the United States of America for multiple years. Dental care, a topic that does not get much attention because people believe it is trivial, plays a major part in people’s lives, particularly children. Gerard van Honthorst’s The Tooth Puller shows a dentist pulling a patient’s tooth with five observers watching. Van Honthorst shows how in awe or scared people are of the dentist. There is a negative outlook on dentists and dental care: people are afraid of the dentist giving them their negative connotation, while dental care only causes pain in many people eyes. There is a problem in the health care system and improvement in the system is needed because health care is a right for every citizen, especially dental care. The United States of America’s government should allow dental therapist to conduct the procedure that normal dentist conduct for free for children under the age of twelve. The government should fund the teaching, training, and employment of dental therapists to care for underserved people.

Those who have a fear of the dentist often forgo important preventive care, resulting in extensive decay, gum disease, and potentially life threatening infections. Sedation dentistry allows these people to overcome their fear and receive the care they need.

Often, parents who have poor oral health have a history of poor oral health that is accompanied by negative experiences in dentistry as a child, such as painful restoration and extractions. This history often creates an attitude of fear and negativity towards dental professionals that is passed to their children through learned behaviors. Parents who lack a history of oral health tradition are less likely to seek preventative services for their children (Buerlein, Horowitz, & Child, 2011 and Hallberg, et al, 2008).

Fear of the dentist is more common today than most people would imagine. You’re probably very familiar with individuals fearing the dentist, especially if you work or have worked in the dental field. So, what is dental fear? Is it an idea that our parents put in our heads because it was passed down to them from their parents? Is it an emotion that is formed based on images shaped in the mind about going to the dentist? Dental anxiety is abnormal fear or dread of visiting the dentist for preventative care or therapy and unwarranted anxiety over dental procedure. (U.S National Library of Medicine, N.D.) Patients who experience dental anxiety will have a sense of nervousness and unfounded worries or fears. “Some studies have concluded that 75% of people have at least some fear about dental visits.” (Penn Dental, May. 15, 2017.) Dental phobia is a more serious condition. It's an intense fear or dread. “People with dental phobia aren't merely anxious, they are terrified or panic stricken.” (Colgate, September 18, 2013.) Many people with dental phobia typically avoid the dentist unless they have pain and only find it necessary to seek treatment. Negative experiences in childhood are the most common causes of dental fear. So, what can we do to rationalize with our patients? Educate!

In dentistry, anxiety is categorized into two: Dental phobia and dental anxiety. A person with dental phobia tends to avoid treatment maybe because of unpleasant experience in the past. Dental anxiety, by contrast, relates to the psychological and physiological variations of a non-pathological fear response to a dentist’s appointment or treatment. Individuals who cancels, avoids, or postpones dental visits are the anxious patients (Bhola and Malhotra, 2014).It is a major dilemma in pediatric dental practice and it exists in a considerable proportion of children and adolescents. According to the study of Gao et al (2013), about 6-15% of the world's adult population avoids dental care due to dental anxiety and dental phobia. The catastrophic

There are many causes of dental phobia and reasons why individuals just do not want to visit the dentist bi-yearly for an exam or even for further procedures. While a lot of causes are unknown, there are some that are more obvious. Some people have a generalized fear of pain. This is a very common reason for an individual to skip the dentist office altogether. This reason of phobia is usually caused by an unpleased or painful previous dental experience or from someone else’s story about their negative experiences. An article from Web MD called Easing Dental Anxiety in Adults states, “Thanks to the many advances in dentistry made over the years, most of today’s dental procedures are considerably less painful or even pain-free” (2016).. A second cause behind some people’s dental phobia is fear of injections or fear of injection failure. The majority people are very afraid of needles. This fear increases when it involves needles inserted into their oral cavity. (Colgate, 2016). Some people even fear that the anesthesia has failed and it did not relieve them of their pain before the dental treatment begins. Along with the fear of injections comes the fear of anesthetic side effects. Some individuals dread the side effects that anesthesia is likely to cause, such as dizziness, nausea, and feeling faint. Others do not like the loss of feeling they experience in their oral cavity. A third cause of dental phobia is the feeling of helplessness and loss of control. People

Dentistry is the profession in which the dentist helps with the prevention and treatment of mouth diseases and malfunctions. The dentist performs many duties within their profession. Some duties the dentist may do on a daily basis are: diagnose oral problems, fill cavities, write prescriptions, perform root canals, treat gum disease, examining radiographs, removing root decay, and providing instruction to the patients along with many other duties. Becoming a dentist allows for many different working opportunities. A dentist has the opportunity to work in the military, in a hospital, in administration, or they can even work in a classroom and teach. Most commonly though dentist tend to work in an office which they may own fully or

However, phobia can even cause people to risk their health. For example, the fear of dentists can leave people suffering from it willing to risk the health of their teeth in order to avoid having to go through an exam or procedure ( MacKay). When one knows about an upcoming confrontation, it can be the reason why one can not sleep or finds it hard to focus on important tasks. Due the change in daily routine, this unrealistic fear can interfere with the ability to socialize, work, or go about everyday life, brought on by and object, event or situation. But even animals have anxieties and phobias just as every human being (www.phobia-help.de). A phobia is an irrational fear, one knows that the object or situation, one is scared off, can not hurt one, but one is still afraid. A reason for this is that the human mind can not distinguish what is real and imaginary. When one has uncontrollable anxiety attacks, he loses rational judgement, leading to complicated problems. However, anyone can develop a phobia, men and women, teens and young adults, and elderly lady or a one-year-old boy (MacKay).

Although many Americans have good oral hygiene due to fluoride and making everyday good decisions, others do not have any access at all to oral health care. Over the years, dentists have been trying to demonstrate the importance of oral care. (“Access to Dental Care”) From commercials to campaigns, dentists will continue to demonstrate to their patients as well as to the people who don't have insurance the importance of oral health care. They will teach them preventative care and some techniques on how to prevent from getting any diseases.