Did you know that about 36 percent of the population has dental anxiety? If you think your child suffers from dental anxiety, you know that it can be a struggle can bring them to your local Elizabethtown kids dentist. Your child might even try to refuse to go to the dentist altogether.
But keep in mind if your child doesn’t get regular dental checkups, their dental health could suffer and their teeth might not develop as they should. Keep reading and learn what you can do to help soothe your child’s dental anxiety before they visit their Elizabethtown pediatric dentist.
What Is Dental Anxiety?
Dental anxiety can vary drastically in its severity. For that reason, it’s best to get a good handle on your child’s dental anxiety as much as possible before you make your visit to Elizabethtown dentistry for children. Some cases of dental anxiety may be mild and may only include a sort of apprehension of the dentist.
In other cases, the person may be very afraid of going to the dentist. This may be the case with your child, especially if he or she has had a bad experience at a different dentist before. Dental fear usually stems from a bad or painful dental experience and can be hard to treat, but it’s not impossible.
At the dentist, you may notice that your child is very anxious. They may tremble, start crying, or throw a fit. Other signs of dental anxiety include fast breathing and even fainting.
When it’s time to get a procedure done at Elizabethtown Dentistry for Children, your child may put up a fight and may not allow the dentist to work on them. Of course, this can be a challenge for everyone involved and can make it very difficult to treat any dental conditions your child may have. You can’t allow this to happen, especially if your child has a more serious dental condition to treat such as bite misalignment, a cavity, or tooth decay.
Before you go to the pediatric dentist in Elizabethtown, you should start the process of acclimating your child to the dentist. You can do this in various ways, but the aim is to make sure that your child is not afraid when visiting the dentist. The first step is to communicate to your child what he or she should expect from their dental visit.
Talk to Your Child
If your child is older, you will be able to go into more detail about what they will be able to expect when visiting an Elizabethtown pediatric dentist. You can tell them about the process of a dental checkup or a dental cleaning. You should aim to make the procedure sound as innocent as possible.
If you focus on all the strange metal tools that dentists use to scrape people’s teeth, your child is not likely going to be very soothed. Instead, focus on the benefits of going to the dentist. For example, with Elizabethtown dentistry for children, your child will be able to have a healthy smile.
More than that, the dentist can provide some helpful information to your child on how to keep their teeth clean and healthy. In the long run, this can help your child from developing cavities, tooth decay, and other tooth problems. If your child has crooked teeth or bite misalignment, the team at Elizabethtown Dentistry for Children can also help with that.
Even if telling your child all this doesn’t cure their dental anxiety, it may diminish their fears. This is because they will know what to expect when it’s time to go to the dentist and have a checkup. However, if your child is very young, you might have to describe a trip to the dentist in much simpler terms.
You should emphasize that a trip to the pediatric dentist in Elizabethtown, KY is nothing to be afraid of. The dentist will be able to make your child as comfortable as possible when it’s time for the dental checkup or procedure. You should also emphasize that your child should not feel any pain.
Many children are afraid of pain or injury, so assuring them of this can be very helpful.
Consider Sedation Dentistry
There are some children who just can’t be soothed no matter how much you try to explain the situation to them. Even if you try to introduce the concept of the dental visit slowly, your child may still be scared to death of letting a dentist treat their teeth. In this case, dental sedation may be beneficial.
Dental sedation is completely harmless and can do a world of good for you, the dentist, and your child’s nerves. Most often, dentists use nitrous oxide or laughing gas to sedate nervous patients. Nitrous oxide is a very safe gas that your child will need to inhale through a mask.
After a few moments of inhalation, your child will start to feel much calmer. Nitrous oxide is called laughing gas for a reason; it often gives patients a feel-good feeling that causes them to laugh and forget their anxiety. Nitrous oxide is also short-lived.
So, once the dental procedure is done, the gas will quickly wear off and your child will be back to normal in no time.
Solving Your Child’s Dental Anxiety with Your Elizabethtown Kids Dentist
Dental anxiety in children can be hard to deal with, but your Elizabethtown kids dentist should be able to help. With sedation dentistry, your child won’t be nervous during the procedure and your dentist will be able to treat your child without any issues.
To learn more, don’t hesitate to contact us here.