Many young dental patients might feel nervous about upcoming visits to their dentist’s office. Even adults can carry a fear of the dentist. Your pediatric dentist in Winter Park, FL prioritizes their young patients’ positive experiences. They want to make sure kids feel comfortable in their care and have specific training to make this so.
But parents and guardians can also take steps to help their children feel relaxed in the dentist’s chair. Read on to find three tips you can use to keep your child at ease during their next dentist appointment.
Stick to Regular Dentist Appointments
When your child visits the dentist on a regular basis, the process of cleaning and examining the teeth becomes normalized. The dentist’s office can feel like part of a routine rather than a scary event that happens every now and then. The average young dental patient should attend a teeth cleaning appointment once every six months.
Delaying preventative dental care like this because of a fear of the dentist might make the patient more susceptible to dental emergencies. This could mean more extensive or invasive dental work, which could make a child even more nervous in the dental chair.
Sticking to a routine when it comes to dentist appointments will help you avoid this issue. It can also help to encourage healthy oral hygiene habits at home to make dentistry even more routine for the young patient.
Maintain Open Communication About Dental Care
Dental fear can sometimes stem from the unknown, so it can help to answer your child’s questions when it comes to what to expect at the dentist’s office. If they ask, let them know what will occur during their appointment. Respond to their concerns too, and maintain open communication when it comes to dental care. Secrecy or evasiveness about the topic could breed nervousness.
Your dentist can also participate in these conversations to promote ease in the dentist’s office. Contact your dentist to learn more. Not every child will appreciate knowing the details of dental work, so pay attention to your child’s interest and reaction to these discussions. Do not force the topic if they seem uncomfortable.
Ask About Sedation Dentistry Options
You and your dentist can discuss stress relief to encourage comfort in the dentist’s office. But in cases of severe anxiety, your dentist can also provide sedation dentistry treatments. This refers to medication that can induce a feeling of calmness during dental work.
Dental sedation is completely safe for young patients and comes in many types. An oral sedative, laughing gas, or IV sedation can all help a patient relax as they undergo dental work. Consult with your child’s dentist to learn if sedation is a good option for them.
In many cases, the child will remain alert during treatment, but they will feel at ease. The medicinal effects will wear off shortly after their dental work. Learn more about what you can expect with each sedation option by talking to the pediatric dentist.