Visiting the dentist can be a highly stressful situation for some people. Those who have dental anxiety can experience a wide spectrum of feelings; from nervousness of having to visit the dentist in general, to a debilitating phobia fostering avoidance.
How you were treated as a child can mold your interpretation of visits with the dentist in the future. Between 9% and 20% of Americans struggle with anxiety and fear of the dentist; so if you ever felt alone, surely you are not and we are here to help!
Although it is a common fear, it can be extremely detrimental to your oral hygiene and even your overall health when you neglect your regular appointments.
Here’s where I come in!
I received my degree in psychology and human services in 2013 from Assumption College. I obtained an education that taught me the importance of balancing a person’s past and present conditions in order to address future behaviors appropriately. It was not until the end of my senior year that I began to realize the combination of psychology into any sphere of work is very beneficial for people to be able to connect to one another merely on these principles.
Our office is geared towards helping even the most nervous of patients. Dr. Gianino involves himself in the rehabilitation process in the most unbelievable ways.
It is to my knowledge that he sat in his own parking lot with a patient just talking so they could slowly begin to desensitize and break through their initial anxiety. The next visit with this patient consisted of allowing for them to calmly sit in the dental chair until they surpassed the threshold of anxiety to a manageable state.
It is with patience, time and understanding that we can help people rehabilitate themselves. I take pride in educating patients on how to eliminate their anxiety and help rebuild their confidence in visiting the dental office. We provide many accommodations for our patients while in the dental chair to help ease this anxiousness and cope with their fears:
- Paraffin hand wax
- Neck pillows
- Blankets
- Stress ball
- TV / DVD / music with Bose headphones
- Warm toweletts post procedure
Dr. Gianino and his team strive for patient comfort and always keep it a priority! Knowing about the latest technology in dentistry may also help you feel much more comfortable about getting work done.
This could be especially effective if your anxiety is based on a bad experience during childhood that has prevented you from visiting a dentist for many years. Today, dentistry has made considerable advances on how procedures are done that also help to minimize chair-time; your idea of what goes on in a practice may be based on an outdated way of doing things.
We will ensure you the clearest understanding of how all the technology works that we use to help you so you can sit back and relax!
When you are at the point of being able to visit for basic check ups, having had an open talk with Dr. Gianino to come to an agreement whereby you can retain a certain level of control over proceedings could be a great next step! Taking things at your own pace and requesting brief breaks during visits by using signals to communicate with Dr. Gianino, allows you to have a say throughout. We want you to be fully involved in this rehabilitation process!
Have additional questions about dental anxiety or fears? Don’t hesitate to Contact Us or leave a reply below and we will be happy to try and answer them for you!
