Sometimes, when you’re learning about new things, it’s nice to make your way through the 5 W’s. Of course, that refers to the who, what, where, when, and why questions that help illuminate the particulars of any topic. In this case, we would like to help educate you about nitrous oxide, so you have an easier time getting to know, selecting, and receiving the right dental sedation for you. Ready? Set? Let’s get learning!
Receiving dental sedation can help you in many ways. As a result, there are some patients who make wonderful use of this option. Then, there are other patients who assume it’s only for dental anxiety and who miss out on its other applications. Before you make any assumptions about when sedation is appropriate, what we use it for, and who qualifies (most people), we suggest you consider how versatile it really is.
When you begin thinking about your fear of visiting the dentist, you may start to wonder whether you will be able to conquer your dental anxiety. The answer is, of course! While this might sound like quite a feat, we encourage you to consider some potential avenues toward feeling more confident (and relaxed) about care. We also suggest you keep sedation in mind as a wonderful tool for receiving essential care.
You might be harder on yourself than you realize, telling yourself that in order to receive dental care, you need to just put on a brave face, suck it up, and schedule a visit. The main problem with this is twofold: First, if you suffer from severe dental anxiety, this is simply going to backfire and you will probably not go through with scheduling (and showing up for) an appointment. Second, you will then feel worse about things instead of better. We encourage you to recognize your concern as a real issue with real solutions: Sedation dentistry.