Fear of sedation is more common than many people think, and our friendly dentists at Trillium Dental in Ottawa are here to help you prepare for anesthesia so you can ultimately overcome your anxiety and have a smooth recovery. As it turns out, sedation dentistry is not nearly as scary as it seems — after all, you won’t hear, see, or feel a thing. Yet for some people, that is exactly what causes them fear. That being said, here are some tips to help you prepare for a sedation dentistry procedure, beginning with learning more about the procedure and sedation method, itself.
LEARN ABOUT THE PROCEDURE
While ignorance is bliss, this is often not the case with sedation dentistry. Prior to even scheduling your procedure, you must visit your dental clinic for a consultation with your dentist so that they can give you the lowdown on the procedure. During this meeting, you will learn exactly what the surgery entails, why it is the best option for you, what you can expect from the results, and how to prepare for sedation in terms of fasting, making driving arrangements, etc. You will also learn what kind of sedation is best for you and the nature of the surgery, whether that be IV sedation, oral sedation, or nitrous oxide.
This consultation is your chance to learn about the sedation dentistry procedure first-hand from the dentist who will be performing the surgery, so ask as many questions as you need to feel reassured. That way, you will have established greater trust for your dentist and will not be as afraid of losing control when you are given anesthesia. Another important thing to note is the importance of trusting and sticking to the information provided by the dentist in charge of your surgery, as staying up all night searching up the risks of anesthesia online will only put more irrational fears in your head. Remember, not everything on the internet is true, so it’s best to trust the experts at your local dental clinic.
FOLLOW DIRECTIONS
Hand in hand with learning about the procedure is following the instructions you are given by the dentist who will be performing the surgery. You may have heard that you should not eat or drink for eight hours prior to your procedure, and this is usually true due to nausea being a major side effect of most types of anesthesia. There are other health risks of not adhering to fasting instructions prior to oral surgery, so be sure to read the information your dentist gives you and take it seriously. That way, complications and surprises on the day of your procedure will be far less likely, which will put your mind at ease knowing that you have done everything in your power to prepare for success.
If you have an upcoming wisdom teeth removal, dental implant procedure, root canal treatment, or any other kind of oral surgery that requires sedation, follow these two tips to help ease your fear of anesthesia. It really is that simple, and the more you know, the better prepared you will be. Please don’t hesitate to contact our dentists at Trillium Dental in Ottawa if you have further questions about sedation dentistry, and request a consultation online if you think you might need oral surgery.