Do you dread seeing a dentist and fear hearing the word ‘Root Canal Treatment’ (RCT)? Don’t panic, you are not alone. According to research published in the Journal of American Dental Association, 75% of Americans fear visiting a dentist and the anxiety is extremely intense among 5-10% of them. The brighter side of the story is that Root Canal Anxiety can be easily coped up with a little effort and help. Root Canal Treatment has unfortunately been wrongly portrayed as an intense pain-causing procedure, but the truth is, it relieves your pain and preserves your teeth. Through this article, we will help you to understand, what Root Canal Anxiety actually means, strategies for coping up with it, how to relax before a root canal treatment? And where can you find the best Root Canal Treatment in Delhi? Hopefully, this will relieve your major concerns about visiting a dentist for the same.
Feel free to skip ahead if one topic catches your eye:
- What is Root Canal Anxiety?
- How to relax before a Root Canal Treatment?
- FAQs
Takeaway
- What is Root Canal Anxiety?
Root Canal Anxiety can be explained as a feeling or experience of tension, nervousness, worrisome thoughts associated with fear, care avoidance, and pain before or during the visit to a dental clinic. Anyone suffering from this anxiety tries to postpone or cancel his/her dental appointment until it becomes an emergency. According to a study in 1984, there forms a vicious cycle of dental anxiety as follows:
To understand what Root Canal Anxiety relates to, ask yourself if you suffer from:
- Feeling ill when thinking of a dentist’s visit for an RCT?
- Have trouble sleeping a night before your scheduled dental visit
- Increased nervousness while waiting to be examined
- The panicky feeling when dental instruments are put inside your mouth
The most common cause of Root Canal Anxiety is the wrong conception, that, this procedure hurts. Also, one’s own bad experiences with the dentists or similar unpleasant dental experiences with a close friend or relative, fear of injections, a feeling of helplessness and having no control over the situation, lack of trust, strange smell of dental materials, and scary noises of the dental equipment adds on to this anxiety. The important point is, you must be determined and work towards overcoming this anxiety. Let us see how?
- How to relax before a root canal?
It’s time to stop worrying about your Root Canal Anxiety and learn about some of the tips to overcome this:
- Be an informed patient and learn about your treatment options:
Discuss your concerns and queries with your doctor frankly and honestly, share your true feelings with him/ her, and never feel ashamed of having this anxiety. This will help your dental specialists to find the ways to help you overcome it. Ask all sorts of questions like: How will the procedure be done? How much time will it take for completion? How much is the recovery time? Who will do the procedure? What sort of instruments will be used? How will you be benefitted from this treatment? What will happen if you do not get the procedure done? Etc. The more you understand about RCT and its benefits, the less anxious you will feel. This conversation with the doctor and his/her team and the knowledge thus gained, will give you clarity, prepare you to go for it without hesitation, and remove all the mystery associated with it.
- Visualize your brighter future:
If you are planning to undergo an RCT, that means one or many of your teeth are decayed, painful, or infected. RCT will relieve that pain, prevent it from further damage and its potential removal. Your natural smile will remain intact, and you will be saved from the agony of a missing or artificial tooth. All these benefits come with just some mild pain and discomfort which can easily be managed by medication for a few days. Don’t stress yourselves too much, visualize the brighter future you could have.
- Distract yourself and make your recovery time enjoyable:
You can opt for some soothing/ favorite music during the procedure itself or watch some TV program or just close your eyes and relax, think about your weekend plans or anything which makes you feel happy. This will help you to drift away from negative feelings of fear and anxiety. Music will also aid to reduce the scary procedural noises around. Also prepare your homecoming before going for the procedure to feel comfortable and soothing when you return and enjoy your recovery time like collecting good music, your favorite movies, good food suited according to the dentist’s recommendation, good books to read, etc. and make the most of it so that your brain is preoccupied and is distracted away from the fearful thoughts.
- Find the right specialist:
When you are seeking care from the right specialist and you know that he/ she is the best, is trustworthy, supportive, and compassionate, and will be ready to listen and understand your feelings, you will feel relaxed and less fearful. Try to get the feedback on the dentist from your friends or relatives and find out about his/her qualifications and experience too.
- Try relaxation exercises:
Deep breathing has proven to be very effective in reducing stress and anxiety and providing calmness. You can practice this regularly and also do this in the waiting room or the procedure room when the dentist takes a break while preparing some material or changing instruments.
- Aromatherapy:
The aroma from different natural essential oils is a good way to calm and soothe oneself. Oils like jasmine, rose, sandalwood, chamomile are quite effective in lowering anxiety levels.
- Self-care and pampering:
All sorts of stress and anxiety can be alleviated with some self-pampering like a relaxing massage, talking to your friends and loved ones who are supportive, taking a hot relaxing bubble bath, etc.
Root Canal Treatment in Delhi, at Dr. Sahani’s clinic, will be hassle-free and extremely comfortable.
FAQ’S
- Is the Root Canal Treatment painful?
It is not painful as such, but you might experience some discomfort and mild pain, depending upon the tolerability and tooth condition. Modern dentistry has become very patient-centric and prioritizes patients’ comfort. Still hearing about RCT and knowing that it deals with infected nerves of the tooth root makes it feel very invasive and scary. The truth is that it is a very routine dental procedure to eliminate your pain, protect and save your teeth from further damage, and restore your healthy smile.
- Can Root Canal Anxiety affect oral health?
Yes, of course. Root Canal Anxiety will have an ill effect on your oral health, as it will stop you from getting treated on time, which will worsen your tooth’s condition, needing more complex treatment and emergency care. It may result in tooth loss as well.
- Who all can suffer from Root Canal Anxiety?
This can affect people of all ages. From kids with an unpleasant previous dental experience to grownups who have never visited a dentist before, it can affect people across all ages with/without any previous direct exposure to the procedure.
- What problems can I face during a Root Canal Procedure?
Root canal treatment usually requires 30-90 minutes per visit and the mouth has to be kept open during the procedure, which might be tiring to your jaw, although equipment like rubber blocks help to reduce this issue to a large extent. Also, 2-3 visits might be required, varying from person to person. Apart from that, it’s a comfortable procedure.
- The strange noises at the dental clinic scare me. Can anything be done?
The strange noises by the dental equipment can easily be reduced by wearing a pair of headphones and playing your favorite music, while the dentist works on your teeth.
- Is it normal to have Root Canal Anxiety?
Yes, it’s absolutely normal. But with newer technology and a more flexible approach, these fears can be easily reduced.
- Are there some techniques, where the dentist can help to reduce my anxiety for Root Canal Treatment?
Yes, of course, he/she is the one who can reduce your anxiety and make you feel comfortable. The doctor will talk and listen to you and wait patiently to start the procedure unless you are calm and comfortable. He/ she may also give some medications to relax you e.g. sedatives in small doses which are safe and harmless. Always speak out your concerns to the doctor.
Takeaway
At Dr. Sahani’s clinic, you need not worry or feel anxious at all. It is a healing abode where care and compassion are the priorities. Here, the most experienced and skilled dentists provide the best Root Canal Treatment in Delhi with the latest and modern technology, strict norms for hygiene and infection control, highest clinical excellence to provide outstanding results with the best standards of patient satisfaction and delight.