CAMBRIDGE DENTAL PRACTICE. CAMBRIDGE DENTAL PRACTICE FEAR... Dr Rosalind Peart In all i's unpleasant and debilitating forms. One of my patient's asked me to write about this. Once again I'm not an expert on the subject but in 35 years of being a dentist I've certainly witnessed a great deal of it. Mr X and I were talking about the fact that as a young person a visit to the dentist was a terrifying experience for him. His heart would race and he'd sweat profusely. Now as an know what that is and the patient knows we're going to do our very best older man I'm a perfectly innocuous event. Which is great for good for people so get on with it". And so I did. Self-discipline in a difficult situation is key to being helpful or effective. There are a few things that I know help a nervous patient to cope. First of all acknowledging the way they feel and not trivialising it. Often there are very specific things that people struggle with during a dental visit. If I to minimise that they can relax a little and feel more confident. Taking time and letting people know I will stop if they need me to gives them some control and autonomy. both of us! When I was a young dentist I was afraid of my patient's fear. That sounds quite ridiculous but the anxiety of hurting someone, not being able to handle their behaviour, or just the fact that they didn't like me much was distressing. Fortunately i come from very practical stock and my grandfather said to me "You're a bitter pill Rosi but you're not fearless, they have simply learnt how to "get on with it". This is a drop in the ocean of the world of dental phobia but I can't help feeling that with this and fear in general learning to manage the fear is so much more worthwhile than running away from it. Brave people are 9A Anzac Street I (Opposite New World) I Tel: 07 8275079 i www.cambridgedental.co.nz CAMBRIDGE DENTAL PRACTICE. CAMBRIDGE DENTAL PRACTICE FEAR... Dr Rosalind Peart In all i's unpleasant and debilitating forms. One of my patient's asked me to write about this. Once again I'm not an expert on the subject but in 35 years of being a dentist I've certainly witnessed a great deal of it. Mr X and I were talking about the fact that as a young person a visit to the dentist was a terrifying experience for him. His heart would race and he'd sweat profusely. Now as an know what that is and the patient knows we're going to do our very best older man I'm a perfectly innocuous event. Which is great for good for people so get on with it". And so I did. Self-discipline in a difficult situation is key to being helpful or effective. There are a few things that I know help a nervous patient to cope. First of all acknowledging the way they feel and not trivialising it. Often there are very specific things that people struggle with during a dental visit. If I to minimise that they can relax a little and feel more confident. Taking time and letting people know I will stop if they need me to gives them some control and autonomy. both of us! When I was a young dentist I was afraid of my patient's fear. That sounds quite ridiculous but the anxiety of hurting someone, not being able to handle their behaviour, or just the fact that they didn't like me much was distressing. Fortunately i come from very practical stock and my grandfather said to me "You're a bitter pill Rosi but you're not fearless, they have simply learnt how to "get on with it". This is a drop in the ocean of the world of dental phobia but I can't help feeling that with this and fear in general learning to manage the fear is so much more worthwhile than running away from it. Brave people are 9A Anzac Street I (Opposite New World) I Tel: 07 8275079 i www.cambridgedental.co.nz