Not many get excited when it’s time to visit their dentist, but it shouldn’t be a cause for concern. When you suffer from dental anxiety, these visits can be more than just a stressful event. They can be responsible for days or weeks of worry leading up to the visit. In the most severe cases, a trip to the dentist is enough to leave these individuals feeling paralyzed. Helping patients manage their symptoms of dental anxiety is essential to dental providers. Many dental anxiety sufferers don’t get adequate dental care due to their phobia. Thankfully, there is hope for them in the form of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for dental phobia.
How Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy helps Dental Phobia
CBT, or cognitive-behavioral therapy, is a common form of mental health treatment that helps manage various concerns. Phobias such as dental phobia have shown significant responsiveness to this form of treatment. Therapists working with these patients use various techniques to help them learn to manage their stress and anxiety. Those who receive CBT to help them cope with the symptoms of dental phobia have reported the following results:
- Limited Dental Anxiety Symptoms – CBT effectively reduces dental phobia symptoms after just a few months of receiving treatment. Fewer symptoms mean less worry, fear of the dentist, and better dental care.
- Boosted Life Quality – Eliminating dental anxiety symptoms helps improve the patient’s overall quality of life. Getting adequate dental care without having to struggle with powerful feelings of anxiety means less dental discomfort and better smile aesthetics.
- Better Experiences At The Clinic – Reducing or eliminating symptoms of dental phobia leads to better patient experiences while receiving care. The dentist can provide the full scope of care due to this reduction in symptoms.
There’s more to receiving CBT than just improvements in dental phobia symptoms. Even when this is the primary reason for their visit, the fundamentals taught with CBT can impact all areas of life. This leads to better management of stress and anxiety from all sources. The nature of CBT treatment also opens avenues to other forms of treatment that can address concerns in all areas of their life.
Avoid The Consequences of Dental Phobia With CBT
Failing to address your dental anxiety can have lifelong consequences for your oral health. The symptoms of dental anxiety may prevent you from getting the appropriate care. Without regularly scheduled cleanings and check-ups at the hands of your dentist, concerns may not be getting addressed. Catching tooth decay and gum disease as early in their development as possible helps treat and prevent those symptoms. These benefits require you to see your dentist twice a year and get the necessary preventative care. Addressing the symptoms of dental anxiety will also allow patients to get orthodontic concerns treated, providing them with healthier, more beautiful smiles.
