Let’s imagine a patient. Let’s call him Bob.
Bob has a toothache. It’s been getting a little worse every day for a few weeks. The pain is not going away like Bob hoped it would. So, why hasn’t Bob done something about his bad tooth?
Like millions of Americans, Bob has a fear of the dentist. His dental anxiety makes it hard for Bob to make a dental appointment even it an emergency, much less for basic preventive care.
If Bob lived within driving distance of either of our dentist offices in West Liberty, IA, North Liberty, IA, or Muscatine, IA, we would encourage him to learn about our relaxation dentistry.
At Gentle Family Dentists, we offer free nitrous oxide to help our patients stay calm and pain-free throughout their visits with us. If you need something a little stronger, we can help with that, too.
To learn more about how relaxation dentistry could help you, contact us online or call us at 563-288-2612.
Why We Offer ‘Relaxation Dentistry’
Dr. Carol Moreno has been helping patients for several years. She has seen several patients who were clearly nervous about being there at each of our offices. Having grown up around the dentist office, her son, Dr. Robert Moreno, knows this as well.
Dental anxiety is a serious issue for many people around the country, including in our area. This is why it’s so important to us to have ways to help patients, like Bob from our introduction, who might have trouble getting the dental care that they need.
Relaxation dentistry is a natural extension of what we try to do. Our name — Gentle Family Dentists — lets you know that we are making your dental care as pain-free as we possibly can.
We Want You To Feel Comfortable
We hope this is apparent when you walk through our door. You will be treated with compassion and understanding by our staff of caring and highly-trained professionals.
But we know that’s not always enough to help patients feel at ease sitting in a dentist chair. That’s why we also offer a variety of comfort options, including:
■ Televisions
■ Headphones
■ Blankets
■ Pillows
■ Warm towels after your care
We’ve also adopted state-of-the-art technology that makes dental care easier to handle. With our equipment, we can make digital impressions of your mouth without any of those gag-inducing trays filled with bad-tasting goop.
If you are worried that we might use “the drill,” don’t. We use air abrasion to remove tooth decay instead. For patients with gum infections, we treat you with soft tissue lasers instead of surgery.
For many patients, our focus on patient comfort is just what they need to stay calm and receive the care they need to keep their mouths healthy.
If that’s not enough, we have a few more options you should know about.
Relaxing With Laughing Gas Or Medication
In the introduction of this post, we mentioned that we offer free nitrous oxide for all our patients. You may know this better as “laughing gas.”
Dentists and other medical professionals have been using nitrous oxide to help patients for more than century, believe it or not. There are some great reasons why.
First and foremost, breathing laughing gas fills people with a sense of calm. For many, this also comes with a sense of joy, which is how it earned its nickname.
Second, laughing gas will prevent you from feeling pain. As long as you are breathing nitrous oxide, you won’t feel any pain during your treatment, whether you are getting a dental cleaning or you need to fix a problem, such as Bob’s toothache.
Laughing gas also can prevent you from gagging, and some patients have learned that they have little or no memory of their treatment. More than one patient has told us this is a benefit of relaxation dentistry.
And when the gas is turned off, you can feel like yourself again in just a matter of minutes.
If you are undergoing a more complex treatment or you have severe dental anxiety, we may recommend a dose of oral medication instead. You should be aware that this is stronger and the effects will last longer than nitrous oxide.
If you receive oral medication, you will have the same pain-blocking and calming benefits, but you will need to arrange for someone else to drive you to and from our office. You should plan to rest for a bit after you get home, too.
We Can Make Dental Care Easier For You
If you are like Bob or you know someone like Bob, call Gentle Family Dentists today at 563-288-2612 or contact us online. Talk to us about what makes you anxious about dental care, and ask how we can make it easier for you to get the dental care that you deserve.
