When going to the dentist, a lot of times you just sit in a chair and stare at the ceiling. That is of course if you are comfortable with the dentist or dental hygienist and know what is going on. For most people, dentistry is just something that has to be done. But as a patient, do we really need to remember the whole ordeal? Can we just sleep through the procedure and wake up with a mouth without cavities and filled with durable, pearly teeth?
You’re in luck because many dentists are getting trained to do oral conscious sedation dentistry.
What is Sedation Dentistry?
To be thorough, there are many forms of sedation dentistry but the one that comes to my mind is the dentistry where you sleep (or almost completely be knocked out) and wake up not only revived but also relieved that the visit is over.
The most common method of “sleep dentistry” is oral conscious sedation where the dentist gives you a script or the pills themselves. They’re mainly sleeping pills that make your really drowsy. While sleeping, the dentist will complete the necessary work. That’s it.
Sometimes, the drug has some amnesia effects that literally causes you to forget a lot of what went on. For me, that’s a bonus but don’t count on it working for everyone.
That brings me to another point. Because every person’s body is different, you may experience something very different than someone else. That is one of the challenges every dentist has when administering this type of dentistry. They must think, Do I give one or two or even three pills?
As a rule of thumb, the bigger the person the higher the dosage. But just like any drug or substance (take alcohol for instance) everyone reacts differently with sedation dentistry.
So if you are looking for a way to avoid the whining of the drill, or if you just want to “get it over with,” then consider sedation dentistry as your new option to google.
If you need to find a dentist that does this type of dentistry, just google “sedation dentist [your city]” and you’ll surely find one that will suit your needs.