Even though most modern dental treatments are pain-free, dental anxiety is still common. This fear of dental procedures is detrimental as it hinders patients from receiving the essential dental care they need and deserve. Fortunately, sedation dentistry can help you overcome dental anxiety.

Dr. Clint Bruyere, DDS in Longview, Texas, offers oral sedation dentistry to help patients who fear the dentist have a relaxed dental experience. Whether you have dental anxiety stemming from negative past experiences, fear of needles, strong gag reflex, or other factors, Dr. Clint Bruyere can help you combat dental fear.

Oral sedation for anxiety-free dentistry

Oral conscious sedation involves taking a prescription pill like Halcion or Valium about an hour before your dental appointment. Depending on the dosage, this prescription pill makes you mildly or moderately sedated. A sedative medication will not knock you out — you’ll remain awake to communicate with our dental team. However, you might doze lightly in the dental chair, but a slight nudge is enough to rouse you from your nap. 

Oral sedation makes you feel deeply relaxed, drowsy, and “out of it.” This way, the dentist works on you while you remain patiently seated in the dental chair. Oral sedation is ideal for lengthy and complex procedures because patients can tolerate the treatment without realizing the passage of time. 

Sedative pills can make you feel groggy all day, so you need someone to accompany you in and out of our office. Additionally, it is important to refrain from engaging in strenuous activities or driving for at least 24 hours until the sedative effects have completely worn off from your system.

Advantages of oral sedation

Oral sedation decreases activity in the parts of the brain that control anxiety and fear. This calms your nerves, allowing the dentist to give you much-deserved dental care. 

Oral sedation offers many advantages, including:

• It’s easy to administer — you just take a pill, and that’s it!
• No needles involved — no worry of being pricked to administer treatment.
• The amnesia effect — while you remain awake during treatment, you’ll have little memory of what went on during treatment.
• Safety — oral sedation uses FDA-approved medication for treatment.
• Versatility — your dentist can alter dosage to suit your level of dental anxiety. 

Dental fear is very common and challenging to deal with. Nevertheless, there is a solution to help you overcome this fear and safeguard your dental health: sedation dentistry. To learn more about sedation dentistry in Longview, TX, please call (903) 708-6116 to talk to the team at Dr. Clint Bruyere, DDS.

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