dental anxiety

Relax, Sedation Dentistry Will Wash Away Your Fears!

By on June 19, 2016

Welcome back to the Really Smile blog!

We are your trusted source for gentle dental care in the Carmel, Indiana area.

If you live in the region and feel ill at ease about visiting the dentist, you should know that we can help make it easy for you to get the kind of care you deserve.

Without regular cleanings and exams, you won’t be able to keep up with your oral health needs, and worse yet, you will have no idea what is going on in your mouth. You could be walking around with cancer or periodontal disease and you would never know until it is too late for conservative treatments. Plus, you would probably offend most people you meet with your breath. And your smile would not look as good as it should.

But don’t feel bad. We aren’t trying to bring you down. Obviously, you aren’t the only person in the Hoosier State afflicted by this problem. Fear of the dentist (dental phobia) is quite commonplace all across the country. While from an outside perspective it can seem irrational, there are reasons enough why it takes hold. It can more often than not be the direct result of prior bad experiences at the dentist’s office, the sort that leave an indelible scar. Regardless of how these fears enter your life, the obstacles they create can be difficult to overcome. But unless you want to set yourself up for real trouble later, it is a good idea to try to work through your anxiety now.

Like we said, we aren’t like everyone else around here. For over 30 years, under the leadership of Dr. Smith, the Really Smile crew has been changing lives in this community through comprehensive dentistry services and personal care. Our genuine relationships with our patients are what set us apart from the other dentists in the area. If you give us a chance to change your life for the better, you will quickly see that our compassionate team and comfortable office environment are disarming. What’s more, we will go the extra mile to help you relax when you are here.

Sedation Dentistry Alleviates Fear

Besides treating you kindly, we have other ways of sidestepping your dental anxiety. We can actually provide you with sedation dentistry in conjunction with all of our procedures, if that would help. Oral sedation is completely safe and easy to take. You will only need to swallow a pill a little while before the scheduled procedure. With oral conscious sedation, you will be sedated but still awake and able respond as necessary. But you will have little to no memory of the treatment or why you were ever afraid in the first place.

Let Us Get The Job Done!

In addition to calming anxiety, there are other reasons why sedation dentistry might be good for you. If you have an uncontrollable gag reflex, shaky legs, or who are coming in for multiple procedures, sedation makes a lot of sense.

To schedule your gentle dental appointment in Carmel, Indiana, contact us today! We can’t wait to see your smiling face.

Beat Back Dental Fear Without Any Drugs At All!

By on January 29, 2016

Let’s face it: dentistry can be scary. A lot of people include visits to offices just like our Carmel one to be on the top of their “things I don’t want to do” list. And we understand – dental care can be invasive, uncomfortable, and downright painful sometimes.

We don’t want you to develop such a fear of the dentist that you avoid regular dental care. Twice annual exams are an essential part of good dental health, and good dental health is essential to a healthy, happy life. We want to help you find relief for dental anxiety at Really Smile Dentistry, and we’d love to help you do it without any need for anesthesia or drugs.

Relief Without Drugs: How?

Dental care is scary, and there’s plenty of people who are scared of anesthesia as well. If the idea of being put under fills you with dread then we want to help you find relief without the need for gas, pills, or an IV. It’s possible, but you have to really analyze where your fear comes from.

Think back on where your dental anxiety originated: can you remember? It could have been a bad experience as a child, a movie or TV show that frightened you, or stories that you heard from a friend or family member.

To be honest, it doesn’t really matter where your fear originated or what exactly it is. the important part is knowing where your fear lives: in the past.

Confronting Your Past To Conquer Your Fears

All of the bad dental experiences you’ve had, the movies that scared you, or the stories that made your teeth hurt just hearing them all have one thing in common: they have nothing to do with the present day or your future dental care. It can be hard to look at anxiety-provoking topics like this, but it’s an important thing to do if you want to beat them.

Getting over your dental fears is the same as conquering any other anxiety, fear, or phobia: once you realize you’re obsessing over a particular incident you can see it for what it is: a past experience that doesn’t deserve to command your future life. Your decisions about your dental care should be yours to make without the worry of pain or discomfort: there’s no reason that your next visit to our office will feel like that one that scares you – we’ll make sure of it!

It’s easy to generalize a fear based on one bad experience – we all do it from time to time. We’re scared to ask someone out because we were rejected before, or we don’t want to get behind the wheel because of a previous accident. But we get over those things eventually. If we don’t we tend to realize we have a problem!

Put your fear of dentistry where it belongs: in your past! You have it in you to clear the slate and realize that there’s no reason to assume your dental care experience will be painful, uncomfortable, or anxiety-provoking. We’ll try hard to make your experience good – all you need to do is face it with an open mind!

Still Scared Of Dentistry And Drugs? There’s Another Option

We do offer dental sedation at our office, but if you’re scared of drugs there’s an alternative treatment that we’re proud to make available: the NuCalm relaxation system.

NuCalm is a blend of therapies that combine to put you in a relaxed, sleep-like state that is completely drug free. It might sound odd at first, but NuCalm has made many of our patients completely comfortable with treatments that previously filled them with dread.

NuCalm uses a calming dietary supplement combined with microcurrent patches placed behind your ears, white noise headphones, and light-blocking eyeglasses. All four parts work together to put you in a deeply relaxed, trance-like state that has been described as feeling like being on the verge of sleep. You can stay in that relaxed state of mind until your procedure is over, at which point you’ll feel back to normal instantly – no side effects at all.

Dentistry Doesn’t Need To Be Frightening

We want you to get the necessary dental care you need to have a healthy mouth and a pleasant visit. We’ve designed our entire practice around being a relaxing, welcoming place that will feel like anywhere but a dentist office. We truly want to make you feel good about dentistry!

To find out what we can do to ease your fears don’t hesitate to call Really Smile Dentistry at 317-451-4050 or request an appointment by filling out our online form. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Scared Of The Dentist? Let Us Help!

By on October 12, 2015

One of the most common things we see at Really Smile is patients who are scared of the dentist. Being nervous about dental care is a common phenomenon for patients around the world and it’s no different right here in Indianapolis!

There are quite a few reasons that patients are scared of the dentist and there are also a lot of ways we can help make your treatment easier! If you’ve been delaying dental care for any reason we want to help you get the care you need to keep your teeth healthy. Being proactive about your dental care might be anxiety-provoking but it’s still better than pain, decay, and costly procedures later on!

Why Are You Frightened?

Many patients experience fear for the same reasons. There might have been a bad experience in your past, a dentist who lectured you unfairly, financial worries, or simply anxiety about pain or someone rooting around in your mouth!

Whatever the reason for your fear we’ve based our entire practice around making you feel comfortable and at ease! Our staff are all trained and experienced in treating patients with dental anxiety and phobia. We only hire staff who show compassion, care, and a constructive attitude toward patient concerns!

How Can We Make You Feel Better?

For many patients fear relief is as simple as a good environment, caring staff, and full understanding of the care they’re going to receive. If you consider yourself in this camp we’re confident you’ll feel better the moment you greet our front office staff and see how committed we are to great patient care!

We treat patients like members of a care team. We never make decisions without your input: think of our team like facilitators! We want to work with you to get you the care you need when you need it and exactly how you want it!

If your concerns are financial we’re glad to work with you! We offer multiple financing solutions and we’re also glad to help you take care of insurance paperwork and claims. It can be intimidated to be faced with all those rules and regulations but we know exactly how they work!

Still Scared?

If you read that and thought “that’s great, but I’m still terrified of the dental work itself,” then we’re glad to go the extra mile with dental sedation options. You’d never undergo a complicated medical procedure without sedation so why should dentistry be any different? We offer several different sedation solutions to make your procedures go smoothly!

Nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, is the most common form of dental sedation. It’s delivered through a nosepiece that you wear during your procedure and provides a deep, relaxing level of relief. You’ll still be awake while under the effects of nitrous oxide but you’ll feel sleepy, carefree, and completely at ease! One of the best parts about nitrous oxide is that it wears off almost immediately – you’ll be able to drive home without any trouble and with the knowledge that your visit was stress-free!
Oral sedation is delivered in the form of a pill and provides a much deeper level of relaxation than nitrous oxide. We’ll prescribe you a pill during your initial consultation that you’ll take shorty before coming in to our office. By the time you sit down in the chair you’ll be feeling drowsy and relaxed! Oral sedation lasts longer than nitrous oxide and puts you into a much deeper level of sedation. You’ll still be awake but you’ll be pretty out of it! Oral sedation is also an amnesic, meaning that you probably won’t remember your procedure at all!

We also offer non-chemical sedation in the form of NuCalm. This revolutionary treatment uses a series of stimuli to distract you and put you into a state that feels exactly like the sensation you have as you drift off to sleep in the evening. It consists of:

an oral supplement that contains a blend of naturally relaxing herbs and compounds.
low-level electrical stimulation that simulates your brain activity right before falling asleep.
light-blocking glasses that help trick your brain into thinking it’s time for bed.
noise-cancelling headphones that produce constant, relaxing sounds that help you forget all about the things going on around you.

We Want To Make Your Care Great!

Don’t keep away from the dentist just because you’re nervous. We genuinely want to make your experience great and we are willing to do whatever it takes to make you feel completely at ease! It doesn’t matter why you’ve been putting off dental care – we’ll work hard to make you feel good about the future of your oral health!

Do your smile a favor and schedule an appointment at our Carmel dentist office today. We’re also happy to talk about all our anxiety relief options! Call us at 317-451-4050 or request an appointment by filling out our online form.

Don’t Fear the Dentist

By on September 17, 2015

We understand how frightening dentistry can be – we do it every day! At Really Smile Dentistry we’ve seen countless patients who were uncomfortable with their care. With countless people scared of the dentist it’s part of our jobs to make sure that your care is comfortable, pain-free, and understanding of your fears and anxieties!

Modern dental technology, combined with a good old fashioned personal touch, has been able to resolve a lot of the common fears that dental patients face. That’s not always enough though, which is why we’ve designed our entire Carmel dentist office around great patient care!

What’s Your Dental Fear?

For many patients a fear of the dentist can be traced back to bad past experiences. Whether it was a rude dentist, a painful experience, or just bad results that experience can be scarring! At our Carmel dentist office we have a staff of highly skilled and compassionate individuals who exist to make your visit great! We always take the time to make sure you’re happy with your care. We want you to feel relaxed and at home when you’re with us!

For other patients the dentist is a source of financial worry – how can you possibly afford the care you need?! We understand this fear as well – dental care can be very expensive! That’s why we have several payment options and a team who is incredibly knowledgeable about dental insurance! We’ll help you make sure you’re getting the most out of your benefits and we’ll even handle the paperwork for you!

It’s also common for patients to neglect regular dental visits for a variety of reasons. The longer you wait the more you might be worrying about getting a lecture but don’t worry about that with us! If you’re returning to dental care after a long absence we’re glad to have you back! We’ll never lecture you, talk down to you, or make you feel bad – we just want you to have healthy teeth!

Far more common is just a simple fear of the pain that dentistry can cause! Your mouth is sensitive and there’s no way you’re going to let someone hurt it, right? That fear can end up being responsible for serious damage to your teeth if you leave them untreated, which is why we’re glad to be able to offer sedation dentistry for our frightened patients!

What Is Sedation Dentistry?

Dental sedation is the ideal solution for patients who are simply too scared to face dental care. We can have you feeling relaxed, comfortable and fear-free with our three methods of dental sedation!

Nitrous oxide is the most basic level of sedation we offer. Also called laughing gas, we deliver nitrous oxide through a nosepiece that you’ll wear during your procedure. It takes effect quickly and wears off just as quick so you’ll be in and out with ease! Nitrous oxide will make you feel calm and relaxed while still leaving you awake. You’ll be aware of your dental procedure but you simply won’t care!

We also offer oral conscious sedation. This is delivered as a pill that you take prior to your appointment. By the time you sit down in your dental chair you’ll already be feeling relaxed! Oral sedation is quite a bit stronger than nitrous oxide, so it’s ideal for patients undergoing longer procedures or for those who are very scared.

Our last option for sedation is very different from the other two. In fact it involves no drugs at all! Called NuCalm, this method is more of a complete system than a simple pill or gas. It uses several components to induce a deep, relaxed state that feels similar to meditation or the feeling you have right before you fall asleep.

NuCalm starts with a chewable dietary supplement, like a vitamin, that help reduce adrenaline levels. We then attach a pair of microcurrent stimulation patches behind your ears. These patches deliver a low-level electric current that helps put your brain into a relaxed state. Lastly are noise-cancelling earphones that deliver soothing sounds and music and light-blocking sunglasses.

It sounds hard to believe, but NuCalm has helped a lot of our patients feel better without the use of drugs!

No Matter Your Fear We Can Help!

We’re confident that we can help you feel comfortable with your dental care. Whether you’ve had previous bad experiences, are scared of pain, or simply worry about your finances we can deliver great results!

If you want to schedule an appointment at Really Smile Dental you can call us at 317-451-4050 or fill out our online appointment request form. We look forward to seeing you soon!

Sedation Ends Frightening Dental Appointments

By on July 21, 2015

Are you afraid of the dentist? Does the thought of picking up the phone to call the dentist cause your heart to start thumping and your stomach to turn in knots? You are not alone, and you are not doomed to an unhealthy smile!

That’s right, there are ways for you to get the dental care you need without having to feel terrified during the entire visit! We have solutions at Really Smile here in Carmel, IN. Real, effective, and safe dental sedation solutions that will change your relationship with the dentist office (and your life) forever!

Today, let’s take a look at the reason why many patients feel fear of the dentist and what we can do to help you overcome that fear so that you can have a healthy smile that lasts for the rest of your life!

Past Experiences Cause Fear

Most patients who feel afraid of the dentist do so because of experiences in the past. Babies aren’t born being afraid. They develop fear based on experience and information they gather along the way. Below are the three main reasons for fear.

Painful Procedures – In the not so distant past (and still practiced today, unfortunately), dentists used procedures that were painful. They weren’t concerned with the way the patient felt; they were only concerned about getting the job done. If you experienced one of those procedures, it’s no wonder you are afraid to come back to the dentist office!

Childhood Fear – As we mentioned before, children learn their fears. If a young child has to undergo a dental procedure, even one as basic as a filling, it can lead to a lot of fear down the road.

Scary Stories – We have a group of people that we love, respect, and trust. Usually that is our family. If your grandparents, aunts, uncles, parents, or anyone else told you that going to the dentist is scary, then you believe them! It’s only natural! The problem is that you are too afraid to go to make up your own mind, and you end up with an unhealthy smile!

Building a New Experience

It’s time to build a new experience for yourself. We understand past experience. We know what it is like to fear the dentist. We are willing to help you overcome those fears so that you can have a great experience for the future. We want you to be able to enjoy life once again, which is why we are here with dental sedation options.

Sedation Options from Really Smile

No matter your level of fear or your health conditions, we have a sedation option for you! Take a look at our information below that will help you determine which method will lead to your successful dental appointment.

Nitrous Oxide – “Laughing gas” is commonly used in offices around the world. You have probably experienced it before. It’s great for simple procedures and mild fears, but not everyone is able to feel relaxed using this method.

Oral Conscious – A prescription sedative is given to you to take before you come into the office. This works well for patients with moderate to severe dental anxiety, but it can be difficult to control and adjust during your procedure. Plus, not everyone feel comfortable taking a drug in order to relax for their appointment.

General Anesthesia – For severe dental anxiety (or significant dental work) we offer general anesthesia to patients with the help of a licensed anesthesiologist. This is reserved for extreme cases because it is the very highest level of sedation available.

NuCalm Relaxation – For patients who want to feel relaxed during their appointment but don’t want to use prescription drugs, we offer NuCalm. This is a revolutionary technique that allows you to go into the first stage of sleep during your treatment. It is a four part process that uses adrenaline inhibitors, relaxation patches, noise-cancelling headphones, and an eye mask that blocks the light.

Find the Sedation Option That Works for You

Not sure which sedation option would be your best option? Let us know! We are more than happy to discuss your options in advance. Contact us today to learn more. We will start by learning more about you, and then we will get to work to find you the best sedation solution!

Dental Anxiety? Sedation Dentistry Can Help!

By on May 1, 2015

People have lots of anxiety and fear about a lot of things. If heights make you nervous, you might avoid looking out windows in tall buildings to help control that fear. However, if you have dental anxiety, you can’t just avoid going to the dentist. 60% of Americans have some level of dental anxiety that keeps them from the dental care they need. In our practice in Carmel, IN, we offer sedation and relaxation dentistry to help those who have significant anxiety related to going to the dentist.

If you avoid going to the dentist out of fear or anxiety, your oral health will begin to decline. That’s the biggest problem for people with dental anxiety: they avoid the dentist until they have a problem that can’t be ignored. At this point, a problem that might have been easily repaired months ago will now require more work (for the dentist) and greater expense (for the patient).

Nerves, Anxiety or Phobia?

Being a little nervous before an exam, cleaning, or procedure is natural, but just being nervous doesn’t mean you have actual dental anxiety. Nervousness won’t keep you out of the dental chair for regular exams or cleanings, or even more involved procedures.

Dental anxiety is characterized first by avoidance behavior. If you have dental anxiety, you’ll go to great lengths to put off going to the dentist. It’s recommended that you see your dentist at least twice a year for exams and cleanings. Keeping regular dental appointments is the key to preventing more serious problems with your teeth from happening. People suffering from dental anxiety will wait until they actually have a problem, and may even wait until it can’t be ignored.

If you suffer from dental anxiety, the feelings of dread can begin days before your actual appointment: just thinking about it can make you burst into tears, or you might even feel nauseated at just the thought of it. The night before your appointment, you’ll have difficulty staying asleep or getting to sleep at all. The next day, in the waiting room, the feeling grows and grows. By the time you’re in the dental chair, the terror becomes so great that when the dentist even puts a mirror in your mouth, you feel like you’re suffocating.

It can even be worse for the 5% to 8% of Americans who have dental phobia. These unfortunate folks won’t even think about going to the dentist. As a result, they often suffer from severe oral health problems. A person with dental anxiety can eventually pluck up the strength to make an appointment and come in (even though the experience is terrible for them). A person with dental phobia won’t even pick up the phone.

If we’ve described you in this post, we have solutions for you.

Relaxation Dentistry with Nu-Calm

Nu-Calm is a breakthrough in helping people manage their dental anxiety. It uses a combination of sensory stimulation and manipulation and adrenaline-canceling oral supplements to essentially trick your brain into thinking that it’s time to go to sleep, but you won’t conk out. Instead, your brain enters a “holding pattern” in the pre-sleep phase (the sensation of deep relaxation you feel when you’re just about to fall asleep).

Nu-Calm uses four components to do its job:

Oral Supplements: The oral supplements used in Nu Calm aren’t sedatives. They’re nutritional supplements that essentially turn off your “fight or flight response”, which normally causes adrenaline to be released (and making you feel anxious and panicky).

Microcurrent Stimulation: Small amounts of electric current are used to enhance the relaxation response. Your dentist will place small patches behind your ears to administer the current. This causes no pain or discomfort.

Sound: During your procedure, you’ll wear noise-canceling headphones. You’ll hear soothing music, but what you won’t hear is the neuroaccoustic software: specific frequencies of sound that are inaudible to you manipulates your brain waves and keeps them in the pre-sleep phase.

Sensory Deprivation: Last, your dentist will place an eye-mask that will keep light from disrupting your relaxation.

All these things come together to create a profound, drug-free state of relaxation that lasts throughout your entire procedure. Many patients report that the feeling of relaxation lasts hours, even days after the procedure!

Sedation Dentistry

We offer two kinds of sedation dentistry: oral sedation and inhalation dentistry. Your dentist will talk to you to determine which form of sedation is best for you.

Oral Sedation

Oral sedation is simple but very effective. Your dentist will provide you with a sedative drug that you’ll take about an hour before your appointment. This will induce a very strong sense of relaxation that will keep you calm during your procedure. You won’t ever lose consciousness but your awareness of what is actually going on will be limited.

Inhalation Sedation

Inhalation sedation is the form of sedation most people are familiar with. Commonly known as laughing gas, nitrous oxide is the “classic” sedation method you’ll find in most dental practices. It’s effects are similar to oral sedation. You’ll wear a small mask that fits over your nose, and the gas is administered through it after being mixed with oxygen.

Don’t Let Your Fear Ruin Your Teeth!

If dental anxiety or dental phobia have kept you out of the dentist’s chair and prevented you from getting the care you need, Really Smile Dentistry can help with relaxation and sedation dentistry!

Call us now at 317-451-4050, or you can use our online appointment form https://www.reallysmile.com/contact-us/make-an-appointment/.

dental anxiety

Meet the Doctor

Business Hours

Contact us

Connect!