How To Help Your Children Overcome Their Fear Of The Dentist

Some children are afraid of spiders, others of flying in airplanes. Some are afraid of heights, others of the darkness. And of course, many children have developed a fear of the dentist.

These fears are the product of external influences. They are often the result of adults’ attitudes and opinions that affect the children in their lives.

In other words, fear of the dentist can arise because of the image that adults project. At the same time, it can simply be the result of a fear of the unknown.

In fact, the fear of sitting in the dentist’s chair is even a disease recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO). According to the organization, about 15% of the population suffers from this phobia.

Furthermore, the WHO indicates that the fear of dentists is largely due to bad experiences during childhood.

The Hebrew University of Jerusalem conducted a study on children and dental fear. They focused their research specifically on the factors that affect children’s experience during a dental visit. To conduct their study, they monitored the anxiety levels of children who went on a routine visit to the dentist to have their teeth cleaned.

Some of the children were received in a colorful environment with music and other distractions. The rest of the children were taken into a regular room without any special preparations. The study showed that the anxiety lasted for only one and a half minutes in the children who received their dental care in the room with colors and music.

Suggestions on how to help your children overcome their fear of the dentist

The fact that children develop this fear will depend a lot on the dentist’s treatment of their young patients. Below we give you some tips on how to help your children overcome the fears they may have.

• Let your children know that everything will go well.

• Reward your child’s good behavior.
• Do not use expressions that may make your child think of negative things. For example, do not say things like: They will not hurt you. It will not feel so much. They will not give you a syringe , etc. These phrases only plant these thoughts in your child’s head when they probably would not have thought of them themselves.
• Choose a dentist who specializes in children. That way you know that the environment will be more child-friendly and less scary for small patients.
• Play dentist at home. Let your child pretend to be a dentist while you are the patient. Then switch roles. Your child may also pretend to examine his or her stuffed animals and teddy bears. These role-playing games make it easier for children to handle and process the situation.
• Watch children’s programs about dental visits or read a book about it. If the child receives more information, there is less risk that he or she perceives it as something unknown and therefore dangerous.

• If your child needs to go to the dentist and an older sibling also has an appointment, let the older sibling go first. In the meantime, your younger child can witness the meeting and see that nothing dangerous will happen.

How do you handle your child’s first dental visit?

It is important that children visit the dentist regularly from their first birthday. At that time, a dentist can evaluate if the child has any cavities and observe if there are any problems with your child’s bite. Starting a child’s dental care from such a young age gives you a great advantage.

Parents should teach their children the importance of good dental hygiene and teach them the habits they need to maintain it.

It is not enough to just brush your baby’s teeth at home. You should also take your child to the dentist regularly to get professional dental care.

As parents, we must do our part to prevent the fear from getting worse or worse. During your son or daughter’s first visit, do your best to convey peace and security. Help your child feel comfortable and calm at the dentist instead of arousing fear.

Parental responsibility

In most cases, the fear of the dentist is completely normal. It can be the result of a previous negative experience or simply a fear of the unknown.

However, it is not good for children to be afraid of the dentist during their first visit. If they’ve never been to the dentist, why should we let them be afraid?

Sometimes parents are inadvertently responsible for this fear. For example, many parents use the dentist as a threat. We say things like, “If you keep eating so much candy, you have to go to the dentist” or “The dentist will not be happy when she sees your teeth.”

When we say these things, we use the dentist as punishment.

Advice and tips:

• Never use the dentist as a threat or punishment, nor should you tell your child about negative and frightening experiences from dental visits.
• Do not talk about the dentist with phrases that only scare the child. For example, do not say “He will not hurt you.”
• Teach your child about dental hygiene from an early age and involve your dentist in the process.
• Help your child understand that going to the dentist is for his or her own benefit.