Is it possible to make visiting the dentist a pleasure and the sound of the drill bit soothing? Dentists in the West argue that in their offices the slogan "drilling" is no longer a synonym of pain - more and more often they use the newest method of treating teeth - hypnosis.
At the threshold of the 21st century, thanks to the achievements of modern dentistry, most procedures are carried out painlessly, and a visit to the dentist's is no longer associated with stress. As late as 1996, the American Society for the Study of Anxiety and Phobia before the Dentist proved that over 60 percent. of the respondents feel anxiety and even fear of the dentist. In order to calm down stressed patients, dentists had used, for example, laughing gas, which distracted attention from the badly associated surroundings and definitely improved the mood. The gas induces shallow anesthesia and replaces painful local anesthesia. Equally effective in the fight againsttoothacheis the use of virtual reality in dental offices - the patient with the help of special glasses moves into the world of games or movies and forgets about fear. Unfortunately, not every dentist can afford quite expensive additional equipment for the office. Today,dentistsincreasingly focus onhypnosis .
In Germany, this method may soon prove to be the only way to fill up the waiting rooms of dentists' offices. The local doctors found out that it is not enough to take care of the patient's teeth only, but also their mental state. Instead of the traditional "horse" dose of anesthesia, they propose light hypnosis, which makes the patient fully relaxed during the procedure. - The most important thing in this method is mutual trust between the hypnotist and the person sitting in the chair. During the introductory interview, I make sure that the patient is willing to undergo hypnosis, then slowly direct his gaze to the beam of light from a tiny flashlight. When the hypnotized person involuntarily closes their eyes, I make them remember the most pleasant event in their life and call it three words - slogans. Patients most often remember the first contact with their baby, when they hug them to their breasts shortly after giving birth, their wedding day or their first love.
The sounds of nature drown out the noise of the drill
When their thoughts slide into these moments, I put on my Walkman headphones andadditionally, I soothe, for example, with the sounds of nature - the noise of the forest, mountain waterfalls or the sounds of whales and dolphins. Only then do I proceed to the procedure, explains Dr. Erwin Printz, a German dentist. In his opinion, despite the fact that the patient hears the characteristic grinding of the drill, his subconsciousness makes him mix it with music and pictures, thanks to which drilling does not cause anxiety. The choice of music is also important here - some melodies allow patients to almost completely control their anxiety and lead to positive impressions. The music should be relaxing: characterized by a gentle melodic line, poorly marked rhythm and delicate sound. Perfect is, among others "Moonlight Sonata" by Ludwig van Beethoven, "Siciliana" by Johann Sebastian Bach or Sting's hit "Shape of my heart". Dan Gibson's series "Solitudes" is also popular, gathering the sounds of nature on over 30 CDs (screaming of an eagle, flight of wild geese, singing of swans, purring of a lion or rustling leaves), the background of which are the most famous hits of classical music.
Borowanie during trance
During hypnosis procedures, the patient is in a trance state, and then their subjective perception of pain is reduced. The hypnotized person is silenced and isolated from the stimuli coming from the environment. Looking into the patient's eyes, soothing music or monotonous utterance of certain words block the influence of the reticular system on the cerebral cortex. The brain opens up to suggestions, metabolism and breathing slow down, blood pressure decreases, and muscles relax. - And most importantly - adrenaline does not jump - adds Dr. Printz. In the mouth, bleeding is much less than with normal anesthesia, and small wounds heal much faster. According to dentists, about 90 percent. patients can be hypnotized, with the exception of the handicapped and young children, because they cannot concentrate on the hypnotist's voice and do not understand what the doctor really wants to do. On the other hand, women turn out to be the most susceptible, as people full of fantasy and having good concentration abilities. This method, in turn, should not be recommended to those who associate hypnosis with incapacitation and people for whom an anesthetic injection becomes almost a ritual, without which they lose their sense of security.
About a thousand German doctors are already involved in the use of hypnosis in dental offices. However, the hours spent in the armchair without pain or fear are unfortunately quite expensive. The price of the procedure can be as high as 400 Euro. Cost of stress-free and painless treatmentteeth are not covered by he alth insurance.