At St. Mary’s Dental in Mechanicsville, we strive to provide an anxiety-free atmosphere for all our patients. If you’ve been avoiding dental visits because of previous bad experiences or severe apprehension, let the friendly staff at St. Mary’s Dental reassure you!
Benefits of Sedation Dentistry
Safety | Dental sedation is extremely safe because you remain somewhat conscious, breathe independently, and you can still respond to physical or verbal cues during the procedure. Natural reflexes operate normally so that you can communicate any pain to the sedation dentist. Dental sedation can also reduce the risk of other medical conditions occurring during the procedure (heart problems, stroke, etc.) because of your lowered stress level.
Time Efficiency | Many patients put off extensive dental work because they can’t fit multiple visits into their schedule. Using dental sedation, your sedation dentist may be able to complete the needed treatments in one or two long visits. Because of the amnesia effect of the sedation medication, many patients feel like the procedure has been a few minutes—even if it has taken hours!
Patient Comfort | If you struggle to sit for long periods of time, dental sedation can relax your sore neck or back muscles for a more comfortable experience. As anxiety and fear are reduced, physical comfort is accompanied by mental and emotional ease.
Amnesia Effect | Most of the dental sedation medications create a temporary amnesia effect, to ensure that you remember little if anything about your dental visit. While your sedation dentist will strive to make your experience as pleasant as possible, many patients prefer to block out the memory of their visit completely.
High Quality Dental Care | Because dental sedation keeps you still and relaxed for a long period of time, it allows your sedation dentist to work more quickly and effectively.
Less Pain | While dental sedation medications do not contain a pain-numbing agent, your pain tolerance should naturally increase once your anxiety decreases. However, your sedation dentist may still administer local anesthetic after you have been sedated to ensure additional comfort.
Our Sedation Dentistry Options
The compassionate professionals at St. Mary’s Dental not only create a comfortable place, with music, blankets, and pillows, for you to receive treatment, but we also provide all the hand-holding you need. And with our sedation dentistry options, we can give you the state of relaxation required to ease your way through your entire appointment.
Laughing Gas Dental Sedation
Laughing gas is administered by trained, licensed individuals. It’s safe, effective, and easy. The effects wear off soon after your appointment, so you can drive yourself home and return to your daily tasks.
Oral Conscious Sedation
If you need multiple procedures or suffer extreme anxiety, then the dentists at St. Mary’s Dental may prescribe you a sedative. You take the pill an hour before your appointment. You’ll be able to respond to the dentist, but most patients don’t remember their treatments at all. If you have oral conscious sedation, you will need a driver to take you home.
Is Sedation Dentistry Right for Me?
Whether or not you struggle with dental fear, sedation dentistry has a wide variety of benefits that ensure a calm and relaxed dental experience for almost any patient. The best way to determine whether sedation dentistry is for you is to visit with an experienced sedation dentist like Drs. McCray and Demer.
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