My husband has been avoiding the dentist for the last three years. The last time he went in was quite the negative experience for him. Now he’s stopped going. He tries to blame it on finances, but I know it’s really because he’s too afraid to go back. Is there a way I can help get him back to the dentist?

Julie B. – Carson City

Julie,

Negative experiences at the dentist leave a lasting impact.  It’s sweet that he wants to appear brave and self-sacrificing to you. I bet there’s a way you could help him keep his pride while getting him back in the dental chair.

My recommendation would be to get information on sedation dentistry into his hand. A simple internet search will help you locate dentists who offer that in your area. You’ll likely even find your current dentist offers sedation. They sometimes advertise as sedation dentists or cater to cowards dentists.

If you’re worried about embarrassing him, you could print out some information and leave it around for him to find. Or, you could tell him you heard about how you could have completely pain free dentistry with sedation and were thinking about checking it out.

This blog is brought to you by Dr. Don Swearingen.